Business funding for Auto repair shops: loans, lines of credit and equipment financing

224,738 independent auto repair shops are listed on CheckThisBiz, a directory of 7,704,724 independent US businesses, including 26,287 in CA, 22,628 in TX, 14,123 in FL. Chains and franchises are excluded from that count, so these are the owner-operated businesses that actually apply for funding.

What the money usually goes to

Businesses in this industry most often need funding for lifts, diagnostic tools, parts inventory and bay expansions.

Shops often finance lifts and diagnostic equipment, and use working capital for parts inventory.

Options that fit

Equipment financing

Equipment financing lets the equipment secure the deal, so it can be easier to qualify for than an unsecured loan. Here is how it works and what to prepare.

Working capital

Working capital funding covers the money a business needs to run day to day: payroll, inventory, rent and the gap between paying bills and getting paid.

Business line of credit

A line of credit gives your business a limit to borrow from, repay and borrow again. Here is how it works, what it costs you in practice and how to qualify.

Merchant cash advance

A merchant cash advance gives you cash now in exchange for a share of future sales. It's fast and credit-flexible. Here is how to use one wisely.

Where these businesses are

The states with the most independent businesses of this type, which is a rough guide to where the competition and the customers both are.

State	Independent auto repair shops
CA	26,287
TX	22,628
FL	14,123
PA	10,127
NY	9,776
OH	8,329
IL	8,019
NC	7,495
GA	7,348
MI	7,037

What an underwriter actually looks at

Most articles about getting funded describe the application. This is the other side of the desk: the handful of things a real underwriter checks first, in the order they check them.

Deposits, not revenue. What lands in the business bank account each month, averaged over three to six months. A good month does not matter; consistency does.
Negative days and overdrafts. A file with repeated NSFs is the fastest decline there is, because it says the account cannot absorb a payment.
Existing positions. Daily or weekly debits to other funders show up immediately in the statements. Several at once is called stacking, and it closes most doors.
Time in business and industry. Both change the pricing before anyone looks at credit.
Credit, last. It matters for the cheapest products and matters far less for revenue-based ones.

Which is why the advice below is not filler: it is what moves a file from declined to approved.

Get approved faster

Keep all revenue in one business bank account.
Have three to six months of statements ready.
Know your average monthly revenue and your busiest and slowest months.
Be specific: what will the money buy, and how will it pay for itself?

Questions owners ask

What kinds of funding do Auto repair shops businesses use?

Common options include equipment financing, working capital, business line of credit, merchant cash advance. The best fit depends on what the money is for, how fast you need it, and your revenue and credit.

How can I improve my chances of approval?

Run all revenue through one business bank account, avoid overdrafts, have three to six months of bank statements ready, and be specific about what the money will do for the business.