The short version: Shop a commercial loan narrow and in order. Pick three to five banks that already make your kind of loan, at your size, in your market. Give each one the same complete package in the same week, and compare what comes back in writing. Sending a thin request to every bank in town wastes weeks, puts the weakest version of your deal in front of lenders you may need later, and tells every one of them the deal is being shopped. There are 4,296 banks in the country and they do not lend alike. Public data shows which of them want your loan before you call anyone.
What burning a bank actually means
It does not mean a mark on a record. When one bank declines a business loan, no other bank is told. What you use up is quieter than that, and harder to get back.
- The first look. A lender who has passed on a request rarely opens it again with enthusiasm. If the version they saw was missing tax returns, asked for the wrong structure or was the wrong size for the bank, that is the version on file under your name.
- Weeks. Each bank you engage needs time to read the package, ask questions and take the request to whoever approves it. Fifteen conversations do not run faster than three. They run slower, because you are the bottleneck.
- Standing. Commercial lending in a region is a small world. Lenders change banks, and banks share loans with each other. A deal that every lender in town has seen reads as a deal every lender in town passed on, whether or not that is true.
- Your guarantors' credit. Many banks pull a personal credit report on each guarantor. Unlike mortgage or auto shopping, there is no dependable rule that bundles those inquiries into one.
Why the wrong banks get called
Most borrowers call the bank where they keep their checking account, then the biggest names in town, then whoever a friend used. None of that says whether the bank wants the loan. Appetite comes from the bank's balance sheet, and balance sheets differ more than borrowers expect.
Take room to lend. The median bank has lent out 80.16% of its deposits. A quarter of banks are above 90.94% and have little room for a new loan unless new deposits come with it. A quarter are below 65.73% and are looking for loans to make. Two banks on the same street can sit at opposite ends of that range (loan-to-deposit benchmarks).
Take real estate. The median bank holds commercial real estate loans equal to 129.78% of its capital, and a quarter of banks are above 219.57%. Regulators look harder at a bank as it nears 300%, so a bank close to that line may turn down a good property loan for reasons that have nothing to do with the property (CRE concentration limits explained). Construction lending has its own line at 100% of capital, against a median of 29.06%.
And take size. A national bank can generally lend one borrower no more than 15% of its capital and surplus, and state limits are broadly similar. A bank with $50 million of capital tops out near $7.5 million. Ask it for $6 million and you are asking for most of its limit in a single loan (how much can a bank lend to one borrower?).
Build the short list from data, not from billboards
Every bank files a call report each quarter, and it shows what the bank lends against, how fast its loan book is growing, how much capital it has, and whether problem loans are rising. Seven signals do most of the work: loan-type concentration, loan size fit, geography, capital, growth, remaining room in the portfolio, and asset quality. We go through each one in how to find the bank most likely to fund your loan.
The output you want is a ranked list, not a list of banks that qualify. No bank is a certain yes and few are a certain no. A ranking tells you whom to call first, which is the only decision you have to make today.
One complete package, sent to all of them
A lender forms a view of the borrower from the package before forming a view of the loan. A complete one says the borrower knows how this works. Send every bank on the list the same file.
- A one-page summary. The amount, what it is for, where every dollar comes from and goes, the collateral, how the loan gets repaid and when you need to close.
- Three years of business tax returns and financial statements, plus a year-to-date statement no more than a quarter old.
- A schedule of existing debt. Lender, balance, payment, rate, maturity and collateral for each.
- For each guarantor, a personal financial statement and tax returns. Expect every owner of 20% or more to be asked to guarantee.
- For real estate, the rent roll, the leases and the purchase contract. For a project, the budget and projections with the assumptions written down.
- The repayment math, done. Most lenders want cash flow of at least 1.20 to 1.25 times the debt payments. Work it out before they do (DSCR calculator).
Run it as a process
- Shortlist three to five banks, ranked.
- Call the commercial lending desk at the top three or four, not the branch and not the main number. Ten minutes is enough to learn whether the bank makes this loan at this size in this county, and what structure it usually offers.
- Send the package to every interested bank in the same week. The answers then arrive close enough together to compare.
- Ask each for written terms by a date. A term sheet or a letter of interest, not a conversation.
