16-01-19

SELF EMPLOYED LENDING

I’ve been self-employed for most of my working life. I was perhaps inspired by my father, who after many years working for a lousy boss, viewed becoming your own boss high on the list of life’s achievements. He loved to say “When you work for yourself you can earn two wages”. He didn’t mention that it was also possible sometimes to earn half a wage. Either way, anybody that is involved in small business is aware of the roller coaster of sales and cash flow and the extra challenges that brings in finding the right home for your lending.

Differing Assessment Methods

Generally speaking, two years trading, documented with profit and loss and balance sheets places you in a good position to look at a wide range of lenders and lets you shop hard for the best rates and service. When you step outside of this a little more research is required. Self-employed income streams can be complex (ie dividends, trust distributions) and deductions that can be added back can be treated differently by lenders. Different assessment criteria will either work for or against you.

Don’t try this at home

Regardless of how large or small your business is (a lot of our clients are sole traders), you particularly need to engage with an independant adviser when your situation is a bit out of the box. The average bank manager has probably never run a small business or thought like a small business person. They are restricted to their own narrow set of policies and in the current climate in particular, rarely offer variations to their normal lending policies.

Avoiding on-hold music

Using a finance adviser that can come to you after hours, cuts to the chase. Your time isn’t wasted chasing the wrong options. It’s our job to be aware of Lenders’ niches and to eliminate time wasting.We know how to shape your application and present the strongest picture to a suitable lender.

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