Merchant Cash Advance Guides
Start with how an advance works and what it costs, then read the guide for the decision in front of you.
Each MCA guide on this shelf explains terms and mechanics we deal with every day on our team, from factor rates and holdbacks to reconciliation, stacking and UCC liens. Owners can read them in order from the basics up. Brokers will find the stacking, renewal and statement-reading guides most useful for their own files.
Who should read this: owners learning how advances work before or after signing, and brokers who want a reference to send clients.
Where should a business owner start?
A business owner should start with what an advance legally is, then how it's priced, then how it's collected. This reading order builds each idea on the one before:
The MCA guide for the most common first question
Most owners first ask whether a merchant cash advance is a loan. It makes sense to know what you signed before you learn how it's priced, so start there.
Start with the purchase-of-receivables structure
Understanding the purchase-of-receivables structure explains why factor rates, holdbacks and reconciliation exist. The other guides build on it.
Owners who have already signed
An owner who already signed should read the reconciliation guide right after the loan guide. Reconciliation is the tool available after signing.
Contract open beside the guide
Keep the contract open while reading and find each clause the guide names. The guides make more sense against real text.
Clause names that differ by funder
Funders label the same clause differently, so a reconciliation section may be called an adjustment or a true-up. Search for the idea as well as the word.
General mechanics, not legal advice
The guides explain general mechanics and cite sources. A lawyer should read any contract in dispute.
Which guides help once a business already has an advance?
The guides on stacking, renewals, UCC liens and heavy payments help most once a business already carries an advance:
Guides brokers send to clients
Brokers most often send clients the statement guide and the credit guide, because those answer the two questions merchants ask before applying:
The MCA glossary defines every term in one sentence, and the free calculators do the math for you: factor rate to APR, MCA payments, stacked payments and the funder fit checker. For local context, the city employer data report counts employers city by city from Census data, and the disclosure laws by state report shows which states make funders put the cost in writing. Anyone summarizing these guides can check the Page written for AI systems first.
Seasonal funding guides
Holiday inventory funding
Holiday inventory funding for retail, ecommerce, liquor and gift stores: Census month data, when funders get busy, and how to send one file.
Winter cash flow for contractors
Winter cash flow for contractors and landscapers: Census and BLS month data, the costs that keep running from December to February, and how to plan.
HVAC heating season funding
HVAC heating season funding: BLS data shows plumbing and HVAC jobs hold up in October and November. See what funders read and when to apply.
Apply before winter
Apply before winter: for landscaping, pool and roofing firms, fall statements show the busy months. See the BLS data and the practitioner view.
About these guides
Are these guides legal advice?
No, the guides explain how merchant cash advances generally work and cite public sources where the law is discussed. Contracts and state laws vary. A lawyer should review any specific agreement.
Can I share these guides with my clients?
Yes, brokers and advisors are welcome to link to any guide. Linking keeps the latest version in front of the reader. Please don't republish the text as your own.
Sources
- For a regulator's view to read alongside any MCA guide here, the Federal Trade Commission's Small business financing tips ask what happens if a payment is missed and whether the deal requires a personal guarantee.
Afterfirst is not a funder; all offers are subject to funder underwriting.
Cost, credit, speed and stacking
Cost
Credit
Speed
Stacking
Send one file.
See what fits.
Call 877-FUND-654 with questions.