{"id":193383,"date":"2018-10-11T09:18:58","date_gmt":"2018-10-11T16:18:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nationalfunding.com\/blog\/?p=193383"},"modified":"2023-11-01T10:06:31","modified_gmt":"2023-11-01T17:06:31","slug":"financing-options-small-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nationalfunding.com\/blog\/financing-options-small-business\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Choose a Lender for Small Business Financing"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>This article is part of a series in which a National Funding customer shares their insights on finding a loan specialist, giving back to the community and expanding one&#8217;s business.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Money is the lifeblood of any business, and financing options for a small business can be confusing. Cheryl Dailey, co-owner of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.masterhandymanohio.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Master Handyman, LLC<\/a>, a Cleveland, Ohio-based commercial repair company, would know.<\/p>\n<p>Recently, Cheryl and partner Dan Dailey wanted a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalfunding.com\/small-business-loans\/\">small business loan<\/a> to help with cash flow. They interviewed several small business lenders and chose loan specialist Christine Baeza of National Funding.<\/p>\n<p>During their hunt, Cheryl came across some ways to tell if a lender is a good fit.<\/p>\n<h2>Look for the Right Partner, Not Just the Right Funding<\/h2>\n<p>The best thing owners can do is to find small business lenders that complement their business and act as a partner in their growth.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Small business owners should surround themselves with people who are interested in their success,&#8221; says Cheryl. &#8220;Dan found National Funding online and reached out initially. I took over from there. Christine took the time to find out what we were looking for instead of pushing what she had to offer. It felt like a partnership instead of a sales pitch.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"Cheryl Dailey found National Funding by searching for financing options for a small business\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nationalfunding.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/dsc00279.jpg\" alt=\"Outside shot of a smiling Cheryl Dailey of Master Handyman\" width=\"602\" height=\"339\" \/><br \/>\n<em>Cheryl Dailey of Master Handyman, LLC<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>Make Sure Lenders Give You Some Breathing Room<\/h2>\n<p>&#8220;Some [lenders] were incredibly pushy,&#8221; says Cheryl. &#8220;Others refused to speak with me, insisting on speaking with Dan. They treated me like a gatekeeper and lied about conversations they had with Dan and paperwork I should send.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Cheryl and Dan were looking for a lender who was willing to interact with them on their terms.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This was our first business loan,&#8221; says Cheryl. &#8220;Christine got it that we were busy. She did a lot of communication by email and would call only when it was convenient for us. She listened to understand our business and needs from the beginning.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2>Do Your Own Research, and Read the Fine Print<\/h2>\n<p>&#8220;Unfortunately, there are predatory lenders who offer something that sounds great, but when you read the fine print you find the repayment is unrealistic with high interest,&#8221; Cheryl says.<\/p>\n<p>Christine also suggests conducting some research on your own.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Finding a good fit is important,&#8221; says Christine. &#8220;I advise customers to Google companies, take a look at sites like the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbb.org\/en\/us\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Better Business Bureau<\/a> and TrustPilot, and dig into lenders they&#8217;re considering.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"SWhtmlLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalfunding.com\/blog\/loan-search-business-loan-lenders\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Drowning out the noise<\/a> during your loan search can be difficult, with so many lenders vying for your attention. Heeding Cheryl&#8217;s advice next time you&#8217;re on the hunt could leave you with a financing ally for years down the road.<\/p>\n<p><em>As part of our series, learn how National Funding&#8217;s <a class=\"SWhtmlLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalfunding.com\/small-business-loans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">small business financing<\/a> helped Master Handyman <a class=\"SWhtmlLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalfunding.com\/blog\/expand-business-new-markets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">expand into underserved markets<\/a> and <a class=\"SWhtmlLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalfunding.com\/blog\/businesses-giving-back-community\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">give back to their community<\/a>. You can also learn more about the company&#8217;s journey in our <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/5UmwejEKsbo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">video feature<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Financing options for a small business can be confusing. The best thing a business owner can do is to find a loan specialist who cares about their success.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":193381,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[67,114,14],"class_list":["post-193383","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-financial-health","tag-business-financing","tag-managing-your-cash-flow","tag-small-business-loans"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Financing Options for a Small Business: How to Choose a Lender<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Financing options for a small business can be confusing. 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