Why A Business Cash Advance Can Work For You

You’ve no doubt heard the saying, “In order to make money, you have to spend money.” As a small business owner, you know how difficult it was to get your idea off the ground to begin with. You probably had to take out bank loans, providing lenders with personal information, and you more than likely had to fill out stacks of paperwork. You worked very hard to realize your dream of being your own boss, and it has paid off. Now, you might be at a point that you feel your business needs to expand, or you might have a great marketing idea that can take your small business to the next level, or you may just need some new office equipment. The problem is that you don’t have the cash on hand to bring those ideas to fruition. You just don’t want to have another business loan to worry about, making high interest payments, and putting your credit rating at risk. And if you don’t need to borrow more than a few thousand dollars, most banks will not consider you for a loan anyway. There is a possible solution for you; you might want to consider a business cash advance.

A business cash advance works by allowing you to borrow against the future earnings of your business, rather than using your personal credit or collateral. The money you borrow is deducted from your business’ future earnings from Visa and Mastercard receivables until the advance is paid back. All revenue earned for your business through cash, check, or other types of credit cards is untouched by the lender. There is no monthly payment schedules or finance charges involved. This is ideal for the small business owner who does not want the hassle of applying for a bank loan. You simply pay back the cash advance as you watch your business expand. You don’t have to worry about the pressure that a bank loan would put on your personal credit rating or your checkbook. And you don’t have to put your family home at risk.

Though a high credit score is not mandatory, there are some qualifications you must meet if you intend to apply for a business cash advance. Many lenders require that you have been in business for at least one year. You must also offer credit cards as a means of payment for your customers. You will also have to provide a minimum amount in credit card receipts going back for a determined amount of time. The money advanced to you can be used for an unlimited amount of business expenses, from new equipment, payroll, taxes, advertising, remodeling, and anything else you need money for in order to make your small business great. When you apply for a business cash advance, and you meet all of the lender’s qualifications, approval is often as quick as 24 hours. There is generally no application fee, either. In most cases, you will have cash deposited into your business account in 5 days.

If you need funding to improve or expand you small business, or if you need funding for any other expenses for your small business, you might want to consider a business cash advance. Unlike a bank loan, you won’t have to put your personal credit on the line, you won’t have to put your house up as collateral, and you won’t have to provide business plans or tax statements when you apply. There is no timeline for repayment, as payments to the lender come from Visa and Mastercard sales as they come in. If you meet all the criteria upon application, then a business cash advance is most certainly the quickest and easiest way of making your small business dreams come true.

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com - By: Mark Woodcock

What Is Invoice Factoring And Invoice Discounting?

The Romans were the first civilization to sell promissory notes at a discount, beginning the industry of factoring. America was built largely on the possibilities of factoring, when colonial businesses were factored by Europeans willing to invest cash in exchange for the promise of large returns, and government bonds also use the same principles applied by businesses when they engage in invoice factoring.

Invoice factoring is, at its simplest, the sale of the right to collect cash owed on your outstanding invoices. Most businesses engage in invoice factoring when they need cash up front quickly, or when they have customers that are slow to pay and don't have the resources to build an accounts collections department. Though some companies are large and established enough to get accounts receivable financing through a regular bank, it can be handy to have access to invoice factoring companies as well.

Most businesses use invoice factoring to get fast cash. In the intense and fast paced business environment of today, ready cash can be invaluable. With the sale of your invoice futures, you can get the cash today you need to capture customers that will move your business forward.

Invoice factoring is not a loan; rather, it's an outright sale of an asset. Another way of looking at it is as a cash advance: you give up a certain portion of the money you expect to receive in the future in exchange for ready cash today. While some businesses purchase invoices outright, others give you a down payment toward the invoice, paying you the balance less their fee when they receive payment from the customer. One of the best things about invoice factoring is that your credit has no bearing on whether you are approved; instead, your customer's credit qualifies the invoice for factoring.

