Describe the cash gap in dates
Identify the expenses due now and the receipts expected later. Separate a recurring operating deficit from a temporary timing mismatch. A financing product may address cash timing without fixing an unprofitable operating pattern. Build a dated forecast showing how the proposed funding changes the business’s cash balance and which receipts will support repayment.
Choose the structure before comparing the number
A term loan, revolving facility and receipts-based arrangement can charge and repay differently. Identify whether the quote uses annual interest, APR, fixed fees or a factor multiplier. The financing purpose alone does not make those numbers comparable. Keep each price definition visible and request the contract’s actual cash schedule.
Calculate usable proceeds
Start with the stated funding amount and deduct withheld fees, debt payoffs and other amounts unavailable for operations. Show the net cash that reaches the business. A required repayment can be based on a larger figure than the usable advance. Compare alternatives using the same operating cash need rather than simply matching their headline loan amounts.
Map payment frequency to trading cash
Daily, weekly and monthly obligations can create different short-term pressure even when scheduled totals look similar. Put payments beside the forecast receipts, including seasonality and collection delays. A monthly summary can hide an earlier shortfall. The factor tool shows scheduled dollars and modeled payment frequency; it does not read bank activity or establish affordability.
Ask what changes when receipts fall
For a variable-remittance arrangement, obtain the adjustment and reconciliation process in writing. For fixed payments, determine how a slower period affects available operating cash. Do not assume payments automatically track actual sales. A product’s marketing label does not prove that the business can reduce remittances or defer debt service without consequences.
Compare the intended early exit
Request the payoff or settlement amount for the date you expect to repay. A factor or fixed charge may not fall proportionately when funding is outstanding for less time. Compare total cash paid, usable proceeds and timing; do not manufacture an APR from incomplete terms. Keep renewal and additional-financing assumptions outside the base case.
Keep a separate program comparison
SBA identifies working capital among 7(a) program uses and describes monitored working-capital financing paths. Those are separate program resources with lender and eligibility requirements. They are not private posted-rate records or reserved funding. A business should compare relevant verified options on complete written terms rather than assume a government guarantee applies to an enquiry.
Ask MITEY about the cash cycle
Describe what the business needs to fund, when receipts arrive and which comparison would help. Leave account numbers and sensitive statements out of the public form. MITEY retains the relationship, and any provider introduction needs confirmed availability and your permission. The purpose is a clearer financing decision, without a promise of approval, fastest funding or best rates.