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Top 4 Most Overlooked Benefits of leasing of equipment as a Business Finance Strategy

Guest post by: Stan Prokop

Article Overview: Information on four key benefits with respect to leasing of equipment as part of your overall business finance strategy in Canada. How lease financing benefits can help you reduce and overcome capital acquisition risk and challenges.Make lease financing work for your firm !

Top 4 Most Overlooked Benefits of leasing of equipment as a Business Finance Strategy

Most Canadian owners and business managers wouldn't think of always paying cash for equipment and other capital acquisition needs. They also can't imagine, in the current economic climate, paying cash for everything. Whether you are in an industry that is highly capital intensive, or if you simply on occasion need to upgrade or purchase new equipment the leasing of equipment should be considered as an effective overall financing strategy for your company

Naturally no form of business financing in Canada could be considered perfect and meet absolutely every one of your needs, but let's examine what are considered to be normally the top four benefits of equipment leasing. Naturally you want to ensure you are dealing with the right type of lease firm and you have also carefully examined your rights and obligations under the business lease.

Anyway, benefit 1. Flexibility. The reality is that working with the right lease partner firm should provide you with the flexibility you want in your transaction. Flexibility is of course a broad term, but we are basically referring to the type of lease that works best - for your firm! Not everyone else's. That flexibility comes in the form of low or no down payment, monthly payment structuring options ( here are possibilities abound!) , balance sheet optics around the amount of debt you can carry without getting your bank offside . Flexibility also comes in the form of the ability to return the equipment or extend the lease for a pre agreed period of time.

Benefit # 2 might well be called Cost efficient. The last thing you want to be doing is getting your firm locked into a long term lease on a depreciating asset - and the reason you lease financed the equipment in the first place is that you as a Canadian business owner and financial manager recognize that the equipment ultimately will probably have no value after its economic life is completed.

If the business world was slow moving and predicable you would never have to worry about competition, changing technology, etc- however things don't work that way and as your needs change over time you can using equipment financing as the tool to address those needs .

Benefit 3- Tax benefits! We hate getting into long accounting and financial statement dissertations when we are lease financing info with clients, but the reality is that leasing of equipment as a business finance strategy has accounting and tax benefits re write off strategies around your payments .

Our final focused major benefit is simply Cash flow conservation. It's tough enough in today's business environment to achieve positive working capital and cash flow for daily and long term needs. Utilizing lease financing as a tool to minimize cash outlay and reduced down payment requirements makes total sense. Choosing an off balance sheet operating lease strategy will also ensure your ratios and debt covenants stay intact.

In summary, as we stated, no overall business financing strategy works perfectly for all companies in all industries. But leasing of equipment has significant benefits that clearly outweigh other options such as purchasing for cash, entering into long term loans, etc.

Speak to a trusted, credible and experienced lease financing advisor to ensure you can take advantages of the 4 key benefits we outlined

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Article Tags: business finance, leasing of equipment



Related Forum Posts
Equipment leasing - Equipment leasing has many benefits, such as tax benefits, conserving money and always having up to date equipment to stay competative to name a few. Obviously, it's partially dependent upon what type of business you have as to whether you will benefit more than someone else but... Do you think it's worth leasing your equipment rather than purchasing it? Can you think of any other reasons you can benefit from it or any reasons this is not a good idea?
Leasing advantages/ disadvantages - Nana compiled a great list and as you can see, there are more advantages than disadvantages when weighing this as an option. Also- I'd like to address one of those disadvantages- the one where you have to pay one or a few payments first. while it's true that most leasing companies will only have you put down one or two months in advance to get the lease and equipment. But when you compare this to the cost of a loan down payment (when including equipment to purchase within your business loan) or the cost of purchasing outright, you really come out ahead with the lease, which leaves more money to improve your cash flow. Your business loan size would be smaller, which ultimately makes your loan down payment smaller so it's a win-win for you! Also- if you are dealing with the right equipment company, they can include additional soft costs in your lease, such as training, maintenance & installation costs. Kevin- that is a perfect example of how one can benefit from up-to-date equipment when leasing.
Brokering Equipment Leases - We were thinking of brokering our own leases for the software that we sell, and perhaps other equipment that chiropractors need, but we've had a hard time finding what seems like legitimate companies to work with on this. Does anyone know anything about equipment leasing brokering and could hook us up with a reputable group that would have access to lenders for this purpose?
Collateral security required - You will have to use your home and anything else you own for collateral on a business loan. The SBA will require you have at least 2 years in the same industry as the business you want to open. Banks will want more money down (30%) and real property as collateral, and will probably charge higher rates and require a 5 year baloon. More and more credit unions are getting into commercial lending and tend to be a little more friendly than banks. Non-bank lenders can offer a nice alternative. They typically require less money down (10% in many cases), rates are usually variable (tied to prime like 2 to 3% above), are more willing to accept equipment as collateral, but expect a shorter term as a trade off for the risk (ie. 5 to 7 year term). This can make it difficult for some to afford the loan payment. Yet another option is a leasing company. There are many leasing companies that will finance franchise purchases and expansions by writing the whole thing up as an equipment lease. (200K) is not out of the question. They might require 10% down, but as long as they have a first position on all the business assets they are quite willing to set you up with a lease. The downside is that your cost of financing (the leasing co. won't call it interest) will be higher than any type of loan. When figuring you cost remember that many states require you to pay sales tax on the amount of your monthly lease payment. Also consider the buy out terms at the end of the lease period. You'll want to stay away from market value buy outs. Go for the $1 buy out. If you have enough equity in your home, you might be better off taking out a home equity loan and using that to finance your business.
Who's best for first time commercial loan? - You will have to use your home and anything else you own for collateral on a business loan. The SBA will require you have at least 2 years in the same industry as the business you want to open. Banks will want more money down (30%) and real property as collateral, and will probably charge higher rates and require a 5 year balloon. More and more credit unions are getting into commercial lending and tend to be a little more friendly than banks. Non-bank lenders can offer a nice alternative. They typically require less money down (10% in many cases), rates are usually variable (tied to prime like 2 to 3% above), are more willing to accept equipment as collateral, but expect a shorter term as a trade off for the risk (i.e. 5 to 7 year term). This can make it difficult for some to afford the loan payment. Yet another option is a leasing company. There are many leasing companies that will finance franchise purchases and expansions by writing the whole thing up as an equipment lease. (200K) Is not out of the question. They might require 10% down, but as long as they have a first position on all the business assets they are quite willing to set you up with a lease. The downside is that your cost of financing (the leasing co. won't call it interest) will be higher than any type of loan. When figuring you cost remember that many states require you to pay sales tax on the amount of your monthly lease payment. Also consider the buy out terms at the end of the lease period. You'll want to stay away from market value buyouts. Go for the $1 buy out. If you have enough equity in your home, you might be better off taking out a home equity loan and using that to finance your business. I hope this helps.


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