Hazelford Funding, a small-business funding service in Lebanon, Tennessee, arranges six kinds of business funding through partners: working capital, term loans, lines of credit, inventory financing, equipment financing and merchant cash advances. This page compares them by purpose, repayment pattern and the documents partners usually look at, so you can pick a starting point before you call.
Four classic business loan types, plus two Hazelford adds
Business loans are often sorted into four types: term loans, lines of credit, equipment financing and short-term working capital. Hazelford adds two related products that are not loans in the same sense. Inventory financing is a loan shaped around stock, and a merchant cash advance is a purchase of future receipts rather than a loan at all.
| Funding shape | Typical use | Repayment or collection |
|---|---|---|
| Working capital | Payroll, rent and supplier bills while receivables are outstanding | Fixed payments on a short clock |
| Term loan | One planned project: a build-out, expansion or second location | Fixed installments over the agreed term |
| Line of credit | Uneven months; draw only when needed | Pay down what you drew; the limit frees up again |
| Inventory financing | Stock, parts or materials bought ahead of sales | Payments as the stock sells, per the partner's terms |
| Equipment financing, bought or leased | Trucks, lifts, ovens, exam tables, mowers | Installments or lease payments tied to the item |
| Merchant cash advance | Card-heavy businesses with a near-term need | A share of daily receipts is collected until the purchased amount is remitted |
What can a Lebanon, TN owner put a business loan toward?
Almost any ordinary business expense can sit behind a request, but partners want the money matched to the purpose. The plainest way to choose is to start from the bill:
- Payroll and rent: working capital is the natural fit; see the payroll section on the working capital page.
- Inventory purchases: buying stock before demand arrives belongs to inventory financing.
- Used, restaurant or contractor equipment: all three are covered on equipment financing, including used gear bought from a dealer or a private seller.
- Seasonal or lumpy months: a line of credit is built for draws that come and go.
- Expansion or a second location: a term loan fits a single defined project.
What a request cannot usually cover: personal expenses, real estate bought as an investment, or anything the business cannot show it will earn back. Hazelford does not arrange personal, mortgage or SBA loans.
Secured vs unsecured business loan: what the difference means in practice
A secured loan is backed by something the partner can claim if payments stop, such as the equipment being financed or a lien on business assets. An unsecured loan relies on the business's cash flow and credit history instead, and partners often ask for a personal guarantee from the owner even then.
Neither one wins by default. Equipment financing is secured by its nature, because the item anchors the deal. Working capital and lines of credit can be either, depending on the partner's program and the business's file. A partner will spell out any collateral, lien or guarantee in its offer; read those clauses as closely as the payment amount.
What partners usually review before any offer
Each partner sets its own criteria, and none of them publish fixed thresholds that Hazelford could quote. In practice the same handful of items come up on many files:
- Business bank statements, typically the most recent several months.
- Time in business and the annual revenue range.
- The purpose of the money and any quote, invoice or contract behind it.
- Existing debts, liens or advances the business already carries.
- Owner credit history, which some programs weigh more than others.
The order of events is on how a Hazelford request works, and the industry pages explain what tends to matter in specific trades.
How to get a small business loan in Tennessee from Wilson County, TN
The route is the same whichever product fits. These steps keep a Tennessee request from stalling on paperwork.
- Name the expense and its cost, with quotes where they exist.
- Check that the business's entity record is current in the Tennessee Secretary of State's business services search (site checked 2026-10-18).
- Gather recent business bank statements and the latest tax return.
- Write down every loan, lease and advance you carry, with its payment.
- Call or send the form, then compare any partner offers by total cost.
A common way to describe the four types of business loans: term loans, lines of credit, equipment financing and working capital. Hazelford adds inventory financing and the merchant cash advance, which is a purchase of future sales and never a loan.
Business loans in Tennessee start with a local file
Funding programs are not drawn up for Lebanon, TN alone, but the file a partner reads is local. A Wilson County, TN contractor shows draws and retainage; a Lebanon, TN cafe shows daily card batches; an insurance agency shows renewals. That is why Hazelford asks about the trade first. Of the county's 3,345 employer establishments in 2023, more than half had fewer than five employees (County Business Patterns 2023), so most files are small-firm files, and the conversation starts there.
Local figures, license steps and links for the city sit on the Lebanon, TN page.
