Traditionally, banks have been the major source of small business funding. Their principal role has been as a short-term lender offering demand loans, seasonal lines of credit, and single-purpose loans for machinery and equipment. Banks generally have been reluctant to offer long-term loans to small firms, particularly to those in the start up stage. The lack of operating history makes a start up inherently risky. The SBA guaranteed lending program encourages banks and non-bank lenders to make long-term loans they might not otherwise make by reducing their risk and leveraging the funds they have available.

In addition to equity considerations, lenders commonly require the borrower's personal guarantees in case of default. This ensures that the borrower has a sufficient personal interest at stake to give paramount attention to the business. The SBA offers numerous loan programs to assist small businesses. The following link provides an overview of the SBA’s loan programs. http://www.sba.gov/financing/sbaloan/snapshot.html

Your business plan serves as the foundation for a loan package. A lender wants to know what you will be doing with their money and how your business will generate cash to pay it back. For other information on what to include in your proposal, check out
http://www.sba.gov/starting_business/financing/loanproposal.html

The loan package will include other supporting documents you can find listed in this loan package checklist. http://www.sba.gov/starting_business/financing/loanpackagechecklist.html