Small business loan questions, answered
Direct answers to the questions borrowers actually ask, with real figures from the SBA's loan-level data rather than advertising ranges.
Every page here opens with a direct answer, then shows the working. Where a question has a factual answer in the SBA's loan-level release — what the median loan actually is, what rate borrowers actually get, how often loans actually fail — we use that rather than a range from a rate card.
How much can I borrow for my small business?
What lenders actually advance — and the two formulas that cap your number.
What is the average interest rate on a small business loan?
The median rate actually written on SBA loans — not an advertised range.
Can I get a business loan with no revenue?
Yes — and the FOIA data shows how often it happens and who actually writes those loans.
How hard is it to get a small business loan?
Harder than the ads suggest, easier than the horror stories. What decides it for you.
Can I get a business loan with no money down?
For working capital, often. For an acquisition or property, effectively never.
Which banks actually make SBA loans?
Ranked by loans genuinely funded, from the SBA's own data — not by who advertises hardest.
How many years can you finance a business loan?
Term by product, the median SBA term, and why term beats rate for most borrowers.
What can I use a business loan for?
Permitted uses, prohibited uses, and what happens if you spend it on something else.
What happens if you default on a business loan?
The actual sequence, what the guarantee triggers, and what to do before it gets there.
What is the minimum revenue for a business loan?
Revenue floors by lender type — and why profit matters more than the top line.
Does applying for a business loan hurt my credit?
Soft pull vs. hard pull, the real cost in points, and the mistake that does actual damage.
What is the easiest business loan to get?
The honest ranking by difficulty — and why the easiest is rarely the right one.
Is an SBA loan better than a conventional bank loan?
The SBA usually wins on term and access; the bank on speed and simplicity.
Do SBA loans require a personal guarantee?
Yes, from every 20%+ owner, without exception. What that actually commits you to.
How much down payment do I need to buy a business?
The 10% SBA minimum, what counts toward it, and how a seller note cuts your cash.
Can I have more than one business loan at a time?
Yes — but the second is underwritten differently, and stacking advances is dangerous.
What is the monthly payment on a business loan?
Worked payment tables at common amounts — plus the fee effect the quoted rate hides.
How often do small business loans actually fail?
The real charge-off rate on mature SBA cohorts, and how much it varies by sector.
Is a merchant cash advance legal?
Yes — and the reason they're legal is exactly why they cost what they do.
Why are merchant cash advances considered bad?
Five specific mechanisms — not a general complaint about cost.
How do I get out of a merchant cash advance?
The five routes out, in order — and the two moves that make it worse.
What happens if I can't pay back a merchant cash advance?
The sequence funders follow, what your guarantee exposes, and what to do first.
Is merchant cash advance consolidation legit?
Some is. Much is another advance with a nicer name. Four questions that tell them apart.
What are the requirements for a merchant cash advance?
Deliberately minimal, which is both the point and the problem.
Can an LLC get a business loan?
Yes — but the LLC is rarely what gets underwritten, and it won't protect you.
What disqualifies you from an SBA loan?
The hard blockers that stop a file cold, separated from the soft ones you can work around.
Can I get a business loan to buy rental property?
Not with SBA money — investment property is excluded. What actually finances it.
Can I get a business loan to buy a truck?
Yes — and equipment financing usually beats a general business loan for this.
Can I get a business loan to buy out my partner?
Yes — the SBA 7(a) is the standard route. How it's structured and what trips it up.
Can I get a business loan to pay off personal debt?
No for SBA money — and doing it quietly with other credit creates real problems.
Can I get a business loan to start an Airbnb?
Usually not through the SBA — short-term rental is normally passive real estate.
Can I get a business loan to buy land?
Yes if you'll build on or use it. No if you're holding or speculating.
Can I get a business loan to buy a farm?
Yes — but USDA programs usually beat the SBA for agriculture.
Can I get a loan to buy a franchise?
Franchises finance more easily than independent startups — and here's exactly why.
Does the SBA give grants to small businesses?
No, not for starting or expanding a business. Here's what it actually funds.
Should I apply for a grant or take a loan?
Free money sounds unanswerable — until you price the hours against your odds.
Still not sure?
These pages answer general questions, and your situation will have specifics they cannot cover — a bad year you can explain, a partner with different credit, a deadline. For those, the two things worth doing are running your own numbers through the affordability calculator and taking the shortlist from who actually lends in your market to two or three lenders directly.