New Square Loan in 2024

[SPPhotography1]

I’m at a bit of a loss for what else I need to do to be offered a new Square Loan at this point. I’ve been with Square for over 10 years, had 7 loans now that I’ve have paid back early every single time. Metrics are all in green, record sales year. In 2023, record numbers across the board, no refunds, no complaints or issues of any kind in our entire history. Current loan is 80% paid off, but no new offer in site. This is the kind of stuff that causes businesses to find someone else to process through! Please help! I’m sure I’ll get the same old excuses that you guys send to everyone about looking at every aspect of the business. But there isn’t a single aspect that isn’t way up. I’m not sure if there is a new process they are using now, or if there is some kind of issue with my banking or something else I’m not thinking about or aware of. Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks, because I could really use some new capital to start the year off with and reinvest into my business!

[Stacelyn24 · Accepted solution]

I'm really sorry to hear about your frustration with the loan offers. I understand how important it is to feel valued, especially as a loyal customer. Let me try to address your concerns and provide some clarity.

Loan Offers and Qualification Parameters

Square’s loan offers are based on a variety of factors, and while past trends have shown offers at certain thresholds, the exact parameters can change over time and are not always disclosed in detail. Here are a few points to consider:

• Dynamic Criteria: Square uses a complex set of algorithms that take into account not just the repayment percentage but also your recent sales history, account health, and overall business performance.
• Market Conditions: External market conditions and internal policy changes can also impact when and how loan offers are extended.

Value Beyond Transaction Fees

I understand that a 3% card transaction fee can seem high compared to other providers, but Square offers several features and benefits that help justify this cost:

• Integrated Ecosystem: Square provides a comprehensive suite of tools that work seamlessly together, from point-of-sale systems to online stores, invoicing, and inventory management.
• Ease of Use: The user-friendly interface and intuitive design make managing your business simpler and more efficient, saving you time and reducing the need for extensive training.
• Reliable Support: Square offers robust customer support and resources to help you resolve issues quickly and keep your business running smoothly.
• Secure Transactions: Advanced security measures protect your business and customers from fraud and data breaches.
• Analytics and Reporting: Detailed analytics and reporting tools help you understand your business performance and make informed decisions.

I understand the disappointment regarding the loan offer, please know that Square regularly reviews its criteria and your status. I recommend reaching out to Square’s customer support for a more personalized review of your account and to express your concerns directly.

[MayaP · Accepted solution]

Thank you for reaching out and sharing your concerns. We understand your frustration, especially given your long-standing relationship with Square and your excellent track record with previous loans.

There are several factors that can affect loan offers, and while it sounds like you have met all the typical criteria, there may be new processes or other considerations at play. I would reach out to our Square Financial Services Team if you have any further questions. They are available at 1-855-700-6000 Monday - Friday, 8 AM to 8 PM CST. 

[VanKalkerFarms · Accepted solution]

August 1st Square shareholder letter came out with another outstanding quarter for Square Loans.  More loans than ever were started in the last 3 months, an outstanding show of commitment to the service.
"Square Loans facilitated approximately 142,000 loans totaling $1.45 billion in originations, up 32% year over year."

That breaks down to almost 1,600 loans a day (66 an hour, or more than 1 per minute). averaging $10,200+ per loan.

So yes, there are THOUSANDS and THOUSANDS of Square Loans happening all the time.  It is unbelievable that they can get this number of loans even facilitated, that is a staggering number of loans to Square customers.  It wouldn't be possible without the Square Loans Algorithm going thru and promoting offers to be given.  For every one post on here saying they haven't gotten a loan or 5th offer, 10s of thousands have gotten loans.  The service keeps growing though it may not seem like it to a user that is waiting for their 3rd loan.

@Twpchair 

[TheRealChipA · Accepted solution]

Good news, bad news, eh @cmeshine.  There are a number of reasons that COULD be part of why your new offer was lower.