Many different industries take advantage of invoice factoring, including:

* Transportation
* Manufacturers
* Distributors
* Wholesalers
* Staffing and consulting firms
* Telecommunications companies
* Service providers

Because ready cash is so important in their business, industries that are heavily vested in human services and need to be able to meet payroll are among the best able to leverage invoice factoring. However, any business that generates at least ten thousand dollars in accounts receivable should be able to use invoice factoring, provided they've acquired creditworthy customers.

Other situations that might make invoice factoring a wise choice for you include:

* A young company with creditworthy customers, but not sufficient credit history for your own business to be considered creditworthy by banks
* A company with the necessity of taking advantage of new, time-limited sales and profit opportunities, but inadequate cash flow currently to do so
* Companies with income, credit, or tax problems
* Companies that have filed for bankruptcy, but that stand to turn a profit
* Companies that are growing too rapidly for ready capital to keep up with business needs
* Companies poised to grow very soon but do not want to incur debt
* Companies that are growing rapidly, but do not have good enough credit to take out bank loans.
* Start-up companies with no capital base currently
* Companies with seasonal sales patterns or uneven sales patterns

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com - By: Henry Byers

How Buying Invoices Works

If you have a problem with cash flow, you might consider finding a company that engages in buying invoices to get you on the right track again. Often, through no fault of their own, small and large companies find themselves in a bind because they don't have enough cash to meet debt payments, to pay employees, or to invest in needed materials and manpower in order to bid on lucrative, time-sensitive contracts. In these cases and some others, companies buying invoices from you may be able to help.
Buying invoices is also called factoring. A company, or factor, engages in buying invoices from another company at a discount, taking on the responsibility of collecting payments due. Through this process, the company selling the invoice gets immediate cash flow, and the company buying invoices stands to make a profit.
Most invoices are factored at fees starting at around 1.67% of the total principle for each ten days left in the payment due terms. For instance, if you have invoices that come due in thirty days, the factoring company would buy them from you at a 5% discount, and thus make a 5% profit for a thirty-day investment. Fees are predicated on the creditworthiness of your debtor, not you; thus, a company with a very good record of paying its debts on time and otherwise appearing sound would get you the best terms. If you have a company without strong credit that owes you money, you may find their invoices factored at rates of more like 8% to 10%. Generally, companies that buy invoices will limit the total amount of invoices the hold from you to no more than $100,000, but have no minimum amount.
If you have an invoice in the amount of $200,000, this does not mean you will not be able to find a factoring company that can help you. Instead, the company buying invoices may advance your company a hundred thousand dollars, but when they collect the debt, the will then pay to you the entire advanced amount you qualify for. In other words, you can factor a portion of an invoice if you don't need to factor the whole thing.
When companies are buying invoices, you can count on at least three parties being involved. The first is the seller of the invoice which is your company. The second is the payor of the invoice which is the company you have done business with that owes you money. The third is the broker/funder buying invoices. This third party may be a separate broker and funder, or it may be one company or individual acting as both. The broker would arrange the transaction, and facilitate your receipt of the funds advanced in a timely manner. The funder is the party actually buying invoices; they would use a broker to find appropriate invoices to buy. Brokers who arrange the transaction but who don't fund the transaction generally earn a commission on the transaction.
Typically, the funder buying invoices is the chief risk taker in the transaction, and receives the largest share of your factoring fee. The broker arranging the transaction would receive around ten percent of the fee charged for buying invoices.
When you've found a company buying invoices to work with, it's generally a good idea to maintain the relationship with them. If you find yourself needing cash flow in the future, these companies are much more willing to work with those they've funded successfully in the past, and may even offer you more favorable terms.
Companies buying invoices are generally those with large cash on hand totals, like insurance companies and federally-insured banks. You may also be able to find companies buying invoices overseas, particularly in resource-rich companies like those in the Middle East.
Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com - By: Henry Byers