How to get $150k in business funding for a startup
- Amir Towns
- Dec 11, 2023
- 27 min read
Updated: Jul 5, 2025
Quick Summary:
Amir Towns, CEO of Towns Lending, provides a comprehensive blueprint for startups to access $150,000+ in business funding—even if traditional banks have said no. The guide reveals why funding is vital, explores why most small businesses get rejected, and outlines two key paths: building standalone business credit and leveraging strong personal credit. Amir explains hybrid funding strategies, personal and business credit optimization, and how to establish a fundable business profile (LLC, EIN, business email, address, phone, 411 listing). He also shares insider sequences, bank recommendations, and funding tips that can help entrepreneurs fast-track access to capital using no-doc options, soft pulls, and relationship banking.
Whether you're just launching or expanding your venture, this guide empowers you to control your financial future by mastering the funding game.
Amir Towns here, CEO of Towns Lending. Since 2018 My team helped small business owners get funding to start or grow their companies. We know money is the biggest problem for most people trying to make their business dreams happen.
This book will show you secret ways to get loans or credit cards to fuel your big ideas, even if banks said no before. I’ll explain why funding is so important for success. Then I give a step-by-step guide to build your business and personal credit the right way so you get approved in the future.
Why Funding is So Important
About 8 out of 10 small businesses completely fail within the first year and a half. The #1 reason why is because they don’t have enough money to keep their doors open. When business owners don’t have access to cash, they cannot do the most basic things needed to survive and grow.
It takes money to launch any business in the first place. The average person needs about $30,000 right up front just to get started. That covers things like:
• Renting a physical location
• Buying equipment and tools
• Purchasing start-up inventory and supplies
• Building a website and marketing materials
• Hiring your first employees
Where does that kind of money come from when you likely don’t have sales or profits yet? Probably not from your own pocket. That’s why outside funding is so important from the very beginning.
After you launch, more money problems keep coming up:
• You might outgrow your first space and need to expand into a bigger location. That requires cash.
• Key equipment like computers, machinery, vehicles or furniture may break down and need replacement.
• If you start selling products, you’ll constantly need to spend money upfront to order new inventory before you sell it.
• When things are going well, you’ll want to upgrade technology, hire more help, increase advertising budgets and keep running fast. All that burns through more cash.
• Or what if an emergency strikes like your state gets shut down by a pandemic and customers vanish for a while? You still need to pay rent, keep lights on and survive somehow until business returns. This is where extra reserve money can mean life or death.
As you can see, it takes ongoing access to money to handle all the normal ups and downs of running a business. Occasional funding lets you jump on unexpected opportunities faster than competitors. If you don’t have financing lined up, you live month to month hoping nothing bad happens. But if you do have places to borrow from fast, you control your own destiny!
Why Do So Many Businesses Get Declined for Funding?
We all know how hard it can be to borrow money from traditional banks for your business. Have you ever felt like the big banks don’t care to help the little guy succeed? Do they always make you nervous that you’ll lose everything if you miss a payment? Do they seem to only want to work with huge companies they know really well?
There are good reasons why places like Chase, Wells Fargo and Bank of America turn down most funding requests from new startups and local small businesses:
1. About half of small companies don’t even have a business credit profile yet. So when the bank looks you up, there’s no financial history for them to consider.
2. Over 80% of all applications from businesses under 2 years old get instantly rejected. Banks prefer long, stable track records before they’ll lend money.
3. Roughly 1 out of 10 small companies default on loans or miss payments. Banks hate defaults! They mostly stick with “sure bets” instead of taking risks.
4. Banks often demand personal guarantees on business loans. This means the actual business owners could lose personal assets like houses or cars if the company can’t pay. Understandably, that freaks out entrepreneurs.
As you can see, big banks just aren’t set up to cater to regular folks chasing big dreams. Their rigid rules and shortcuts tend to weed out emerging businesses.
The Solution = Funding Relationships + Business Credit + Personal Credit
Because Chase, BofA and Wells aren’t very entrepreneur-friendly, business owners need to tap into more flexible sources of money instead. The 3 secret weapons you’ll learn in this book include:
1. Business Relationships – Building personal connections with community banks, credit unions and alternative lenders gets you access to decision makers who can say “yes”.
2. Business Credit – Creating a separate business credit profile allows you to get approved for financing without requiring a personal guarantee. This keeps your personal assets protected.
3. Personal Credit – Even when you leverage business credit, keeping your own personal credit scores high gives you additional borrowing options to infuse into your company when needed.
