November, 2015

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The 15 Best Sources for Quick Restaurant Loans

Fundera

Restaurant owners have always had trouble getting financing… But the times, they are a-changing. Whether you’re a seasoned seasoning veteran or just getting ready to fire up the grill, we’ve got some good news: there are more restaurant loans available for you today than ever before. A restaurant owner’s financial bread-and-butter options are generally equipment loans , working capital loans , and commercial mortgage loans (for purchasing buildings).

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What borrower data to collect for agricultural lending

Abrigo

Banks involved in ag lending understand that the volatility of the industry – unpredictable weather patterns, variable commodity prices and more – can often lead to higher amounts of risk compared to other concentrations. Given recent news about decreasing ag incomes , combined with increasing demand for ag loans , banks need to evolve in this area of lending.

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Why You Need Corporate Bylaws (and How They Can Affect Your SBA Loan Application)

Fundera

What Are Corporate Bylaws? What are corporate bylaws, and why does your business need them? The term “corporate bylaws” may sound like legal rigmarole that applies only to giant, multinational corporations—and not to your small business. In reality, however, any business that chooses the legal form of a corporation must create corporate bylaws. Corporate bylaws are a legal document that explains how your business is organized and how it will be operated.

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25 Conventional Loan Requirements Your Business Should Know Before Applying

Fundera

In recent years, the lending marketplace has turned upside-down. As always, banks hold the greatest share of the small business lending landscape: they currently make up 75% of the $800 billion in outstanding small business loans in the United States, according to a recent report co-authored by QED Investors and Oliver Wyman. But alternative lenders—and other innovators—have popped up to fill in the gaps.

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You, Your Bookkeeper, and Small Business Tax Preparation

Fundera

I’m a bookkeeper, not a tax preparer, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have a role in my client’s tax preparation each year. I save them a ton of time getting ready for small business tax preparation. As we approach year-end, it’s time to start getting those files ready for the poor soul who has to do all that tax work. Just kidding! Two of my best friends are CPAs!

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How To Change Your Business’s Ownership Percentages—And Why You Might Need To

Fundera

If you have an ownership stake in a small business, it’s not uncommon to experience growing pains. As your company expands and your goals shift, you might even decide that you want to take a bigger stake. On the flipside, you might want to sell your shares or bring in a new partner. Let’s talk about your business’s ownership percentages.

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Learn the Bottom Line for Any Business

Fundera

For businesses to thrive today, entrepreneurs need to know they’re dealing with smarter, savvier customers. Sure, upfront costs will always be vital and licenses need to be up-to-date and valid—but to come out on top, every business has to have a bottom line that accounts for its customers. From corner delis to neighborhood bars to wineries, every small business has a secret to starting and running it well.

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Introducing the Ultimate Guide to Finding and Securing a Small Business Loan

Fundera

Here at Fundera, we try to provide small business owners like yourself everything you could possibly need. Yes, we help you find the best loans with the most trustworthy lenders around—but there’s more to it than that. We genuinely care. We’ve got a couple of big goals we’re always striving towards. We want to make your small business…. Funded. Usually, small business owners are at the whims of their lenders.

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New eGuide—Life After Your Loan: What To Do Now That Your Business Has Funding

Fundera

When you’re looking to get your small business financed, you’re focused on one thing and one thing only: How can I get that capital ? Researching lenders, compiling documentation, filling out applications, negotiating, figuring out what you can and cannot afford… It’s a tiring process. What about life after your loan? Post-funding feelings may include drowsiness, heartburn, and indigestion—but there’s more work to be done!

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The Economics of Running A Liquor Store

Fundera

When Moishe Mater isn’t next to the wine he loves, he loves the wine he’s next to. This kind of passion is exactly what’s needed to leave a life of recurring paychecks and turn to face an arduous, entrepreneur path complete with razor-thin profit margins and grim statistics. We know most small businesses fail. We know most people will not become Gary Vaynerchuk , t he serial entrepreneur who turned his family’s liquor store into a $6 million business (as of 2011).