- Compare the whole offer. Rate and what it floats on, how long it is fixed, amortization against term, fees, the prepayment penalty, guarantees, covenants, any requirement to move your deposits, and how long the bank needs to close.
- Tell the banks you did not choose, promptly and plainly. You will want them next time.
- Keep one alternative warm until you hold a commitment letter. Terms can change between a term sheet and a commitment.
Say that you are comparing. A sentence like this one costs nothing and gets a faster, firmer answer.
"I am talking with three banks about this loan, and I plan to choose by the 15th."
Lenders expect competition. What they resent is learning that the same package went to fifteen banks.
Your own bank, a broker, or a list built from data
| Route | What you get | What it costs | When it fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your own bank | Speed and a lender who knows your accounts. | No fee, but one opinion. If your loan is not what that bank does, you learn it late. | Renewals, small increases and loans squarely in the bank's lane. |
| A commercial loan broker | Packaging, a network, and access to lenders that are not banks. | A fee, usually a percentage of the loan paid at closing. You may not control who sees the deal. | Complex or unusual deals, tight timelines, or when a bank loan may not be the answer. |
| A ranked list from public data | The banks most likely to want your loan, in calling order. You make the calls. | A flat price. Borrower Assist is $49 for one ranked report and $99 for three. | When you can run the process yourself and want to start with the right banks. |
If you use a broker, get the fee in writing before your package goes anywhere, and ask which lenders will see it. On an SBA loan, a fee paid to an agent has to be disclosed to the SBA. A broker who will not name the lenders is asking you to give up the one thing this page is about.
If the first round comes back no
Ask why, and listen for which kind of no it is. A no about the bank is not about you: the bank is full on real estate, the loan is too large for its limit, or the property is outside its market. Take the same package to the next banks on the list.
A no about the deal is information. Thin cash flow, too little equity, weak collateral or a short operating history will get the same answer at the next bank. Fix the structure first: more equity, a longer amortization, added collateral, or an SBA guarantee, which exists for loans a bank likes but cannot make on conventional terms (SBA loan calculator).
Either way, do not send the same request back to the same bank. Go back only when something material has changed, and say what changed in the first sentence.
Frequently asked questions
How many banks should I approach for a commercial loan?
Three to five that already make your kind of loan, at your size, in your market. That is enough to compare terms and few enough that each bank gets a complete package and your full attention. Past that, the extra banks mostly add delay and mark the deal as widely shopped.
Does applying at several banks hurt my credit?
A decline at one bank is not reported to other banks. The exposure is the personal credit report of each guarantor. Many banks pull one, and several inquiries in a short period can lower a personal score a little for a time. Ask each bank when it pulls credit, and where you can, hold the pull until you have chosen whom to proceed with.
Should I use a commercial loan broker?
A broker earns the fee when the deal is complex, when you need lenders that are not banks, or when you do not have the time to run the process. The fee is usually a percentage of the loan paid at closing, so get it in writing before the broker sends your package anywhere, and ask which lenders will see it. On an SBA loan the fee has to be disclosed to the SBA.
What do banks look at first in a commercial loan request?
Whether the loan fits what the bank does: the type, the size against its lending limit, and the location. Then repayment, where most lenders want cash flow of at least 1.20 to 1.25 times the debt payments. Then collateral, the guarantors' finances and how much of your own money is in the deal.
Is it okay to tell a bank I am talking to other lenders?
Yes, and it helps. Lenders expect a borrower to compare, and a clear statement that you are talking to three banks and deciding by a set date gets you a faster and firmer answer. What lenders resent is finding out that fifteen banks received the same package.
What should I do if a bank declines my commercial loan?
Ask why. If the reason is about the bank, such as a concentration limit, its lending limit or its market area, take the same package to the next bank on your list. If the reason is about the deal, such as cash flow, equity or collateral, change the structure before you ask anyone else, because the next bank will see the same thing.
Where these numbers come from
Every bank figure on this page is computed from FFIEC call reports for the quarter ending June 30, 2026, across the 4,296 banks that filed for the quarter, less the 58 non-insured non-deposit trust companies that take no deposits and make no loans, which leaves the 4,238 banks these benchmarks are computed over. Nothing is modeled or sampled. The lending limit and guidance levels described are general federal rules, and a bank's own policy can be tighter. This page is general information, not advice about your loan. You can look through a finished report on the sample borrower report.