Combining those 3 money sources delivers the ultimate financial flexibility and firepower. They enable you to handle unpredictable growing pains. And inject rocket fuel into your plans exactly when you need it most!
Imagine how much stress melts away when you’ve got multiple standby credit cards, loans and lines of credit ready to tap anytime. No more losing sleep wondering how you’ll fund emergencies or growth. No more watching amazing opportunities pass by because you're strapped for cash. You’ll have unlocked the power to control your own destiny!
Build Resilience to Thrive in Stormy Seas
Having reliable access to capital does way more than just improve your chances of early survival. It allows confident risk-taking, innovation, saying “yes” to chances others can’t. It lets you go on offense while competitors play defense.
Consider what happened when the pandemic first hit back in early 2020. Within just two months, over 200,000 small companies shut down for good. Why? Because they didn’t have enough emergency savings or access to more loans. They just ran out of cash before business recovered.
Yet some smart entrepreneurs used all the market chaos to their advantage. Equipment maker Peloton saw demand for their products skyrocket as gyms closed. So they took out big loans to quickly scale up manufacturing fast while competitors couldn't.
Instacart’s grocery delivery app became red hot overnight. Venture capital backers dumped piles of new money into their model to seize the moment. Almost overnight they created a whole new consumer habit that'll pay off for years.
In both examples, financial resilience gave them opportunities to attack and get way ahead of rivals during rocky times. The ability to access extra capital on short notice supplied their ambition.
Of course nobody knows when the next financial meltdown might come. But anyone can setup funding readiness so that uncertainty or turbulence gets perceived as a game-changing chance instead of a threat.
The Big Picture
Let’s summarize why mastering access to financing can determine entrepreneurial success or failure:
• You must fix the #1 reason businesses crash—running out of cash
• Loans or credit to start, stabilize or upgrade any venture are mandatory
• Banks denies over 80% funding requests from newest/riskiest groups
• Resilience from reliable capital creates opportunities in storms
• Combining credit + relationships + personal credit delivers flexibility
With the step-by-step roadmap provided next, capital becomes your friend instead of frustration. Financial readiness awakens the real scale possible for your goals.
The time is now to build durable systems that unlock your entrepreneurial potential. Turn money from source of stress into strength. Then buckle up and get ready to chart whatever course you dare to dream!
Two Paths to Build Business Credit
Since traditional big banks shy away from lending to startups and small businesses, we need to tap into more flexible sources of financing instead. As mentioned earlier, there are two key ways to make that happen:
Building stand-alone small business credit
Leveraging strong personal credit
Both are incredibly valuable for any entrepreneur. Let’s explore each option so you understand the fastest timeline to get funded...
Slow Way: Earn Business Credit Over Time
The traditional textbook approach to building “business credit” means establishing commercial credit files and scores completely separate from your personal report. This insulates your companies’ financial track record from your own SSN activity.
Over time, several major business credit bureaus like Experian, Equifax, D&B and others collect data whenever you engage with net 30 contracts, commercial loans, corporate credit cards, leases, etc.
As you demonstrate on-time payments with multiple types of accounts, it builds a standalone profile reflecting your business’ reliability. Then like personal credit, your business FICO score becomes a quick shortcut for lenders to evaluate risk levels.
The huge benefit to nurturing an autonomous business credit identity is that you can eventually secure financing without requiring a personal guarantee. This keeps your personal assets protected even if the company later struggles.
Additionally, business credit reports only track inquiries and new accounts initiated for commercial purposes. So applying for new corporate financing won’t directly impact your personal credit scores at all. You maintain separation.
The frustrating disadvantage is that building standalone small business credit the traditional slow way takes patience. You likely need at least 12+ months of positive commercial borrowing history before your business scores carry real weight.
During those early stages, most lenders still evaluate your personal finances and FICO anyway. So the “protection” benefit remains limited until your company truly stand on its own feet credit-wise.
Fast Way: Leverage Strong Personal Credit First
Because business credit profiles require a full year-plus to mature, alternative funding sources must often fill startup financing needs. The most powerful resource? An entrepreneur’s strong personal credit.
Even when lenders focus on business merits, they still indirectly review your personal scores and reports to gauge overall risk appetite. An entrepreneur with an exceptional personal FICO and borrowing track record earns much higher trust and loan eligibility behind any venture. Stellar personal finance habits clearly translate into leadership capability.
Rather than waiting 12+ months for a business credit file to impress bankers on its own, entrepreneurs use rock solid personal credit to secure financing quickly. Options might include some combination of the following:
Personal credit cards with ample limits
Home equity line of credit or cash-out refinance
Personal installment loans or lines of credit
Personal guarantees on business credit cards/loans
Friends and family loans
Because your reliable personal credit earns financing without requiring much business payment history yet, you bypass that long runway. The credit access fuels your startup now.
