Credit Lines and Credit Cards function almost the exact same. One big difference is that credit cards offer reward points and intro rates of 0%, credit lines typically don’t. But you can use credit lines to get cash advances at much lower rates than with credit cards. Also credit lines are single accounts with a higher limit, whereas credit cards usually have lower limits… but you can get more cards. Having a higher limit and low rates for cash advance are the main benefits. But this is more of a FULL DOC program, where as other cards we’ve mentioned are more NO DOC.

You may be facing a choice between applying for an unsecured working capital loan or a conventional bank loan, and weighing the pros and cons. If so, then one of the key aspects you definitely want to analyze is collateral.

Why Banks Demand Collateral

As you may know, banks offset the risk of lending onto borrowers by demanding that they collateralize the loan with assets such as property, vehicles, equipment, securities and so on.

However, an extremely important point that some business owners aren’t aware of when they apply for a collateralized small business loan from their bank, is that they might not see eye-to-eye on certain aspects. Specifically, there are 3 common stumbling blocks that many business owners trip over -- and often through no fault of their own:

1. Disagreements on an asset value.

If you’ve ever shopped for a home, a used car (or even sometimes a new one!), or any other “big ticket” item, you’re aware that prices can vary; and...

One of the most shocking things that small and mid-sized business owners discover – as with talk with them on a daily basis – is that the bank business loan application process is excessively long. We’re talking several months here, not weeks.

What’s behind the massive delay? It’s that banks frankly don’t want to give business loans to small and mid-sized business owners. They want to focus on larger businesses with deep pockets, and of course, boosting commercial and residential mortgages, selling mutual funds and other investments, and promoting their beloved HELOCs. 

Of course, banks don’t want to come out and tell small and mid-sized business owners to take a hike. It’s not good public relations. And so they’ve made their business loan application process excessively, and in many cases prohibitively long. At the same time, they’ve dramatically hiked their business loan requirement criteria, and the due...

Business credit is a great way to get money as approvals are not based on personal credit. Business credit reports usually get started with a few vendor accounts who will initially offer credit. Initial accounts create tradelines and a credit profile and score are established. The company’s new profile and score are used to get credit. Newly obtained credit is based on the company’s credit per the EIN, not the owner’s credit based on the SSN. Personal credit doesn’t matter as the credit linked to the EIN is used for approval. When you use vendors to build your initial credit, you can then leave your SSN off of the application and can apply for business credit based solely on your EIN at most retail stores. Plus, you can get cash credit also, like high-limit cards with MasterCard and Visa. But building business credit all starts with vendor accounts. Without them, you won’t be able to start your credit profile initially, and that profile being...