Specialist
Business Loans for Women
Funding Solutions for Women Business Owners
Funding Solutions for Women Business Owners
Secured business loans mean you secure the loan against your personal or business assets, such as property, vehicles, business equipment, or other valuable assets.
Unsecured business loans do not require any assets to be used as security for the loan. Still, you will usually get less favourable terms and a higher interest rate with an unsecured loan.
The higher the funding you require, the higher the value of the assets you will need to secure the loan against. This means you could be putting things such as your home on the line for your business loan, which can be difficult. For guidance on the type of business loan you should apply for and information on the best way to secure your loan, contact our Clifton Private Finance experts who can ensure you’re getting the best deal for your business.
It can often feel more difficult to qualify for a business loan as a woman, and there are a few reasons why it may be more difficult.
Here are some things which can generally impact a woman’s application for a business loan:
Many female-owned businesses operate within the retail category, and often lenders view retail as a higher-risk investment. This means regardless of gender; retail company owners may find it more difficult to get the funding they need for their businesses.
But as a significant portion of female-owned businesses is within retail, it can seem like this has a bigger negative impact on women. Retail is viewed as more of a risk generally due to often having lower profit margins and higher expenses than other types of businesses.
As female-owned businesses are becoming less rare, this still leads to difficulties as generally newer businesses find it more difficult to get funding. This means women looking to start up new businesses and change the idea of business ownership being predominantly male, may face some difficulty getting the funding they need.
One thing that significantly impacts qualifying for a business loan is your credit score, and there is unfortunately a gender gap in average credit scores. A report made by Credit Karma shows that the lifetime gender credit gap between men and women is £16,913. The average credit score for men is 705, and the average credit score for women is 652. 13% of women have a credit score below 500, and 6% of men have a credit score below 500.
The research undertaken by Credit Karma revealed that one of the big reasons for this gender credit gap is, relationships. They found that 31% of women have some form of financial situation in their partner's name, which can impact their credit score negatively.
Unfortunately, we’re still going through the process of changing people’s perspectives on business ownership. In rare circumstances, you may find yourself hitting all the required criteria but still dealing with the personal bias of a lender. Our experts at Clifton Private Finance are committed to helping remove the stigma of female-owned businesses and will help make sure you get the best deal you should be getting for your business.
Are Business Loans for Women Important?
Encouraging women to apply for business loans to either start or expand their businesses helps break the stigma against female-owned businesses. Having women at the forefront of large businesses and showing the positive outcome of female entrepreneurs helps encourage other women to take the opportunity of starting their own business as they can often see themselves in that representation, and this can help balance the monopoly of men mostly being the ones using business funding.
Unfortunately, the UK Treasury found in their 2019 report that many female start-up business owners often still experience the feeling of having to routinely defy gender stereotypes and have to outperform men to be viewed as successful.
Where Do I Find The Best Business Loans For Women?
To find the best business loans available for your personal situation and for advice tailored to your business, get in touch with our experts at Clifton Private Finance for all the help you need to either get started with your new business or to begin expanding your business so you can grow.
Our business loan service provides the following:
Business loans for:
As a specialist finance broker, Clifton Private Finance can provide a clear picture of your options. We will assess your circumstances and arrange a finance solution tailored to your needs.
I approached Clifton Private Finance to help me get a mortgage as an Expat working in the Far East. I would normally 'cut out the middle man' on something like this and try to get myself a deal directly with the banks, but I am now sold on the broker concept and wouldn't hesitate to use Clifton Private Finance again. There were a number of complicating factors such as being an expat, the stamp duty holiday, the sheer amount I wanted to borrow and the fact I wanted it all wrapped up before the Stamp Duty holiday ended. It is clear to me now that the relationship that brokers have managed to foster with their banks means they can simply pull levers and make stuff happen that us ordinary folk cannot. Put simply, they are worth every penny, will take most of the stress out of the lending process, and seem to have access to deals that you just won't find on the internet. Thank you George and Jan for all your hard work!
James M
Luther was excellent. Very clear in his advice and explanations of products and was able to move things on very quickly when we ran into difficulties with the estate agents. Without a doubt I would recommend Luther to all friends, family and colleagues. Luther was a joy to deal with and took a lot of the stress out of a troublesome transaction, from my end. I would view Luther as real asset to Clifton Private Finance Ltd.
William W
The team at Clifton Private Finance has been outstanding, not only in helping me to obtain a mortgage on a slightly unusual home, but also in continuing to provide support and liaise with the lender and solicitors through to completion. Thank you for making the process of buying my first home much easier.
Chantelle S
Sam O'Neill, and the new lender he identified for me, worked tirelessly together using my time constraints, to make sure my mortgage application was completed on time. They are a brilliant company to work with, fast, efficient, open and transparent from the very beginning, and turned a seemingly impossible situation into a viable one. Sam was brilliant throughout the whole process and I would highly recommend him, and his colleague Helen, to anyone without hesitation, I cannot speak highly enough about them.
Myr B
I was incredibly lucky to find Clifton Private Finance after a search on line as their service has been more than exemplary. My point of contact was Sam 0’Neill and he was happy to help at every stage during the application of the bridging loan, making a stressful process much easier to deal with. He was always available by phone or email and gave prompt answers to queries I had as well as always getting back to me when he said he would. That to me is excellent customer service and I cannot thank him personally or the company enough for the support they have given me.
C Jefferey
Adam cannot thank you enough for all your support throughout this arrangement. You have gone more than the extra mile to support us. Without you we would not have got our dream retirement home. You have been most professional and personable. Liz and I would be more than happy if you wanted to use us a reference with respect to any future clients.
Nigel & Liz K - Bristol
You have certainly shown me that you do everything for your clients, including tolerating their excessive emails and questions for updates. I have been kept in the loop, from yourself, about why the delays were occurring (Nationwide, post etc) which I would like to highlight that I really appreciated. I certainly will be able to recommend you to others as and when the need arises.
Mr Morris
I recently contacted Clifton Private Finance after a Google search for bridging finance providers and was immediately struck by their efficiency and support. Forms were emailed over almost immediately and the necessary finance was arranged within a few days. None of the other companies I contacted came close to their professionalism, and the quote that I eventually received was impressive. Thank you Adam, your help has enabled us to reserve the house that we wanted and I certainly recommend you to others.
Mr M. R. - Oxford
Absolutely brilliant. The service was first class, got everything sorted efficiently and were always friendly. Any fees were negligible compared to the service offered. Robert was particularly outstanding.
Charles N
My advisor, Robert, was very helpful in finding the mortgage to suit me. He kept me up to date throughout the process and dealt with any issues when they arose.
Rowena C
