A 90-day plan to be lender-ready
By the AceTheSBA team
Most SBA applications that stall do not fail on the business. They stall on paperwork the owner did not know they needed. Starting this week means walking into a lender meeting twelve weeks from now with a complete file instead of a list of missing items.
Weeks 1 to 4: get your records straight
- Reconcile your books and produce a profit and loss statement and balance sheet
- Pull your credit reports and start any disputes
- Confirm every owner meets the citizenship and residency rule
- Check that every federal tax return has been filed
Weeks 5 to 8: build the package
- Business plan, with projections if you are new, buying or expanding
- Business debt schedule that matches your balance sheet
- A use of funds with quotes, contracts or invoices
- Your equity injection in a documented account
Weeks 9 to 12: talk to lenders
- Personal financial statements dated within 90 days of submission
- Interim financial statements dated within 120 days
- Meet at least two lenders and compare their offers side by side
The lender’s view
A complete, consistent file is faster to underwrite, and faster files get attention. Lenders prioritize applications they can approve.
Your move this week
Put the twelve weeks in your calendar today, with one task per week. The plan only works if each week has a date.
Where do you stand?
The SBA Readiness Report builds this plan for your business, ordered by impact, with a score that shows where you start. It takes six minutes and costs $19.99, and a free retake within 90 days shows how far you have moved.
This week’s tool
7(a) Loan Package
A complete 7(a) or SBA Express application package.
$129.00