Guide topic
How to Review a Business Loan Offer
Checklists, red flags and the fine print to read before you sign.
The moment a lender sends an offer is the moment most owners stop reading carefully. The headline amount looks right, the money is needed, and the twelve pages of terms feel like a formality. They are not. The fees, security, guarantees and payout rules in those pages decide what the loan really costs you.
This series is the heart of Business Loan Reviews. Each guide takes one part of an offer and shows you what to look for, what is normal, what is a warning sign and what to ask before you sign.
Ready to talk about your own numbers? Make one enquiry; there is no credit check when you first enquire.
How to review a business loan offer before you sign
A step-by-step checklist for reviewing any business loan offer: total cost, fees, repayments, security, guarantees, payout terms and the default clauses.
Business loan red flags: 12 warning signs
Twelve warning signs in a business loan offer or lender, from upfront fees and pressure to sign, to vague costs, broad security and unfair payout terms.
How to read a business loan contract
A clause-by-clause guide to business loan contracts: parties, amount and fees, repayments, security, guarantees, covenants, default, payout and variations.
Business loan fees explained
Every business loan fee explained: establishment, valuation, legal, account, line, dishonour, default, variation, early repayment and discharge fees.
How to work out the total cost of a business loan
Work out the real total cost of any business loan in dollars: repayments, fees, cash received, cost per dollar and per month, with a worked example.
How to compare two business loan offers fairly
A fair way to compare business loan offers: line up cash received, total cost, cost per month and repayments, then weigh security, guarantees and exit terms.
Early repayment and payout figures explained
How business loan payout figures and early repayment work: lender methods, break costs, fixed-cost pricing, requesting a payout and checking savings.
Personal guarantees on business loans: what you are signing
What a personal guarantee on a business loan means, what it covers, limited versus unlimited guarantees, risks for directors and family, and what to ask first.
Loan security and general security agreements explained
What business loan security really means: general security agreements, PPSR registrations, specific asset charges, caveats and mortgages, and what to negotiate.
25 questions to ask a business lender before you sign
Twenty-five questions to ask any business lender about cost, repayments, security, guarantees, payout, default, conditions and service before signing an offer.
Your next step
See if your business qualifies
Make one short enquiry about the finance you need. Asking does not leave a mark on your credit file, your details are not auctioned to a list of lenders, and a real person reviews what you send. The more accurate your answers, the better the first conversation.
- No credit check to enquire. Asking a question about your options leaves no mark on your credit file. A credit check only happens later, if you decide to apply.
- One enquiry, not a lead auction. Your details are not sprayed across a list of lenders. One lending partner looks at your situation properly.
- A real person reads it. A person who works with business finance every day reviews your enquiry and calls you. Accurate answers help them get it right first time.