The conventional wisdom is to wait until the new year to make big financial moves. But in the world of small business funding, waiting until January is one of the most common and most costly mistakes business owners make.
The January Backlog Is Real
Every lender, broker, and funding platform experiences a massive surge in applications in January. Underwriters are slammed. Approval timelines slow down. And because demand is high, lenders have less incentive to be aggressive on pricing. Apply in December and you face none of this — underwriters have more time, funders are more motivated to close deals before year-end.
Year-End Tax Advantages
Business financing costs — including origination fees — can be deductible in the year they're incurred. Applying and closing funding in December means those costs land in the current tax year. Talk to your accountant about your specific situation.
Section 179 Equipment Deductions
The Section 179 deduction allows you to deduct the full cost of qualifying equipment placed in service during the tax year — up to $1,160,000 in 2025. Equipment financed in December and placed in service before December 31 qualifies. The same equipment financed in January pushes that deduction to 2026. For a $100,000 purchase, that timing difference could save $25,000–$37,000 in taxes.
Starting the Year with Capital Already Deployed
The businesses that have their best January are usually the ones that used December to set up for success — inventory stocked, equipment ready, working capital in the account. Instead of spending January applying for funding and waiting, you spend it executing on your Q1 plan.
Don't wait until January.
Apply now and start the new year funded. 5 minutes. No hard credit pull.