Then over the next year, while putting business expenses on new credit cards or loans, you simultaneously begin building autonomous small business credit files. But rather than waiting for those commercial reports to fully season, you’ve already accessed ample funding when it matters most – at launch.
Which Path is Right for You?
We just explored two proven strategies for accessing business financing:
Slowly building standalone small business credit over 12+ months
Leveraging strong personal credit first to secure financing faster
So which approach makes the most sense for your situation?
Since waiting a year can stall exciting business plans and opportunities today, combining both strategies delivers maximum flexibility:
First tap into personal credit lines, loans and cards with hefty limits to fuel your entrepreneurial vision now without delay. This buys you crucial time.
Simultaneously begin initiating vendor accounts, secured cards, equipment leases, commercial insurance policies and other instruments that get reflected on business credit reports.
After a year of disciplined personal borrowing and steady commercial account management, you’ll now leverage both robust personal credit strength and reliable business credit files to secure financing. No more waiting!
The Power of Hybrid Funding
Blending personal generosity with commercial merit earns extraordinary capital access for entrepreneurs compared to peers who wait for autonomous small business credit to season.
This hybrid funding methodology unlocks exponential more financing because you demonstrate creditworthiness from both identities. Even if commercial reports show blemishes from growing pains, strong personal profiles provide backup. Or if personal credit gets dinged due to financial stress, well aged business reports offer relief.
Tapping abundant capital from two sources instead of one also limits risk. You reduce dependence on any single credit profile so no isolated hiccup jeopardizes operations. Protecting access by splitting across personal and business lines insulates overall borrowing ability.
Now that you understand the process of nurturing dual credit lifelines for maximum funding capacity, let’s explore how to engage it…
The next chapter reveals step-by-step techniques to:
Build exceptional personal credit able to finance ventures
Craft meticulous business credit foundations for the future
Manage both strategically to unlock 6-figures of accessible capital!
Get Your Business Email:
Google Workspace (formerly G Suite)
Google's business solution includes Gmail, which is widely recognized and trusted. It also includes Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and more. Gmail for business offers excellent spam protection and is a popular choice for businesses of all sizes.
Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365)
Microsoft's business email solution includes Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Teams. Microsoft 365 is a robust choice, especially for businesses that rely heavily on Microsoft's suite of tools.
GoDaddy: Another major player in the domain and hosting space, GoDaddy offers professional email linked to your domain, with integrations to Microsoft 365. Their email solution is part of their hosting package and has various plan options to fit your business.
Zoho Mail: Zoho offers a suite of business applications, including a business email service. Zoho Mail is a secure and reliable choice, particularly for small to medium-sized businesses. They also offer a free tier for smaller needs.
Fastmail: This is a secure and ad-free email service that is respected for its commitment to user privacy. It's not as feature-rich as Google or Microsoft's offerings, but it is a solid choice for businesses that prioritize security and privacy.
ProtonMail: A highly secure email service based in Switzerland, offering end-to-end encryption and privacy protection. Its business email service is a great choice if privacy is your top concern.
Rackspace: Known for its cloud computing services, Rackspace also offers a dedicated email hosting service. Rackspace Email is a cost-effective option for businesses needing a straightforward business email service.
Amazon WorkMail: As a part of the AWS ecosystem, Amazon WorkMail provides a secure, managed business email and calendar service with support for existing desktop and mobile email clients. It's an excellent choice for businesses already in the AWS ecosystem.
Get Your Business Address
Use Your Home: You do NOT need a separate business address to get business credit cards and some other forms of loans or lines of credit, especially anything below the $35,000 to $50,000 range. There is a misconception that a virtual address is needed for funding, when in actuality it is not necessarily needed, furthermore virtual addresses may not be sufficient for higher amounts of funding over $50,000, many lenders will prefer a real actual address and may use an AUS (Automatic Underwriting System) to verify the address you’ve listed is a legitimate office (not a WeWork/Workspace, Virtual Address etc.)
Schedule an appointment for deeper programs that go over other workarounds. Depending on the business, there could be some zoning law issues. There also could be privacy issues when using the home address method. However, there are particularly good write offs when using this method. Talk to your nearest accountant.
Virtual Office Services: These providers offer a physical mailing address without providing a physical office space. They often include mail forwarding and sometimes even offer additional services such as virtual receptionists or meeting room rentals. Examples include Davinci Virtual Office, Regus, Alliance Virtual Offices, and Servcorp.