1. Square might be slowing down on how much loan exposure they want to have on their balance sheet.  They are, after all, a publicly traded company that has to answer to their shareholders and investors.
2. If our sales are flat or at least not growing at a good rate to cover inflation and higher interest, then Square’s algorithm understands that inflation is eating into our available cash to pay bills, etc.  Flat sales (or very slowly growing sales) are always red flags to lenders, Square or not.
3. Sometimes how long it takes us to pay off our current loans can be a factor.  Let’s say that previous loans were paid off with automatic payments in 8-10 months in the past.  But for this current loan it took us 12-15 months.  That tells Square that our card processing volume can’t keep you with higher loan amounts.  Yes, they give us 18 months to fully pay a loan, but they obviously prefer that we pay them off closer to the 12 month mark.
4. If our cash/card ratio drastically changes, and cash spikes or is consistently higher than historical for our business, that is another red flag.  Since Square must only consider card volume when calculating repayment rates this can become a problem.

Of course, I’m not saying that any of these contributed to your lower offer.  I’m just throwing out a few reasons why this CAN happen.

[thehealingplant]

I just off the phone with support trying to get answers about how this glitch will affect us possibly down the road and of course I get fed the generic answers with no support at all. I'm so sad that Square can't do a thing except give you force fed lines. It's really upsetting and discouraging to be honest.

[Healthyketo]

I also made the phone call last week to ask for an account manager so I can personally speak to someone about my account. Finally had a call back on Monday saying they would send to have my account manually reviewed but was told the same generic message everyone gets about them not knowing when anyone gets a loan and the algorithm reviews accounts daily so just keep processing payments and basically just wait til it’s my turn. 🤷‍

[Twpchair]

When you call and I would! Do not mention loans at all. Tell them you need tech support! Once you get with them and it's all done ask them by the way could you please help me reach a person in the loans department so I can let them know I'm having tech issues and need to know if this will affect me while they are handling it. 

[thehealingplant]

That's sadly how it was originally handled. Their support "escalation team" rules they were doing things "correctly" when it's obvious that they aren't and it's messing up our customer mix. It remains green but it's concerning for sure. It's genuinely just a shame that we can't get any clear answers.

[Twpchair]

Ughhhhh, I was gone for 3 days up north and no phone service and was hoping to see half of you get an offer. IMO it has little to do with you or your business. Watching other forums this is what they are experiencing as well. I've noticed up top pinned by a mod here that they added a new line to loans this year. You can scroll up but in general it says they look at the overall health or stability of the economy. It's not just one business per say but square being world wide most lenders are holding tight. Not that you want to hear this but they have board meetings and investors that watch their overall health just like our business. Are they still doing loans yes we see a couple a week. Is it different from say 3/4 years ago yes we can see it. The Feds are debating on raising the interest rate again and that affects lenders and their interest rates. Hopefully, this will bust loose soon. I know so many business owners waiting.  Good luck to you and everyone!

[Robgrey]

I am currently @ 56% paid back in 4 months.  I've always received loan offers between 59-77%.  All my metrics are up and I process over 800k per year.  I'm hoping for a new offer within the next month to expand my business.     Good to luck to everyone.  KEEP SWIPING.

[GlitzyCow]

Hey guys. When you get those emails from “management” my best advice is to keep emailing them. Once they get fed up with the same question they don’t answer they might close the interaction. If this happens there is a chance square will send a survey asking for feedback. I left negative feedback then a description of wanting to speak to someone not email for a week solid. They sent me an opportunity to have a call with an account manager at that point after leaving the feedback to the survey thing. 

also you can maybe look up “square appointments” and might be able to book time that way. 

[thehealingplant]

We just hit the "magical" 75% mark. Haven't updated for the day. Fingers crossed.

[Healthyketo]

🙏🤞I wish you the best! I just want to see at least one of us on here get an offer. 🙂

[thehealingplant]

Appreciate that. Hoping for you as well!

[Twpchair]

Good luck to you and everyone waiting but it has been trending higher % paid back to a few on here completely paid off. Wish you the best!

[thehealingplant]

That's why I put the quotes around "magical" lol.
Although I will say it doesn't seem like anyone who is fully paid off is getting offers at all. It's either 70s-80s or nothing based on the last few pages of responses and maybe even further which is scary.

