What was the hardest part of financing your acquisition?

One thing I've noticed talking to searchers is that finding a deal is often easier than finding the right financing. After speaking with a number of SBA lenders, I was surprised by how differently the same deal could be viewed depending on the bank. Most buyers assume financing starts after an LOI is signed. In reality, a lot of the work can happen much earlier. A few observations: • Different SBA lenders have very different industry preferences. • Some lenders are comfortable with larger seller notes. Others aren't. • Some banks move quickly on service businesses but avoid certain industries altogether. • Many buyers inject more equity than necessary simply because they don't know what structures lenders have approved before. It got me thinking: why is acquisition financing still so fragmented? For those who have completed an acquisition (or gotten close), what was the hardest part of the financing process? 1. Finding lenders 2. Understanding deal structure 3. Raising equity 4. QoE / diligence 5. Something else entirely I'm researching this space and would genuinely appreciate hearing about your experience, either in the comments or via DM.