How Restaurant Financing Works With a Broker

The process, step by step

1. Complete the short application

Our application takes about five minutes. It asks what kind of hospitality business you run, how long you have been open, your average monthly revenue, how many locations you have, how much you need, what the money is for and when you need it. There is no SSN or EIN on the form. Start the application.

2. Upload three months of business bank statements

Statements are the fastest way for lenders to understand a restaurant: deposits, consistency, balances and existing debt payments. You can upload PDFs or photos securely with your application, or send them later if you do not have them handy. Uploads go to private, access-controlled storage, never to an email inbox.

3. Scott reviews your file

Scott Jordan, a commercial loan broker since 2009, reviews your application and statements to understand what you need and what is realistic. Sometimes the best fit is obvious: equipment financing for a kitchen package, or an SBA loan for a long-term build-out. Sometimes it takes a combination. Sometimes the honest answer is that waiting a few months, or paying down an existing advance, will get you a much better deal, and we will say so.

4. We match you with lenders and collect what they need

Lenders differ in what they fund, how fast they move and what documents they require. We approach the lenders whose current programs fit your profile, tell you exactly what each one needs, and collect documents once rather than having you fill out the same forms several times. For larger loans, that may include tax returns, financial statements, a debt schedule, a lease, contractor bids or equipment quotes.

5. Review offers side by side

When offers come back, we lay them out in the same format: amount, term, payment size and frequency, total cost, fees, collateral and guarantees, and expected funding timing. You choose. Checking your options does not obligate you to accept anything.

6. Close and fund

Once you accept an offer, the lender completes its process, which may include final underwriting, a credit review, an appraisal or site visit, and closing documents. The lender funds the loan, not us. We stay involved to keep things moving and answer questions.

Realistic timelines

We do not promise funding times, because they depend on the product, the lender and how quickly documents come together. As a general guide:

• Revenue-based and some working capital programs can move in days once a file is complete.
• Equipment financing often takes about one to two weeks, depending on the vendor and amount.
• Term loans from private lenders usually take days to a few weeks.
• SBA, bank, real estate and construction loans usually take several weeks or more, because of underwriting, appraisals and closing.

The biggest factor you control is document readiness. Clean, complete statements and quick responses to lender questions shave real time off the process.

What it costs to use a broker

Brokers are typically compensated by the lender or through a fee disclosed before you accept an offer. Any fee you would pay is disclosed in writing before you commit. On SBA loans, any broker or agent compensation must be disclosed on SBA Form 159. [CONFIRM WITH SCOTT: exact compensation model and wording] See our broker disclosure for details.

What we will not do

• We will not promise approval, rates or funding times before a lender has reviewed your file.
• We will not push you toward an expensive product when a cheaper one fits and the timing works.
• We will not collect your SSN or EIN on our website form. Lenders collect what they need through their own secure applications.
• We will not email your bank statements around. Files are stored privately and shared only with lenders you are being considered by.