[ohboi]

Definitely seeing the same thing. 70s-80s or nothing at all. I’ve been paid off going on a month and 2 weeks on next Monday. Processing roughly 270k yearly. Last 2 months I’ve processed 19k in card sales alone. Everything green and nada.

[Twpchair]

I am so sorry to hear that! That's a lot of processing, too. Hopefully, if you need it, an offer comes soon. I know it's hard for some of us who have been around for a while (2012 for me) it's baffling and frustrating, and people just don't understand why? Unfortunately, until someone can crack that Ole algorithm, all we can do is wait until they pick you up. Best wishes to you, and please keep us posted. It really does help others see a trend and how it's going.

[coolcoffeecrumb]

I have been paid off since 6/8/24 and no offer.  I have had 5 with them in the 3 1/2 years I have been in business.

[Twpchair]

When that offer comes in we will probably all go nuts and celebrate! I'm looking every day for you and pulling for it!

[Twpchair]

Honestly, since last June, it's been trending higher percentage paid off or completely paid off. Not all there's been a few 70-75 % or 80s, but on the whole, it's trending higher percentage. There's so many factors that go into the economy on the whole to watching if the Feds raise the interest rate in September. All lenders are pulling up the reigns a bit. But honestly, its public knowledge square is lending more and more each quarter and year after year. We only see a small portion that posts on here. I wish more did 😪 it helps others. Being worldwide, they service so many small business owners. I know it doesn't help when you need it! I would love to see a revolving line of credit or say once you hit 80-85% you could send in a request for your account to be reviewed for a loan and get an honest answer in a timely manner and not a script response. But during a meeting, I brought that up and no go! Good luck truly. 

[Minion]

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@Twpchair wrote:

Honestly, since last June, it's been trending higher percentage paid off or completely paid off. Not all there's been a few 70-75 % or 80s, but on the whole, it's trending higher percentage. There's so many factors that go into the economy on the whole to watching if the Feds raise the interest rate in September. All lenders are pulling up the reigns a bit. But honestly, its public knowledge square is lending more and more each quarter and year after year. We only see a small portion that posts on here. I wish more did 😪 it helps others. Being worldwide, they service so many small business owners. I know it doesn't help when you need it! I would love to see a revolving line of credit or say once you hit 80-85% you could send in a request for your account to be reviewed for a loan and get an honest answer in a timely manner and not a script response. But during a meeting, I brought that up and no go! Good luck truly. 

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The revolving line of credit would be a huge one if Square introduced it.  Easy case cut things, this is your limit, draw from it as you need etc etc, Your limit can increase or decrease at anytime still based on your sales (overall, not just CC would be a key thing here)

[Twpchair]

😆 🤣 😂 thank you! We answered the same time! I was just scrolling through here looking for a 2nd post with no metrics for 6 months and found one, and it's that time of the day and updating, and I get sidetracked. If you happen to come across it, would you screenshot it, and I posted it in the stellar question of the week. The 2 mods are looking into it or getting it to the right person. Ps. I nominated you and 2 others for our top 50 of the year! Whenever I'm lost or don't know there are 3 of you that always help me with the answer or where to look. Thank you!

[Minion]

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@Twpchair wrote:

😆🤣😂thank you! We answered the same time! I was just scrolling through here looking for a 2nd post with no metrics for 6 months and found one, and it's that time of the day and updating, and I get sidetracked. If you happen to come across it, would you screenshot it, and I posted it in the stellar question of the week. The 2 mods are looking into it or getting it to the right person. Ps. I nominated you and 2 others for our top 50 of the year! Whenever I'm lost or don't know there are 3 of you that always help me with the answer or where to look. Thank you!

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No worries at all.  We're all just a bunch of sellers helping one another anyway.  I am far from a top 50 , but I appreciate your efforts!

[Twpchair]

When I scream help there you are! So yeah, we got to pick our 3, and I did! Thank you! I get in cool and Mello mode to full-blown panic in a second! 😆 🤣 😂