Loan Application Package

When seeking financing for a new dental office project, you should:

[a]  prepare a package which indicates that the new dental office project you want to build is a no-brainer, and

[b]  present the ‘argument’ to multiple lenders/financiers.  Incidentally, it won’t hurt you if it slips out that you are approaching several different sources (“I’m discussing this Project with several sources, and I wanted to see if your institution is interested in it.”)

What should that ‘package’ include?

1.   A Vicinity Map which indicates the proximity of your new office to your current office, and which targets the new/future patient base you intend to tap into (i.e. existing and new residential tracts, large businesses, etc.).  Any additional demographic data and your empirical notes which suggest that the site you’re targeting will support a dental office will be helpful.

2.   A Site Plan (if not drafted, then at least sketched to scale) which indicates that you know what you want to do with most of the property (including blocked-out future development and parking if there will be any), and that you have a fairly good idea of the infra-structure (curb-cuts, driveway, parking lot, etc.) which will support the main building.  Indicating Site Survey information on your Site Plan is important – it will surprise you (and impress the bankers you address) seeing the difference in a Site Plan with existing trees to be saved, easements & setbacks, existing utilities and topography…as opposed to a site plan with no trees or contours.  Seeing the former on a Site Plan tells a banker ‘This project is not a rehearsal or a passing fancy with me - I’m already invested in it.’

3.   A drafted Floor Plan which indicates that you know what you want to do with the entire building or space now and in the foreseeable future (e.g. how you will phase future finish-out or expansion).

4.   A Preliminary Financial Projection [PFP] which will demonstrate the viability/feasibility of the Project you want to borrow for.  If you fill in all the blanks on the Financial Projection Survey I am faxing to you, the two-page PFP that DODC will produce will speak for you by demonstrating that you have addressed all of the costs of constructing and equipping a new dental office, and considering your present income and expenses, it is reasonable to believe that you will be able to service the debt.

5.   A Business Plan with pro forma (income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement).  There will be some overlap between a few line items on page 2 of your Preliminary Financial Projection and some of the info that appears on a typical pro forma, but it will be readily apparent to a banker that DODC produced the PFP, and the Doctor produced the pro forma.  If you haven’t generated similar documents in the past (or, if you don’t feel well-versed in how to write this up), the SBA offers several very good primers at http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/plan/writeabusinessplan/index.html.

Walk in with (…and leave each banker/financier with) two clean copies of your package.  In short, think like a developer.