Fort Washington, Maryland Business Loan

Prior to contacting banks for a loan, you will need to have a specific plan.

You need to be able to clearly introduce your business to the banker, explain how much you want to borrow, define how the money will be used, and show how you intend to to pay the money back to the bank.

A well-defined business plan is is critically important. If the bank loan is to for a going concern, you should also have financial statements covering the last three years. You will also need to discuss what collateral you have available to secure the loan. Collateral is relevant because banks always want to be prepared for a worst-case scenario in which cash flow from the business does not meet your projections.

If the business has few assets, you will likely be asked to pledge your personal assets, such as the equity in your home. The banks will check on your personal credit history in any case, so hopefully you have good credit history -- you may want to get a copy of your credit history prior to meeting with the banker.

Many of these banks are SBA lenders. Before you sit down to talk with a small business banker, you may want to get up to speed on SBA loans programs to see if you qualify. SBA 7(a) loans, SBA 504 loans and SBA disaster assistance loans may be available to you.

To help you learn more about local small business lenders, here's our list of small business banks in Fort Washington.

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This website is devoted to providing advice to small business owners, and we have a lot of resources related to to Raising Money. To learn more, one article that might be of interest to you is 504 Loans.