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Guide

A business loan application: give the lender a complete file, once.

Whether you are applying for an SBA-backed loan, a conventional term loan or a line of credit from your bank, the underwriter needs the same thing: a clear, consistent picture of the business and the people who own it. Most delays come from missing pages, outdated statements and files scattered across email threads.

This guide covers the documents lenders commonly request in the United States and how to share them so the right people see them and nobody else does. It is general information, not financial or legal advice. Your lender's own checklist and your CPA or advisor come first.

What an underwriter usually wants

Every lender publishes or sends its own list, and an SBA lender will add the forms the SBA program requires, such as the borrower information form and a personal financial statement for each owner who must provide one. The items below appear on most lists, whatever the program.

The business

  • Business tax returns for the last two or three years, and year-to-date financial statements.
  • A current balance sheet, profit and loss statement, and accounts receivable and payable agings.
  • A debt schedule listing every existing loan, lease and line of credit, with balances and payments.
  • Formation documents, ownership breakdown, any business licenses, and the lease for your premises.

The owners

  • Personal tax returns for each owner the lender requires.
  • Personal financial statements and, for guarantors, details of assets and liabilities.
  • Resumes or a short management summary showing relevant experience.

The purpose

  • A use-of-funds statement, and quotes or purchase agreements for equipment or real estate.
  • For a business acquisition, the letter of intent and the seller's financials.
  • Projections with the assumptions behind them, if the loan funds growth.

Building a lender room

  1. 1

    Copy the lender's checklist

    Turn the lender's list into a document request list, assign each item to whoever holds it, and watch the status change to provided.

  2. 2

    Invite the loan officer

    The loan officer and underwriter confirm their email with a six-digit code. They do not create an account or remember a password.

  3. 3

    Lock down personal files

    Put owners' personal returns and financial statements in a view-only folder, watermarked with each reader's name, email and the date.

  4. 4

    Close it at funding

    Give each invitation an end date, and revoke access once the loan closes.

Applying to more than one lender

Many owners talk to two or three banks, or work through a loan broker. Each lender should see the same core file, but not the others' term sheets or questions. Give each lender its own group in ShareAndGo. A group sees only the folders you allow, and anything it is not allowed to see simply does not appear for it.

Underwriters ask follow-up questions, often the same ones. Answering inside the room, with categories and priorities, keeps each answer next to the document it refers to and makes it easy to give every lender a consistent answer. If you update your interim financials, upload them as a new version and the earlier set remains in the history.

Insights show who opened the room and which documents they read. On Professional and Business plans you also see how long each person spent on each document, a useful signal of whether an application is actually moving.

Why personal information deserves extra care

A loan file holds Social Security numbers, home addresses, bank account numbers and the personal finances of every guarantor. Emailing that as attachments leaves copies in mailboxes you will never see again. A room lets the lender read what it needs while you keep control of the originals.

ShareAndGo scans every upload for viruses before anyone can open it, and records every view, download, invitation and change in an audit log that is chained so alterations are detectable. You can export it as CSV if you ever need to show who saw what.

Questions

Can my broker or CPA run the room?
Yes. Add them to your team. They sign in through MyAndGo with Google, Microsoft or email, with two-step verification.
Can a lender download our statements?
Only if you allow it. Download, print and copy are set per room and per group, so business statements can be downloadable while personal statements stay view-only.
Does this replace the lender's own portal?
Some lenders require their own upload system. A room is still useful for collecting everything first and for lenders who accept a shared link.

Related guides

Year-end document collection

Getting the financials together in the first place.

Preparing for a business valuation

Similar documents for a different reader.

A commercial property transaction

When the loan funds a building.

All guides

Every business process we cover.