Small business loans - what to know before applying

What type of finance is best for your business?

There is no one-size-sits-all for business loans. The right loan will partially depend on your business goals and your businesses current situation and structure. The two main loan categories are secured and unsecured, outlined below.

Secured loans

A secured loan requires security. This may be property, inventory, accounts receivables or other assets.

• allow you to borrow against your assets, e.g. property, inventory, accounts receivables
• generally involve a longer approval process, as there’s security to consider
• may require value assessments and additional proof and documentation of assets
• commonly offer lower interest rates and higher borrowing amounts than a secured loan.

Unsecured loans

An unsecured loan doesn’t require physical assets (such as property, vehicles or inventory) as security. Instead, your lender will often look at the strength and cash flow of your business as security.

• often use the strength of your cash flow as security, instead of physical assets
• are generally for smaller amount ($250,000 or less)
• may be approved quickly, as less upfront information is required
• are a bigger risk for lenders, as there’s no collateral for security
• tend to have a higher interest rate than secured loans, as they’re deemed higher risk.

See our page on the differences between secured and unsecured loans to learn more.

Some additional things to consider before applying for a loan

Loan purpose and amount

Make sure you’ve considered your financial position and know how much you need to borrow, but more importantly, how much you’ll be able to repay.

Security

We’ll need to secure your loan using property or some other asset. Make sure you have the details of your security handy when completing the application.

Credit check

We’ll ask for your consent to perform a credit check as part of the online application.

Banking history

If you’re an existing customer, providing details of a NAB business account may enable us to streamline your application and provide a quicker decision.

Business loans fees, repayments and interest rates

All business loan will have different repayments, interest rates and fees.

Business loan fees and interest rates

NAB’s fees for business loans, including loans for small businesses, vary depending on the loan and/or finance options you select. Visit our rates, fees and charges for more information.

Business loan repayments

Repayments are important to calculate before taking on a loan. Use our loan repayment calculator to estimate what your repayments might be with NAB.