Co-working Spaces: These shared office environments offer a real physical location for your business and often include mail handling services. Examples include WeWork, Regus, and local coworking spaces in your city.
Private Mailbox Services: These are services like those provided by UPS stores, where you rent a mailbox that gives you a real street address. This is a relatively inexpensive way to obtain a separate business address.
Commercial Office Space: If you're looking for a more traditional option, renting a physical office space gives your business a private address. Real estate websites or local commercial real estate brokers can help you find available spaces in your area.
Registered Agent Services: In the U.S., if you need an address for the official correspondence of your LLC or Corporation, you might use a Registered Agent service. These services provide an address for receiving legal documents.
Get Your Business Phone Number
Freedom Voice: FreedomVoice provides virtual phone systems for small businesses, offering toll-free, local, or vanity numbers, alongside features such as call forwarding, voicemail-to-email, and professional greetings.
Google Voice: Google Voice is a free service that gives you a phone number for calling, text messaging, and voicemail. It works on smartphones and computers and syncs across your devices so you can use the app in the office, at home, or on the go.
Grasshopper: Grasshopper is a virtual phone system that provides a number of great features including extensions, call forwarding, voicemail transcription, and more. It is designed to provide a professional phone presence for entrepreneurs and small businesses.
RingCentral: RingCentral offers cloud-based phone systems for businesses, with features including call forwarding, auto-attendant, voicemail, and more. They also offer video conferencing and team messaging.
Nextiva: Nextiva is a VoIP provider that offers cloud-based phone systems. They have a range of plans that include features such as unlimited calling, voicemail to email, call routing, and more.
Phone.com: Phone.com provides flexible, cost-effective solutions for small businesses needing a business phone number. They offer features like call routing, call screening, and automated attendants.
Get Your Business “411 Listed”
ListYourself.com: ListYourself.com is a directory service that helps individuals and businesses make their contact information more accessible on the internet and public records.
$150K in Business Funding: Get Your LLC, S – Corp or C – Corp (Keep your business name generic and general to avoid high risk NAICS or SIC codes)
Some areas of business that other considered high risk are:
HIGH RISK CODES: Construction / Real Estate Investing / Investments / Car Sales / Adult / Entertainment / Travel Industry / Money Lending / Collecting / Restaurants & Dry Cleaners.
Sites to acquire and properly register your business:
WyomingCompany.com: Wyoming Company is a service that assists businesses in forming and maintaining Wyoming-based Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) and corporations, providing features like registered agent service, mail forwarding, and compliance support.
LegalZoom: This is one of the most well-known online legal services. They can handle the entire process of forming an LLC or corporation for you.
Incfile: Incfile provides a free service package for LLC formation and only charges for state fees. They also offer additional paid services like obtaining an Employer Identification Number (EIN).
Rocket Lawyer: Rocket Lawyer provides a wide array of legal services, including business formation. They also offer ongoing legal advice for a monthly fee.
ZenBusiness: ZenBusiness is a business services platform that offers business formation services and additional business services like EIN obtainment and worry-free compliance
Northwest Registered Agent: They offer business formation services and specialize in providing registered agent services.
BizFilings: BizFilings offers comprehensive business formation services and provides six months of free registered agent service.
MyCompanyWorks: Known for their excellent customer service, they provide LLC and corporation formation services with several package options.
Swyft Filings: Swyft Filings provides personalized customer service and offers several packages for business formation services.
MyCorporation: They provide business formation services and a variety of other business services such as trademark and copyright filing.
CorpNet: CorpNet provides comprehensive business formation services with several packages to choose from based on your specific needs.
Get your EIN Number
How To Foreign File a Corporation or LLC to acquire funding in any state!
Certain banks have geographic restrictions and require that you reside or conduct business within a specific area, often verifying this by requesting your zip code. To navigate this limitation, one strategy is to foreign file your pre-existing LLC or Corporation in the state where you intend to secure funding. Coupling this with a legitimate business address or at least a virtual address, you can then apply for business credit cards, loans, or lines of credit, or potentially all three, from your chosen bank.
To foreign qualify (also called foreign filing) a corporation or LLC, you are essentially registering your existing company to do business in a state other than the one in which you initially formed your company. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to do it:
1. Determine if Foreign Qualification is Necessary: Not every company doing business in another state needs to foreign qualify. Factors like having a physical presence, employees, or significant sales in a state can all indicate that you might need to register as a foreign entity. It would be wise to consult with a lawyer or accountant to make sure foreign qualification is necessary for your business. (Many banks will require a foreign filing)
2. Check Name Availability: You need to make sure your business name is available in the state where you want to register. If it's not available, you might have to use a fictitious name.
