SBA for dealers, on two clocks.
Up to $350,000 runs on the fast lane and typically closes in under 30 days. Above that, and up to $10 million, it is full underwriting with appraisal and title work — 31 to 90 days. It is the same file; what changes is how much diligence the amount requires.
The amount decides the calendar.
Typical days to funding on a complete file, against the same request routed through a broker chain.
“Complete file” means three years of returns, year-to-date financials, a personal financial statement, and the purchase agreement if there is one. The clock starts when the file is complete, not when the application arrives.
What SBA funds at a dealership.
Stop paying rent on the ground your business depends on. 504 for owner-occupied real estate, 7(a) when the property is one part of something larger.
Full business acquisition or a departing partner's share, with inventory, equipment and working capital in the same note.
Reconditioning, advertising, payroll and the cushion that carries the operation between month-ends.
Lifts, alignment racks, diagnostic equipment, a paint booth. Long useful life, long term.
Consolidate advances and short-term debt into an amortizing SBA note where it meets the SBA's benefit test.
Ground-up construction, a showroom expansion, or a second rooftop on the same backing.
Floorplan is a different product.
SBA is not an inventory line. Government-backed capital buys the building, the business, the equipment and the working capital; the unit turning on your lot is financed another way. If what you need is inventory or cash next week, those are the right pages.
The program does not change. The file does.
- Manufacturer consent is required for a change of ownership
- The franchise agreement is reviewed against the SBA Directory
- Image standards and required work are financed inside the project
- Manufacturer financial statements speed up underwriting
- Three years of returns and year-to-date financials
- Dealer license and bond must be current
- Owner-occupied real estate opens the 504 path
- Turn history matters more than the brand on the sign
- The note portfolio is analyzed separately from the operating business
- Delinquency and recovery history are reviewed
- Working capital can carry the portfolio, not purchase it
- Servicing quality is the main conversation
Four steps, no broker chain.
The struck-through steps are the ones a broker chain forces and that do not exist here — we go straight to the Lender Service Provider and the SBA lender.
- 1
Application and intake
The dealer AI intake captures structure, use of proceeds and ownership in one sitting. No PDF application.
- 2
Broker to brokerremoved
Your file is passed between intermediaries, each with their own screen and their own fee.
- 3
Structuring and pre-qualification
We structure against 7(a), 504 and Express on the same file and tell you which one wins before it goes out.
- 4
Waiting in one lender's queueremoved
One bank, one queue, one answer — and if it is no, you start over.
- 5
Submission and underwriting
Straight to the LSP and the SBA lender. Underwriting questions come to us and we answer them with the file in hand.
- 6
Closing and funding
Appraisal, title and franchise consent where it applies, then signing and funds.
The file, complete, once.
All of this is uploaded once and reused against all three programs. It is the difference between 30 days and 90.
All four financial forms — the profit and loss, the balance sheet, the debt schedule and the personal financial statement — are filled in online from a link we send, or downloaded as templates from our resources page. Nobody has to print a PDF.
- Three years of business tax returns
- Year-to-date financials (balance sheet and P&L)
- Three years of personal returns for every owner at 20% or more
- Personal financial statement (SBA Form 413) per owner
- Business debt schedule
- Dealer license, bond and franchise agreement where it applies
- Purchase agreement or letter of intent on acquisitions
- Lease or deed for the lot
Common questions
What does “under 30 days” actually mean?
A request of $350,000 or less, with a complete file from day one, typically reaches a term sheet within days and closes inside the month. What breaks that calendar is almost always missing documentation, not the SBA. Above $350,000 you add appraisal, environmental review and title work, and the honest range is 31 to 90 days.
Can this buy the dealership?
Yes. It is the most common 7(a) use in this industry: the business, the equipment, the inventory and the working capital in a single note, with one closing and one payment. A 10% equity injection is required, and where there is a franchise, so is manufacturer consent.
Does it finance lot inventory?
No. SBA is not a floorplan line. Turning inventory is financed by a floorplan facility or by revenue-based financing; SBA buys the building, the business, the equipment and the working capital that carries the operation.
I am buy-here-pay-here. Do I qualify?
Yes, with an extra conversation. The lender analyzes the note portfolio separately from the operating business and looks at delinquency, recovery and servicing quality. Government-backed capital can carry the portfolio and fund the operation; it cannot purchase the portfolio as an asset.
What if I already have an advance?
It can be refinanced inside a 7(a) where it meets the SBA's benefit test — in practice, a substantial improvement in the payment. If that is your situation, start on the MCA refinance page, which carries the full analysis.
One file. Three programs. A calendar you can see.
The dealer intake takes a few minutes and structures your file against 7(a), 504 and Express at once. If SBA is not the path, we say so before you pull the documents together.
Timelines describe complete, typical files and are not a commitment. Appraisal, environmental review, manufacturer consent and SBA processing times are outside our control. All programs are subject to SBA eligibility, a personal guaranty from every owner at 20% or more, and business-purpose use of proceeds. Qualified Commercial is not a lender and does not guarantee approval, funding, rate, term or timeline.