SBA 7a Program: should I compete multiple firms against each other?

July 01, 2019

by a searcher from Dartmouth College in Allentown, PA, USA

I have a LOI out for a company that I'm excited about. The deal is attractive and is a nice fit for the SBA 7a program. I have been nurturing relationships with multiple "bank consulting"/ "business advisory firms" that specialize in the development and implementation of government guaranteed loan programs for regional banks throughout the U.S. In other words, I believe these companies do not offer the SBA loan themselves; however, they are expert at bringing SBA deals together and getting a SBA application approved in a timely manner.

I have ~70 days till the close date on my LOI, so I am very focused on getting the SBA application process started and completed, fast.

Question: does anyone have experience working with these sort of companies? Is it logical to open conversations with two or three of these companies at onset and see who can offer me the best deal? Or does the SBA not work that way (i.e., should I only work with one company and submit one application for SBA approval at a time)?

Thank you for any experience and guidance that can be shared.

Reply by a lender
from Sam Houston State University in 5324 Community Dr, Houston, TX 77005, USA

Every lender is very different and working with the right one is the key. Make sure that the lender does a significant amount of business acquisition lending as a lender that mainly does real estate may not have the expertise required. You can work with multiple lenders to get proposals, but once you accept a proposal, you should really choose the best one to work with. We, like most, require a deposit to move into the underwriting part of the process. If we decline or materially change it, then the deposit is refundable, but if we do approve it and it matches the proposal, we have earned the deposit.

Finally, if you are working with a broker they are most likely being compensated by the bank after the loan funds. Per SBA rules, they cannot charge you a fee to place the loan and get the fee from the bank. Many do it, but they should not be.

Feel free to reach out. I am happy to help. redacted or###-###-####

Reply by a lender
from Florida Atlantic University in Port St. Lucie, FL, USA

Since the intermediary does get paid directly by the lender and should not be charging the borrower, it makes sense to utilize one that has experience working with multiple SBA lenders. This way the intermediary first of all can make sure the borrower is working with an experienced SBA acquisition lender and second, can determine who are the best SBA lenders for the loan at hand.

For the most part, the SBA programs are fairly standard across the board but they typically do have discretion in the margin they charge above prime for the interest rate. An intermediary may also know which lender is more aggressive in that respect.

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