3. Appoint a Registered Agent: A registered agent is a person or company that's authorized to accept legal documents on your business's behalf. They must have a physical address in the state where you're registering.
4. File the Necessary Paperwork: This is usually called a "Statement & Designation" by a foreign corporation or something similar. You can usually find this form on the state's Secretary of State website.
5. Obtain a Certificate of Good Standing: Many states require you to obtain a certificate of good standing (or a similar document) from your home state. This document verifies that your LLC or corporation is in compliance with regulations and tax laws.
6. Pay the Filing Fee: Each state has a filing fee for foreign qualification. This can range from $50 to several hundred dollars, depending on the state.
7. Comply with Other State Requirements: Some states might have additional requirements, such as publishing a notice in a local newspaper or submitting a state-specific annual report.
8. Apply for Business Licenses and Permits: Depending on your business, you might need to apply for licenses or permits in the state where you're foreign qualifying.
9. Register to Pay State Taxes: If you'll be doing business and earning income in the state, you'll likely need to register to pay state taxes.
10. Keep Up with Ongoing Compliance Requirements: After you've foreign qualified, you'll need to keep up with ongoing compliance requirements in both your home state and the state where you've foreign qualified.
Remember that each state has its own rules and requirements, so you should look up the specific process for the state where you want to register. It might also be a good idea to consult with a lawyer or accountant to make sure you're doing everything correctly.
BUILD YOUR CREDIT REPORT THE WAY THE BANKS WANT YOU TO BUILD IT
What a basic fundable credit report should consist of:
8.9% or less of credit utilization (Per Card, not simply aggregate usage)
100% on time payment history
0 Derogatory marks
4 Years Or More Of Credit History
12 Accounts Positive Accounts (Ideally 21)
Zero to two Hard Inquiries per bureau is ideal. Depending on the lender, inquiries may not be as important as people think to be approved for fu
nding. The general rule is under 6 inquiries is best. Some lenders will automatically decline your application; some will still approve you over 6 inquiries. However, it may possibly be for a lower amount than if you you had applied with
less. There are other internal unwritten rules on the topic of inquiries. Banks commonly perform what is called “product matching” in which they will consider what is already showing on your personal credit profile to generate a decision on what to approve you for on the business side.
For example, if you have a solid personal profile with high limit lines of credit, in the form of credit cards or otherwise, they will feel comfortable approving you for similar sizes on the business side. Conversely, if your card limits are low, expect low approvals on the business side. Authorized user accounts will not be considered for business approvals, they will be scratched off immediately. Higher limit cards must be acquired on the personal profile first before applying on the business side.
NOTE: To get the highest limits possible, go into the bank of your choice and build a relationship with the business relationship manager. Submit your business credit card application through the business relationship manager directly to get the best results. This alone can garner approvals of $40K – $75K whereas you’d probably be approved for $25K max without taking this step.
TOP 18 BANKS LIST
Navy Federal Credit Union
Banner Federal Credit Union
Truist (0% Interest Cards) (3 no doc Products 1 inquiry)
(Equifax Pull)
PSECU (3 no doc products 1 inquiry) (Experian Pull)
Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union
NASA Federal Credit Union
CADENCE (Experian Pull)
M&T Bank
Envisiion Bank (TransUnion)
UMPQUA
USAA
Key Bank (0% Interest Cards) (Soft Pull Equifax, up to $50K No Doc Business Line of Credit, Up to $25K Business Credit Card, Minimum Score of 680 Required)
Chase Business ink (0% Interest Cards) (Experian & TransUnion Pull)
Alliant
First Tech Federal Credit Union (Donate 8 dollars to the financial fitness association to get in) Easy Credit card or bank loan with at least a 650 credit score. An annual stated income of at least $73,000 is generally preferred for the Odyssey Rewards World Elite MasterCard. (Experian Pull)
FDU
FNBO (Experian Pull)
PENFED (Equifax Pull) (Up to $50,000 no Doc Business Reward Card)
Citizens Bank (Up to $250,000 loan or line of credit in 2-3 days online)
NIH Federal Credit Union (No personal credit check for Business Credit Card, Must have business for 2 years, requires PG, 15 Months at 0% interest)
HOW TO INCREASE YOUR CHANCES TO QUALIFY FOR $50K- $300K IN BUSINESS FUNDING
700 Credit score or higher
At least 2 credit cards that have been open for one year. (The More The Better, 2 credit cards with one year of age is very weak, see step 3 section for best practices)
No collections
No charge offs
No late payments
No bankruptcies
Utilization under 15%
2-3 Inquiries of less per bureau
At least 4 years of age (credit history)
Must meet all baseline requirements (For a small business line of credit)
If your Business been open for 2 years:
Wells Fargo - up to $100k no docs online. Minimum credit score = 680 FICO. - PG
US bank - Up to $50k no docs online. Minimum credit score = 680 FICO. NO PG
Key Bank - Up to $50k no docs in branch. Minimum credit score = 680 FICO. PG
Huntington bank - Up to $50k no docs in branch. PG
BASIC FUNDING SEQUENCES FOR PERSONAL & BUSINESS CREDIT
It’s best to know which banks pull from which bureau so we can apply strategically with fewer inquiries.
