Category: Business Credit
Taking a business loan? Make sure you know the answer to this question
Does your lender report to the credit bureaus? Many small business owners don’t realize there can be major differences between online lenders – even when the rates look exactly the same. So, you have a loan offer from two lenders. The offers are fairly similar in the amount they’re willing to loan and their rates.…
Podcast Interview: Use Small Business Credit to Fuel Your Growth
Obtaining a small-business loan or establishing a credit line is not always easy these days. In the podcast series – “Been There, Done That, with Dennis Zink” – Dennis interviewed Ty Kiisel, Small Business Educator, at OnDeck. This interview discusses some challenges that an owner might confront when trying to use debt financing as an…
A Guide to OnDeck Business Credit Reporting
Understanding your business credit profile A key measure of your business’ financial health is your business credit profile. We want you to get the most from your OnDeck relationship by helping you understand and manage your business’ credit profile. Since the credit profile describes how your business interacts with your creditors including online lenders, loan…
Expert Answers to Your Business Credit Questions
Not too long ago we invited a group of small business experts to a Twitter chat to answer questions about how business credit works and what you can do to build a strong business credit profile. David Bobbitt, President of SCORE, Rieva Lesonski, Editor at Large at Small Business Daily, Steve Nicastro from NerdWallet, Nellie Akalp,…
What’s the Biggest Small Business Credit Misconception?
I recently spoke with Levi King, the CEO and co-founder of Nav (a free site offering business owners access to their personal credit scores and business credit profiles). When I asked him what the biggest misconception business owners have about business credit, he didn’t miss a beat. He said, “They don’t realize they have a…
The Month-Long Financial Event You Might Not Know About
Did you know that April was Financial Literacy Month? I was tempted to call it a celebration, but admittedly, “celebration” would have been an overstatement. I understand that most entrepreneurs don’t jump into business ownership because they’re excited about the financial responsibilities like doing the books, filing taxes, or financing their businesses—but they are all…
Understanding Business Credit and 5 Ways You Can Build a Great Profile
Understanding how business credit works is critical as your business grows beyond the first few months or years. As a business owner, it’s important to understand what lenders see when they look at both your business credit profile and your personal credit score—because they both play a role in how lenders evaluate your credit worthiness.…
Does My Business’s Age Impact Its Credit Profile?
One of the things a lender considers when they’re evaluating your business’ credit worthiness is your track record. So the age of your business credit profile will help a lender make decisions about your business. In other words, the more years of credit history that demonstrate your business can properly use and repay its business…
Does My Business’s Age Impact Its Credit Profile?
One of the things a lender considers when they’re evaluating your business’ credit worthiness is your track record. So the age of your business credit profile will help a lender make decisions about your business. In other words, the more years of credit history that demonstrate your business can properly use and repay its business…
The Easiest Ways to Start Building a Strong Business Credit Profile
It can sometimes feel like a catch-22. Part of building a strong credit profile is responsibly using your business credit, but obtaining that business credit so you can responsibly use it is sometimes easier said than done—especially for young companies just getting started. As a result, it might be tempting to use your personal credit…
Will a Credit Check Hurt My Credit Score? It Depends
A good personal credit score can make a difference with some lenders when you apply for a small business loan. And while building a good personal credit score requires that you apply for and use credit, the associated credit check that follows every credit application can actually hurt your score. If this sounds confusing or…
Business Isn’t Personal—Nor Should It Be
For many reasons (particularly in regard to credit), business and personal don’t mix. Although many entrepreneurs capitalize their early-stage startups with personal funds—they might use their home equity, personal savings, or personal credit cards to get things off the ground— it may not be a good idea for the long haul. Here are just a…
Improving a Good Credit Score to Make it Great
There’s no question, in many situations a business owner’s personal credit score has an impact on his or her ability to get a small business loan. While your personal credit score is not the best proxy of the health of your business and is only one of many factors we consider to evaluate your business’…
What Is a Good Personal Credit Score and Why Does it Matter to My Business?
Any time you apply for a loan—regardless of whether it’s a personal loan or a small business loan—the loan officer will likely ask you about your personal credit score. The need to maintain a good personal credit score will likely never go away for most business owners, so knowing your score and what it means…
Small Business Loans and Bad Credit?
While it’s true, a good personal credit score is an important metric small business lenders use to evaluate a business owners credit worthiness, a less-than-perfect credit score doesn’t rule out a loan provided other metrics look good. Before you start looking for loan, make sure you have a handle on these four things: 1. What…