Acquisition Financing Document Checklist: What Lenders Need and Why

TL;DR: An acquisition financing package should explain the buyer, target business, transaction and proposed funding. Start with the lender’s request list, then identify the purpose, owner and reporting date of each document. The checklist below is a preparation framework; it is not a claim that every lender requires the same report, number of statements or file format. SBA application overview.

Research date: October 6, 2026. First published February 26, 2025.

What can you send before a full lender package?

For an initial Duneland enquiry, provide the industry, general location, price, earnings measure, transaction stage and financing question. Identify estimates and whether you represent the buyer or seller. Do not paste confidential documents or personal identifiers into the form. See the initial deal-summary checklist.

The full package comes through an agreed private follow-up process. A letter of intent can help define the transaction, but document preparation can begin before one is signed.

Buyer information: capacity and operating fit

Our personal financial statement resource links to official SBA Form 413 and an Excel preparation aid. Neither the worksheet nor a self-prepared statement independently verifies funds. See proof of funds for an acquisition.

For SBA files, check both timing tests in the current SOP: Section A, Chapter 5, A addresses statements from covered individual guarantors within 90 days of approval; Appendix 20, A addresses covered owner/proposed-guarantor statements signed and dated within 90 days of submission. The lender must determine the applicable form, people and dates.

Target information: earnings, cash conversion and obligations

A useful working package includes:

• Historical and interim financial statements. Identify the reporting period and accounting basis. For an SBA change of ownership, Appendix 15 calls for analysis of the three most recent year-end financial information, current interim information and the comparable prior-year interim period, with specified treatment where historical information is unavailable. A calendar-year business preparing in October 2026 would ordinarily organize completed years 2023–2025; those dates are an example, not a substitute for the lender’s request.
• Tax returns and verification. Reconcile tax reporting to financial statements. The lender’s tax-transcript verification process is separate from receiving a PDF of a return.
• An earnings bridge. List each proposed adjustment, amount, period and supporting record. Distinguish the seller’s presentation from adjustments accepted in underwriting.
• Business debt schedule. List lender, balance, rate, payment frequency, maturity and security, including shareholder debt. Show intended payoff, retention or refinancing separately. Retained debt competes with new borrowing for repayment cash flow.
• Receivable and payable aging. Use dates aligned with the interim statements and explain overdue balances or concentrations.
• Bank, payroll and operating records requested for verification. Confirm the necessary periods and level of detail. A payroll summary may be appropriate before employee-level records; avoid collecting unnecessary personal information at the preliminary stage.

The business debt schedule template provides a PDF and Excel worksheet. Reconcile its debt balances to the corresponding accounts; it excludes accounts payable, so it need not equal total balance-sheet liabilities.

Transaction information: what is being bought and funded?

Prepare the LOI or purchase agreement, price allocation, sources and uses, proposed debt terms, seller financing, real-estate component, transition arrangements and closing conditions. Include contracts, leases, licenses and entity documents as requested by the financing and legal teams. A certificate of good standing alone does not establish that the business has no legal or operational issues.

Show working capital and transaction costs explicitly. The capital stack calculator can help organize those assumptions; it does not validate a loan commitment or the acceptability of an equity source.

When are valuation and quality-of-earnings reports needed?

For SBA changes of ownership, the lender applies Appendix 15 financial-due-diligence rules to the defined Business Purchase Price, which excludes acquired owner-occupied commercial real estate. Report requirements depend on that definition, transaction category and any applicable exception, not simply the requested loan amount.

A buyer’s pre-existing report is not automatically acceptable. For example, the current SOP permits lender reliance on a buyer-commissioned QoE only after the specified approved-vendor review. See the current QoE requirements and valuation requirements before ordering a report for lender use.

How to keep the package usable

Assign a responsible person and date to each request. Use consistent file names and a document index. Keep an explanation of missing items, material changes and unresolved adjustments with the package. Agree the private sharing method and access permissions before sending records; the initial website form is not a data room.

This preparation supports a financing review. It does not establish that the business is a good investment, that the lender will accept every adjustment or that closing is assured.

Sources

• SBA SOP 50 10 8.1 technical policy updates — Appendix 15, C, financial due diligence and underwriting; Appendix 20, A, submission documents; Section A, Chapter 5, guaranties and tax verification.
• SBA Form 413 — official personal financial statement and program instructions.
• SBA 7(a) program overview — applications go through lenders, and documentation depends on the circumstances.

Discuss the financing review once you can outline the business and the question to resolve.