(Below is a list of some banks to go for)
Personal Funding Sequence:
Experian:
PSECU (CC & LOC 20k) = 2 Accounts using 1 inquiry.
Chase (You can apply to 2 cards within 30 Days and you may be able to be approved for 2 Chase cards on the same day, many have. They will use only 1 inquiry for both applications. Also make sure you are not breaking the Chase 5/24 rule*)
*According to the Chase card 5/24 rule, if you’ve opened five credit cards in the past 24 months, you will likely not be eligible to open a new Chase credit card.
Citi
First Tech Federal Credit Union CC & LOC = 2 Accounts using 1 inquiry
American Express (You May apply for 2 cards in one day as long as one is a charge card and you apply for a credit card first. If both applications are for credit cards, you must wait at least 5 days. You cannot be approved for more than 2 in 90 days)
(Approx. 7 - 9 accounts, 5 inquiries)
Possible Addition = Discover ($5k - $15k)
Transunion:
Bank of America (You can apply for 2 Bank of America cards within the same month or even the same day. But if you apply for a third $150K in Business Funding within 2 months, a fourth within 12 months, or a fifth within 24 months, you will very likely be denied.)
Apple (No hard pull if you do not get approved)
Barclay’s (Including titanium, gold and black Mastercards)
Navy Federal Credit Union (WARNING: Could also pull Equifax in tandem)
Light Stream (Optional personal loan option)
(5-6 accounts, 5-6 inquiries)
Equifax:
Digital Federal Credit Union
NIH Federal Credit Union (Must be in the medical field or must join www.americanconsumercouncil.org) (You can apply to multiple products with 1 inquiry) (Note: No Hard Pull on Business Card),
PENFED (You can apply to 2 products in 1 day, however, you cannot be approved for more than 2 products in 30 days),
SECU of MD - Join the SECU Foundation to get in without a reference. They Use FICO 5 Scoring Model. (You can get 3 Products with one inquiry within a 30 day window) Business must be in Maryland, on the personal side you can join from anywhere in the United States.
(Approx. 7-8 accounts, 4 Inquiries)
You should be able to accumulate around $150,000+ using this process.
More Personal Credit Tips:
Alliant Credit Union - Open an account with them with at least $5 and apply for the Visa Platinum Credit Card. As low as 0% introductory rate for 12 months. Known for generous credit lines.
Fidelity - Open brokerage account with them first to allow your 2% cash back benefit and earn up to an additional 1% as a participant in the Fidelity Rewards+® program for Wealth Management clients. You can apply for a credit card the same day. You may also open your account with them over the phone after a credit card approval. Your cash back benefits can be used to deposit into your brokerage account to invest in the stock market. The card is serviced by Elan and has been known to award high credit limits. The Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card has a 0% for 12 Months introductory rate. (After the introductory period a relatively low standard variable rate applies, ranging from 13.99% to 23.24%.
This card has a balance transfer fee of $5 or 3% of the transferred amount, whichever is greater. ($5 minimum)
Earn 5,000 bonus points with qualified spending
Earn two rewards points for every dollar spent
Generally higher credit line approvals
Works with at mobile forms of payment, such as Apple, Google and Samsung Pay
No Annual Fee
Flagstar Bank - (Visa Signature Max Cash Preferred Card) This is an Elan powered credit card that generally issues high limits. Elan powered card often come with a 0% introductory rate up to 12 to 20 months.
LightStream - LightStream provides personal loans at affordable rates and without any additional charges for individuals having good to excellent credit scores.
Known for its versatility and convenience, LightStream enables borrowers to decide the timing of their funds' receipt. The funds can be deposited into your account either on the same day or within a span of 30 days post-approval. This feature to schedule a future funds' receipt date provides you with sufficient time to prepare for your initial payment, or it allows you to coordinate your loan with the commencement of a major renovation project or other significant expenditure.
