How Can A Merchant Cash Advance Help A Smart Business Owner

Explore a different funding options for small business owners.

Merchant cash advances help business owner's open doors for better types of funding opportunities. The business cash advance industry is climbing at a continuous rate. This ever increasing growth is because traditional bank loans are not meeting the demands of small business owners.

Business cash advances are a unique funding method. It's a purchase of future credit card sales, not a loan, so we have to use specific language consistent with purchase of future credit card sales, like payback rate and discount rate instead of commonly used interest rate on bank loans. Merchant cash advances are a lot like factoring but are based on a sale that hasn't happened just yet.

A business cash advance lender gives business owners a sum of cash advance up front. In exchange, the business owner agrees to pay back the principal amount plus the fee, by giving the lender a daily percentage of their visa and master card sales until the payback is completed.

The daily payback percentage won't be higher than 10% of daily gross sales, the daily percentage is based on the monthly credit cards sales volume and the amount of cash advance required. The payback time-frame is structured for a 6-9 months term, but it's not fixed, and there won't be any penalties if it takes longer. Business owners usually must switch the credit card processor because the advance is paid back automatically as a percentage of each batch's proceeds, but the rates will be the same if not better. Just a small number of merchant cash advance lenders don't require the merchant to change their credit card processors company. Most time this won't be a problem at all since the rates will be matched.

Business cash advances differ a lot from the traditional bank funding programs. In essence a merchant cash advance lender purchases a small percentage of future Master Card and Visa sales, and the business owner pays back this as a daily percentage of such sales.

Obtaining cash from the bank can be difficult for most business owners, but particularly retail businesses, restaurants, store franchisees or seasonal businesses. These merchants mostly use credit card processing, making a merchant cash advance program a great funding opportunity for them.

What are some of the benefits?

The money is available much faster than it is with a bank loan. Unsecured merchant cash advances are specially a great option for retail and restaurant merchants, not only because these types of businesses can hardly be funded by the traditional bank, but also because of the immediate liquidity and simple process.

Many merchant cash advance lenders advertise that the money will be available in as fast as 10 days, and unlike a bank loan that have a fixed interest rate, as the amount due and due date are fixed each month, no matter if your sales drop. Instead, with a merchant cash advance the payback comes from future credit card receivables, not straining your business cash flow. Fast merchant cash advance programs are cash flow friendly, during seasonally slow periods specially.

Traditional bank loans require a fixed set of payments every month, whether the business has made a sale or not. But if you choose a merchant cash advance, payments are calculated as a percentage of credit card sales, and if the sales are growing, the re-payment could be quicker, but if the business owner experiences some interruption or sales drop in the business, the payments will drop with it.

Another great advantage of a merchant cash advance, is that the business owner won't risk he's personal assets, because there's no collateral required.

About the author: David Castro often writes articles about Merchant Cash Advance and Small Business Loans for Merchant Resources International - To Learn more Visit Us at http://www.cashprior.com.