 TITLE: How to Get a Business Loan CONTENT: How Do Business Loans Work?\n---------------------------\nLenders offer a variety of business loan options designed for different business needs. For example, you can find loans to use for purchasing equipment, financing expansion, buying commercial real estate or providing working capital. Business loans include:\n*   Bank loans\n*   U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) guaranteed loans\n*   Business lines of credit\n*   Equipment loans\n*   Invoice financing or accounts receivable financing\n*   Merchant cash advances\nBusiness loans may come in the form of installment loans or revolving credit. Revolving credit, such as business lines of credit, lets you borrow up to a set limit and either pay off your balance each month or carry it over (\"revolve\" it). As you repay the loan, you can borrow against up to the limit again with no need to get reapproved. With installment loans, you borrow a lump sum of money and repay it over time by making fixed monthly payments.\nShort-term business loans are designed for short-term purposes, such as providing working capital to buy inventory. They typically last for six to 24 months. Long-term business loans usually last three years or more.\n_Secured_ business loans require you to put up collateral; if you can't repay the loan, the lender takes your collateral. _Unsecured_ loans don't require collateral, so they're easier to get; however, they carry higher interest rates than secured loans.\nBusiness loans are available from a variety of sources, including banks, credit unions, nonprofit or community organizations and online lenders. END