If you have at least a 660 credit score, but you’re carrying high credit card balances, LightStream may be a great option to get a loan to knock those balances down, which will shoot your credit score up immediately.
BUSINESS FUNDING
Experian Inquiry Dominant Lines of Credit:
Paypal Business Cashback Mastercard
Chase Business Ink (It’s best to have Business Relationship Manager submit application)
American Express: American Express will allow you to acquire a maximum of 10 charge cards and 4 credit cards, be them business or personal. You may apply for different cards, over time, do not try to apply for 14 cards in one day. It is possible to get two cards in the same day with one inquiry, however, it’s best to get approved for a credit card first, and a charge card second.
The rule of 1-in-5 restricts the approval of credit cards to just one every five days. If you're interested in obtaining multiple Amex cards, it's advised to delay at least six days between applications to prevent the second one from being denied. It's possible to apply for two Amex cards on the same day, provided that one is a charge card and the other is a revolving credit card. Failure to do so will cause you to not meet the conditions of the 1-in-5 rule.
American Express has a limit on card approvals, allowing no more than two within a 90-day period. For a better chance of approval for multiple Amex cards, it's best to align this rule with the 1-in-5 policy. Regrettably, there are no exceptions to the Amex 2-in-90 rule. To date, Amex has consistently upheld this limit.
There is a technique promoted in which people will apply to 4 different amex cards on the same day and press the submit button using 4 different browers. I would advise against this because that could trigger a manual review or declines. You don’t want either. It’s better to apply to 1 or 2 cards max and grow steadily, building a positive relationship with Amex over time, rather than trying to play games and killing your long term success. Think big and long term, not small and short term. '
Keep your credit limit requests under $35,000, unless you are willing to hand over excellent and legitimate tax returns, and bank statements. Keeping your credit lines more reasonable makes growing with Amex much easier and brings in less scrutiny over your profile.
A Few American Express Cards to Consider:
Amex Platinum Card
Amex Gold Card
Amex Gold Delta Card
Amex Delta Platinum Card
Amex Plum Business Card
Amex Business Plus Credit Card
Amex Marriott Bonvoy Card
Amex Hilton Honors Business Card
Amex Amazon Business Card
Fnbo
Capital on Tap
Pnc
Oak Valley Community Bank
Navy (Go Biz Rewards Card)
Cadence bank
Equifax Inquiry Dominant Lines of Credit:
Flagstar bank (Elan powered card)
Banner iCU
US bank
Comerica bank
First Financial Northwest Bank
TransUnion Inquiry Dominant Lines of Credit:
PayPal Businesss Credit card
Barclays (Jet Blue, AAdvantage Aviator, Wyndam Resorts etc.)
Univest Bank (20 Months at 0% interest + 3% Cash Back on Business Cash Preferred Card)
Ameris Bank (6 months at 0% interest + 3% Cash Back on Business Cash Preferred Card, 18 months at 0% interest using The other Business Card with no cash back)
Bank of America
NOTE: NIH Federal Credit Union (No inquiry, Equifax soft pull)
Once your credit profile is structured properly (see step 3) you will be able to leverage your personal credit to qualify for business credit cards. When you personally guarantee a business credit card the line of credit will still only show on the business side, with the exception of Capital One and Discover business cards.
With proper inquiry control and strategy, you can apply to multiple banks, while keeping your inquiries under control, per credit bureau. (See the business funding section in step 6)
Example:
Apply for a business credit card at Chase.
Apply for a business credit card at Bank of America
Apply for a business credit card at PNC
Apply for a business credit card at Truist etc.
You can use multiple banks, while wisely using your inquiries.
Using this method will ensure you will lead you into 6 figures in lines of credit, which can be grown even further.
Although your inquiries will pile up, they will be properly spread out across different bureaus; and they can be removed (with the exception of a few), as they are business credit cards, not personal.
HOW TO FILL OUT THE APPLICATION
A misstep on the application can easily cause a denial or small limit approval, so this part is very important. The first thing to be clear on is the accuracy of your information. Your address, DOB, SSN, EIN, full name, and business name needs to be perfectly accurate. If something doesn’t match up correctly, there is a very high chance of not getting approved. Before submitting an application, you should thoroughly double check your work to make sure you aren’t making any mistakes. Next, the application will ask you about you business category or business type. It’s very important that this information matches with the information that is on your bank account and syncs with the accurate NAICS code.
