Chase Business Loans Review
Janet Schaaf is a freelance writer, editor and proofreader who considers reader advocacy to be her calling. After taking a few roads less traveled, Janet completed a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, with English Department Honors. She has been correcting grammar and checking facts since she could string a sentence together. For the past three years, Janet has focused on making personal finance topics understandable and relatable. Loan terms and credit card agreements can look overwhelming, but understanding what you’re agreeing to is paramount in grasping the impact debt can have on your life.
 | Starting APR range: Not disclosed Best for: Current Chase customers or those looking to do business with a well-known entity rather than an internet lender. |
Pros and cons of Chase business loans
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
SBA preferred lender No origination fee for loans Nearly 5,000 branches nationwide Good customer satisfaction ratings | May need to apply in-person Non-transparent financing details Loans have prepayment penalties May not be available in Alaska or Hawaii Rates depend on prior Chase banking history |
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Chase business loans review
Chase Bank is the largest bank in the country, with nearly 5,000 branch locations nationwide. It’s the U.S. division of the mega-bank J.P. Morgan, with over $3.2 trillion in assets worldwide. As such, it offers a considerably broad range of financial products for institutional investors, businesses of all sizes and everyday people.
For you, the small business owner, Chase Bank offers a lineup of traditional small business loans including term loans, lines of credit, SBA loans and commercial mortgages.
Who is Chase Bank for?
- You already bank with Chase. Chase bases your interest rate partially on your prior “banking relationship,” so if you already have a business bank account with Chase, you could score a more affordable loan.
- You want convenient branch access. Chase has more branches than any other bank in the country, meaning you’re never far from a real-life banker — which is good, because you may need to apply for a business loan in person.
- You want to apply for an SBA loan. Chase is an SBA preferred lender, meaning it has more authority to get you a loan decision faster than the average SBA lender.
Chase business loans at a glance
| Product | Loan amounts | Repayment term | Estimated APR range | Fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Term loans | $5,000 to $500,000 | Up to 84 months | Not disclosed | Prepayment penalty for loans over $250,000 |
| Business line of credit | $10,000 to $500,000 | 60 months | Not disclosed | 0.25% of your approved credit limit or $200, whichever is higher |
| SBA 7(a) loans | Up to $5,000,000 | Up to 300 months | Rates vary, subject to SBA maximums* | Fees vary, subject to SBA maximums* |
| SBA 504 loans | Up to $12,500,000 | Up to 300 months | About 3.00%* | Fees vary, subject to SBA maximums* |
| Commercial real estate loans | Starting from $0 | Up to 300 months | Not disclosed | Prepayment penalty for loans over $250,000 |
*Terms and rates based on SBA guidelines
Business term loans
Chase offers three different options for business term loans. There’s a standard business term loan with a lump-sum disbursement and a set payback period like you’d find with any other small business lender. It also offers a “draw loan” that basically operates like a business line of credit, with a one-year draw period. Finally, Chase offers an “advised line” that allows you to get pre-approved for a term loan for large business purchases for up to a year, to draw against as needed.
Business line of credit
Chase doesn’t provide any details about how much the rates might be for its business line of credit, but it does say it will depend on things like your “banking relationship, credit history and collateral.” It carries another fee, too, but you can have this waived if you use an average of at least 40% of your credit line over a 0-month period.
These lines of credit are structured with a five-year draw period, during which time your monthly payments will be $100 or 1% of your outstanding balance, whichever is more. After that, it converts to a five-year term loan.
SBA 7(a) loans
The popular SBA 7(a) loan program is a great choice for most business needs, such as buying working capital, upgrading your equipment and even purchasing or upgrading real estate. Chase offers Standard SBA 7(a) loans up to $5,000,000, as well as SBA Express loans for amounts under $500,000 under this program. Loan decision timelines can be quite fast — within as little as one day — for these loans because Chase Bank is an SBA preferred lender.
SBA 504/CDC loans
Chase offers SBA 504 loans which you can use to make major business investments like buying real estate or expensive equipment such as farm combines or specialized delivery vehicles. The SBA limits these loans to $5,500,000, but Chase may offer to boost your loan amount up to $12,500,000 with bank funding if your business qualifies, so you have a hybrid SBA/traditional loan.
Commercial real estate loans
Aside from SBA loans, which can also be used to purchase real estate property for your business, Chase also offers conventional commercial real estate loans too. These loans are meant for owner-occupied businesses, however, so things like franchise restaurant locations generally won’t be eligible.
Chase offers these loans in several flavors: with fixed or variable rates, to build or purchase a new property or to refinance your existing commercial mortgage. In addition, Chase may allow down payments as low as 10% for some loans.
Chase Bank business loan borrower requirements
| Minimum annual revenue | Not disclosed |
| Minimum time in business | Not disclosed |
| Minimum credit score | Not disclosed |
It’s common for lenders to be a little hush-hush about the specific business loan eligibility requirements. Even so, they often provide some sort of concrete information, but Chase provides none. Instead, it merely says that it’ll consider your credit history, any collateral you plan to offer for a secured business loan and your banking history.
That’s not very helpful if you’re making a decision about whether to even reach out to Chase about a loan. However, you can take heart that all of these details and more will be disclosed when you actually apply for the loan, but before you sign on the dotted line. Be careful to read this information and compare it to other offers to see if you’re actually getting a good deal or not.
Required documents
Chase provides some details about what required documents you’ll need to apply for an SBA loan specifically, but not for its other products. If the SBA loan is what you’re after, here’s what you’ll need to round up:
- Business certificate or license
- Written history of your business
- Current profit and loss statement
- Business lease or signed letter from landlord
- All loan applications submitted to other lenders
- Résumé for you and any other business owners
- Current balance sheet with all assets and liabilities
- Personal and business tax returns for the last three years
- List of all ownerships and business affiliations for all business owners
- Projected financial statements, with a written explanation of how you calculated it
- Personal financial statements with all assets and liabilities for business owners with 20% equity or more in the business
Alternatives to Chase business loans
| Chase Bank | U.S. Bank | Bank of America | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum credit score | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Loan products offered |
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| Time to funding | Not disclosed | Same business day for unsecured Quick Loans | Not disclosed |
| Starting APR | About 3.00% for SBA 504 loans |
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| Maximum loan size | $12,500,000 | $12,375,000 | $5,000,000 |
| Minimum annual revenue | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
|
Chase business loans vs. US Bank
US Bank is the fifth-largest bank in the country and offers similar small business financing options as Chase Bank. Compared with Chase, it offers the added advantage of offering “Quick Loans,” smaller loans from $5,000 to $250,000 that can be approved and deposited into your account the very same business day that you apply, if you’re approved.
Like other large banks, US Bank also bases your business loan interest rate on your prior banking relationship with it, so it’s a good idea to switch to US Bank before you need to take out a loan if you think you’d benefit from its offerings more. Unfortunately, US Bank is only available in certain parts of the country, mostly in the West and Midwest regions.
Chase business loans vs. Bank of America
As the second-largest bank in the country, Bank of America offers many of the same financing options as Chase does, albeit with a few more variations including equipment loans and business vehicle loans.
Like Chase, Bank of America also factors in your prior banking history with it when setting your rates. It’s a bit more transparent than Chase, however, and it does charge origination fees with its loans, which Chase avoids. Finally, Chase scored higher than Bank of America in J.D. Power’s 2022 survey of overall satisfaction among nationwide small banks.