Oak Creek, Wisconsin Small Business Loans

Before contacting banks to discuss getting a bank 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, describe what the money will finance, and show how you plan to pay the money back to the bank.

Being able to present a well-written business plan is is critically important. If the capital 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 guarantee 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 secure the business with 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 participate in the financial assistance programs available through the SBA. Prior to visiting local banks, 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 Oak Creek.

More Advice on Raising Money

This website is devoted to supporting small business owners, and we have a lot of information pertaining to to Raising Money. If raising money is on your to-do list, we would suggest you read Getting a Small Business Loan.