Capital is the fuel of any new business — and the funding decisions you make at launch shape your business’s financial structure for years. Take on too much debt and your cash flow is consumed by debt service before you have traction. Take on too little and you’re undercapitalized at the worst possible time. Give up too much equity and you’ve sold your upside before you’ve created it.
FJ & Associates, PLLC helps Utah entrepreneurs understand their funding options, prepare the financial documentation that lenders and investors require, and structure their capital stack correctly from the start.
Raising capital for your business? Call (801) 927-1337 or email admin@cpaone.net before you apply.
Step One: Know How Much Capital You Actually Need
The most common startup funding mistake is raising or borrowing without a rigorous model of how the money will be used and when the business will generate sufficient cash flow to service or repay it. We build a startup financial model that projects:
- Month-by-month cash position through the first 24 months
- Maximum cash requirement before the business is self-funding (your actual capital need)
- Revenue required to service your debt at various loan amounts
- Break-even timeline under conservative, base, and optimistic revenue scenarios
This model is not just a planning tool — it is the foundation of every lender and investor conversation you’ll have. A lender who sees a rigorous cash flow model is far more likely to approve your application than one who sees a loose spreadsheet of revenue guesses.
Funding Sources for Utah Startups and Small Businesses
Personal Capital / Bootstrapping
The simplest and most common form of startup funding. No interest, no dilution, no lender requirements. Appropriate when your capital need is modest or when you have existing personal assets you’re willing to commit. The risk is personal financial exposure — committing home equity or retirement savings to a business that may not succeed.
SBA Loans
The Small Business Administration guarantees loans through Utah commercial banks and credit unions, reducing lender risk and enabling longer terms and lower down payments than conventional bank loans. Primary programs:
- SBA 7(a) — the most common program; up to $5M for working capital, equipment, real estate, and business acquisition; 10-year terms for working capital, 25-year terms for real estate; typically requires 10–30% equity injection
- SBA Microloan — up to $50,000 through SBA-approved nonprofit intermediaries; designed for startups and underserved communities; shorter terms, higher rates than 7(a)
- SBA 504 — real estate and heavy equipment; requires a Certified Development Company (CDC) as a partner lender; fixed interest rate on the CDC portion
We prepare your SBA loan package: 3 years of personal and business tax returns, personal financial statement (Form 413), business financial projections, and business plan narrative.
Conventional Bank Financing
Without SBA guarantee, conventional small business loans require stronger collateral and financials. For established businesses (2+ years, profitable), conventional lines of credit are more flexible than SBA — faster approval, no prepayment penalties, revolving rather than term.
For startups with limited financial history, conventional bank financing is generally not available without significant collateral or a personal guarantee backed by substantial assets.
CDFI and Community Lender Programs
Utah has several Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and economic development programs providing startup capital to underserved entrepreneurs:
- Utah Microloan Fund — state-backed microloan program
- Small Business Development Center (SBDC) network — free consulting and loan packaging assistance
- Women’s Business Center of Utah — resources for women-owned startups
- Utah Inland Port Authority and county economic development programs for businesses in specific zones
Friends and Family Capital
A common early-stage source but one with significant relationship risk. If you accept capital from friends or family, document it properly — either as a loan with a written promissory note and interest rate, or as an equity investment with a cap table entry and shareholder agreement. Informal arrangements create tax problems and relationship damage when the business struggles.
Angel Investors and Venture Capital
Appropriate for businesses with high growth potential, scalable models, and large addressable markets. Utah has an active angel investor community (Utah Angels, Kickstart Seed Fund) and a growing VC ecosystem. Equity investment is not debt — you don’t repay it, but you give up ownership percentage and potentially governance rights. We prepare investor-ready financial models and advise on entity structure for equity fundraising (most investors require C-Corp, not LLC or S-Corp).
What Lenders and Investors Actually Evaluate
Lenders (banks, SBA) focus on:
- Capacity — does the business generate enough cash flow to service the debt?
- Capital — how much of their own money is the borrower putting in?
- Collateral — what assets can secure the loan if the business fails?
- Character — personal credit history, criminal history, prior business defaults
- Conditions — economic environment, industry health
We prepare financial packages that address all five of these clearly and completely.
Investors (angels, VCs) focus on:
- Market size and growth potential
- Founder / team quality
- Revenue model and unit economics
- Defensibility (moats, IP, network effects)
- Financial projections and their underlying assumptions
We build investor-grade financial models with clearly stated assumptions, sensitivity analysis, and a 5-year projection that is ambitious but defensible.
Structuring Your Capital Stack
Getting the right mix of debt and equity matters as much as the total amount:
- Too much debt relative to equity creates a fragile business — any revenue shortfall threatens solvency
- Too much equity dilution early means you may not own enough of the business at exit to achieve your wealth goals
- Mixing debt and equity intelligently — using debt for capital expenditures with clear asset-backed collateral, and equity for working capital and growth in early stages — is generally the optimal approach
We model your capital structure and advise on the sequence of funding sources that minimizes total cost of capital while preserving owner equity.
Fund Your Business the Right Way from the Start
The capital decisions you make at launch determine your financial flexibility for years. Let FJ & Associates help you identify the right sources, prepare the right documentation, and structure your funding in a way that supports — not burdens — your business.
Call (801) 927-1337 | Email admin@cpaone.net | 612 N Kays Dr Suite 120, Kaysville, UT 84037
Related Services
- New Business Launch Advisory
- Fractional CFO Services
- LLC vs. S-Corp Structuring Analysis
- Scaling Your Business
- Business Budgeting & Financial Forecasting
Author Bio | Missy Dennis, CPA | Partner | FJ & Associates, PLLC | Kaysville, Utah
Missy holds a Master of Accounting degree from the University of Utah and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant. She is committed to providing clear, accurate, and actionable guidance so clients can navigate complex financial decisions with confidence. With more than twenty years of public accounting experience, Missy Dennis specializes in: Tax preparation and tax advisory; Bookkeeping strategy alignment; Estate and trust taxation; Audit and consulting services; Low-income housing tax credits; Non-profit accounting; Small- and mid-sized business advisory.