For example, if your bank account is registered as a trucking company, but you are applying as a consulting company, this could create a negative result. That’s why it is very important to avoid high risk codes, as stated in step 1 of the book. Another section you will want to consider are the figures you are reporting for personal income, estimated business revenue, rent/mortgage payment, and if you are employed. The combination of these figures will play a big role in underwriting. You don’t want to report extremely high income or revenue; however, truthfully, it’s basically an honor system with exception of very few banks who will ask to verify your stated income or revenue. For “employment status,” if you are an entrepreneur and not technically working a job, for most people I would recommend selecting “employed” (because you are employed by your business) rather than “self-employed.”
It appears less risky in the eyes of the lender. Lastly, if you are doing your applications through a relationship manager, there will be a text field asking you what limit you’re requesting to get approved for and what your estimated monthly spend will be on card. This is case by case depending on someone’s credit profile, bank relationship, and strength of business, but the combination of these two numbers play a major role in the limit size. In short, lenders like businesses with solid revenue, that will significantly make use of the card or line of credit, and have the ability to pay the balance down.
BONUS SECTION: Short List of Business Cards With 0% Introductory Rates!
Chase Bank:
Chase Business Ink Unlimited: This card offers 0% for 12 months.
Chase Business Ink Cash: This card offers 0% for 12 months.
American Express:
Blue Business Cash: This card offers 0% interest for 12 months.
Blue Business Plus: This card offers 0% interest for 12 months.
US Bank:
US Bank Business Platinum: This card offers 0% interest for 18 months
Bank of America:
Bank of America Business Advantage: This card offers 0% interest for 9 months.
BBVA:
Compass Business Secured Visa Credit Card: This card has an introductory 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 9 months.
Wells Fargo:
Wells Fargo Business Platinum Credit Card: This card offers a 9 month 0% introductory APR on purchases.
Ameris Bank:
Business Cash Preferred Card: 6 months at 0% interest + 3% Cash Back
Business Card: 18 months at 0% interest with no cash back
Univest Bank:
Business Cash Preferred Card: 20 Months at 0% interest + 3%
Bremer Bank:
Bremer Bank Business Cash Preferred Card: This card offers a 0% introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers for 6 months.
Bremer Bank Visa Business Card: This card offers 0% for 18 months.
M&T Bank:
M&T Business Credit Card: 0% APR on balance transfers and purchases for 12 months.
Regions Bank:
Regions Bank Visa Business Credit Card: This card offers 0% interest for 6 months.
Regions Bank Visa Business Enhanced Rewards Credit Card: This card offers 0% interest for 6 months and you’ll earn 1 relationship rewards point per $1 in purchases.
PNC Bank:
PNC Cash Rewards Visa Signature Business Credit Card: This card offers an introductory 0% APR for the first 9 months.
STEP 9
INQUIRY CONTROL:
Inquiry removal is optional and a bit more risky, however, as stated earlier, your inquiries will pile up, but they will be properly spread out across different bureaus; and they can be removed (with the exception of a few), as they are business credit cards, not personal.
BONUS INFO:
Lenders that allow approval multiple products with 1 inquiry:
PenFed (May be able to get 2 Credit Cards on 1 Inquiry)
NIH Federal Credit Union (1 Inquiry can be used within 60 Days to get multiple different products)
SECU of MD (Example: You can apply for a Credit Card, Personal Line of Credit and a Personal Loan in the same day)
Chase (You must choose to apply to multiple business cards in one day, probably 2 max, or only personal cards in one day, not both)
American Express (Credit Card First, Then Apply For Charge Card. Other Details Earlier in Book)
First Citizens Bank (Get a Business Line of Credit and a Business Credit Card for up to $50,000 EACH. Your business must at least be 3-6 months old; keep at least $5,000 in your account for at least 120 days & keep account active with transactions. 720 Required on Experian & Equifax. No more than 3 new accounts, no more than 3 hard inquiries in the last 6 months.)
Lenders That Pull Equifax:
Digital Federal Credit Union
National Research Lab Federal Credit Union
State Employee Credit Union of MD
NIHFCU
Signal Financial Federal Credit
Chevron Federal Credit Union
Langley Federal Credit Union
Ameris
Bank of Texas
Lenders That Pull TransUnion:
Apple Federal Credit Union
Lake Michigan Federal Credit Union (Have also seen an Experian Pull)
Tower Federal
Regions Bank
Huntington Bank
Fifth Third Bank
Bank of America (On the Business Side, TransUnion & LexisNexis)
Barclay’s Bank
Safe Federal Credit Union
First Financial Credit Union
Thank You for Reading!
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