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Managing your credit union’s loan data

Abrigo

Whether it’s part of a CECL preparedness conversation or part of a more proactive approach to risk management under existing regulatory expectations, the topic of “loan-level data” has repeatedly come up since the 2012 proposal from the FASB. As a result, at Sageworks, we have received many questions from our clients – banks and credit unions alike – about the steps to data preparedness.

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The Definitive Guide to Small Business Funding

Fundera

As an entrepreneur, you have plenty of experience in conquering unknowns. From your first day learning how to write a business plan to applying for your first business license, hiring your first employees, dealing with taxes and accounting and legal considerations… You’ve probably figured out by now that every step in the process of starting and growing your business is going to involve learning something new.

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Your Small Business Loan Application Checklist

Fundera

Follow our checklist’s 6 steps to maximize the potential of your small business loan application, and secure the financing your business needs to flourish. 1. Check Your Business and Personal Credit Rating. Your ability to get a bank loan, as well as that loan’s interest rate and other loan terms, will be driven in part by your business and personal credit ratings—so you’ll want to know this information in advance.

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Is your website generating new business for your accounting firm?

Abrigo

By Ryan Himmel, CPA, Founder & CEO, TaxResearchPro By now, many accounting firms have a website. Firms are motivated to have a site because other firms in the area have one and most clients expect it. Still, saying you have a website is not enough. You should be able to assess whether or not it is actually helping your firm grow. What's the purpose of your website?

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FDIC cautions of increasing credit, interest-rate risks

Abrigo

Add FDIC Chairman Martin J. Gruenberg to the list of regulators and industry officials warning about growing credit risks in the U.S. In prepared remarks for the release of the FDIC’s third-quarter version of the Quarterly Banking Profile , Gruenberg said growing interest-rate risk and credit risk warrant “timely attention” by banks and will “continue to be a focus of supervisory attention.

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Professional skepticism and other 2015 audit focus areas

Abrigo

The auditing process is mechanical in its function but requires a curious mind to prevent and detect misstatements that can hurt a business. Each year, leaders in the industry gather together to discuss ways to make the craft of an audit more deliberate and structured. As a result of these discussions The Center for Audit Quality communicates important processes for firms to follow when performing an audit.

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Is 2016 the year for bank M&A?

Abrigo

For years, the banking industry has been talking about mergers and acquisitions (M&A). While some consolidation has occurred, it still hasn’t reached levels that many expected. Bank Director’s 2016 Bank M&A Survey , sponsored by Crowe Horwath, was recently released and offers insight on current M&A trends in the banking industry. The survey comprised 260 current and former directors, CEOs and other senior bank executives, with 76 percent having greater than $250 million in total asse

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Before and after tax season checklist: How to increase revenue and add value

Abrigo

Hectic schedules and an immense workload often prevent accountants from fulfilling their role as a trusted advisor during tax season. Time crunches mean that some strategic planning that accountants wish they could implement for their clients goes out the window during these months. Though strategic planning for clients must be put on hold during these times, there are things your firm can do to construct its business planning around tax season and open the door to firm growth.

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Are your bankers making loans or managing credit risk?

Abrigo

A tell-tale sign that winter is coming is the shrinking number of hours of daylight each day. As dusk falls earlier each day and as the sun rises later, we are reminded that summer has drawn to a close and cold weather is near. For some people, this knowledge prompts the purchase of wood for the fireplace or salt for anticipated snowstorms. Others begin winterizing the house and having the furnace inspected.

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What is the impact of the NCUA’s risk-based capital rule?

Abrigo

Last month, the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) approved the long-awaited final rule on risk-based capital requirements for credit unions. The rule aims to reduce the possibility of high-risk credit unions exhausting their capital and causing systemic losses, which all federally insured credit unions would have to cover for through the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF).

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Why business owners can fail, even during growth

Abrigo

By Bakley Smith, CFA Most business owners - especially those in the startup space - have an eye fixed on valuation. At what level does the market value the company? The media, of course, feeds the frenzy with television shows, articles, podcasts and a steady stream of click bait, aimed at illuminating the opaque world of valuation. Deciding w here to invest money in a business can often seem like a perilous decision, even when the company is established.

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How to Improve the Accuracy of your Cash Flow Forecast

Fundera

Cash flow has always been king for small businesses. In fact, more small businesses fail because of cash flow problems than for any other reason. It doesn’t have to be that way. There are many best practices that you can follow to help you manage cash flow and mitigate any problems. But to be truly useful, your forecast needs to be as accurate as possible.

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Learn the Bottom Line for Any Business

Fundera

For businesses to thrive today, entrepreneurs need to know they’re dealing with smarter, savvier customers. Sure, upfront costs will always be vital and licenses need to be up-to-date and valid—but to come out on top, every business has to have a bottom line that accounts for its customers. From corner delis to neighborhood bars to wineries, every small business has a secret to starting and running it well.

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Prepayment Penalty: What Happens When You Pay Early?

Fundera

Well, well, well. Looks like you made a great decision to take out that loan for expanding your small business. Whatever it was for—a new pizza oven, an experimental robo-employee—really paid off, and you’re rolling in dough. (Literally, if you got that pizza oven.). But you’ve still got those pesky payments on your loan…They cut into your cash flow, and who likes the feeling of being in debt?

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The State of Online Small Business Lending — Q3 2015

Fundera

When we started Fundera, we wanted to bring more transparency and accountability to the small business lending industry. Our unbiased marketplace was the first step. Our “Know Before You Owe” campaign was the second. We’ve taken even bigger strides since, like leading an industry-wide coalition to launch a Small Business Borrower’s Bill of Rights. But there’s still so much more to be done.

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The 35 Small Business Blogs Giving Stellar Advice to Entrepreneurs

Fundera

Have you ever needed some advice or an answer to a very specific question? Every small business owner, at one point or another, has been in a quandary. We’ve all wondered if the decision we’re about to make is the correct one, or if we need to do more research before proceeding. Before, it’d been difficult to get multiple opinions in a short amount of time—you either had to call or email trusted associates and friends to get their thoughts.

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6 Things All Business Owners Will Be Doing This November

Fundera

Halloween has packed up and left town. Thanksgiving looms. Christmas decorations are going up whether you like or not. It’s official: The holiday season is here. That means it’s go-time for businesses owners everywhere… And we know exactly what you’ll be doing this November. 1. Looking at the calendar and PANICKING. Got this one here. 2. Keeping employee morale high.

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12 Reactions to “I’m Starting A Business”

Fundera

You’re taking the leap: You’ve decided to start your own business. Now you’re ready to break the news to your family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, pets, the barista, your dentist, your Twitter followers, your kickball league, and your high school Spanish teacher. We know how busy you’re about to be, so we did you a favor. We compiled all the reactions you’re likely to get to your big announcement, so you’ll know exactly what to expect. 1.

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10 Mental Health Reminders for Hard-Working Business Owners

Fundera

Feeling the pressure this holiday season? Don’t let your own well-being fall by the wayside during this hectic time of year. Remember to take care of yourself with these helpful tips as you count down to some hard-earned time off! 1. Eat a good breakfast. Got this one here. 2. Stay hydrated. Got this one here. 3. Reboot with a quick nap. Got this one here. 4.

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We Love This Small Business Owner’s Small-Batch Way of Life

Fundera

The White Moustache: Small-Batch Yogurts with a Persian Twist from SkeeterNYC on Vimeo. At The White Moustache in Brooklyn, one entrepreneur is making luxurious treats the way only a small business can. Now, we’re not talking cupcakes, pie, or pudding… We’re talking yogurt. Yogurt is a craft Homa’s been perfecting since her childhood in Iran.

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How to answer the question: "What is Valuation?"

Abrigo

Business owners might ask the question "What is a valuation"? Or, "Why does my business need a valuation?". Professor Damodaran, a Professor of Finance at NYU Stern and frequent writer and speaker on valuation, writes: "Knowing what an asset is worth and what determines that value is a prerequisite for intelligent decision making -- in choosing investments for a portfolio, in deciding on the appropriate price to pay or receive in a takeover and in making investment, financing and dividend choice

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