How to write the one-page business summary a lender can use

Why bother with a one-page summary?

Because an assessor opens your pack cold. They have not met you. They do not know that your “Aug” statement is the quiet month because you shut for a fortnight, or that the large deposit in March is a customer paying a long-outstanding invoice. Documents tell the facts; the summary tells the reader how to read them.

business.gov.au notes that lenders usually want to see a business plan before approving a loan, and suggests putting your documents together as a professional-looking report. A full plan is wonderful but not always practical. A one-page summary is the version you can write on a Sunday afternoon, and it does most of the orienting work.

What goes on the page?

Six short blocks, in this order:

1. Who we are. Business name, structure, ABN, state, years trading, number of staff.
2. What we do. One or two sentences, in words a stranger understands.
3. How we earn. Main customers, how they pay, any seasonality.
4. What we want and why. The amount, the purpose, what it will change.
5. How it will be repaid. In terms of normal income, not hope.
6. One thing to know. The honest line on anything unusual in the file.

That is it. If a block runs past three sentences, trim it.

Can I see a fill-in template?

Copy this into a document, replace the bracketed parts, and delete anything that does not apply.

[Business name] is a [sole trader / company / trust / partnership] based in [suburb, state], trading since [month year]. ABN [number].

What we do: [one or two plain sentences].

How we earn: Most revenue comes from [customer type], paid [on completion / monthly / by card at the counter]. Busy months are [x] and quieter months are [y].

What we need: [amount] to [purpose]. This will [result: add capacity, buy stock ahead of peak, replace a vehicle].

Repayment: Regular monthly revenue of around [figure from your statements] supports repayments, and [one supporting fact].

One thing to know: [Short, factual note on anything unusual.]

Fill it in last, after you have your statements in front of you, so the numbers come from the documents and not from memory.

How do I keep the numbers honest?

Three rules, and they are stricter than most people expect.

• Every figure must match a document. If you quote monthly revenue, it should be traceable to your bank statements or BAS. Round, but do not inflate.
• Use ranges for estimates and say they are estimates. “Roughly” is fine; invented precision is not.
• Never write in a number you cannot support. If an assessor tries to match it and fails, the whole page loses credibility.

The three-way match explains how an assessor cross-checks BAS, bank and financials, so you can pre-check your own numbers.

What mistakes waste the page?

• Marketing language (“industry-leading”, “passionate”) that tells the assessor nothing.
• Pasting the same text as the website.
• Burying the amount and purpose at the bottom.
• Leaving out the unusual thing, which the assessor then finds on page 14 of the statements.
• Two pages, then three.

A summary that reads like a clear, calm email from a competent owner is exactly right.

Where does the summary go in the pack?

At the very front, as file 00 or “Summary”. The longer discussion of file order and naming is in assembling and sending your pack. If you are still deciding which pack you need, the document pack builder will list it for you.

What does a finished summary look like?

Here is a complete example, written for a fictional business (illustrative only; no real business is described).

[Business name], a joinery company based in Newcastle, NSW, trading since March 2019. Two directors, four staff.

What we do: Custom kitchens and built-in cabinetry for homeowners and small builders.

How we earn: About two-thirds of jobs come from three regular builders, paid 14 days from invoice. The rest are direct homeowner jobs with a deposit up front. January is slow because builders close for the holidays.

What we need: A new edge-banding machine, to bring in-house the finishing we currently outsource. This shortens each job and lifts margin.

Repayment: Outsourcing costs have been steady on our statements; bringing the work in-house replaces that cost.

One thing to know: June last year was light after a builder’s project was delayed. Deposits recovered from August.

That runs to under 200 words and answers every question an assessor opens the file with.

When should I update it?

Every time something material changes: a new account, a new debt, a big contract, a shift in staff. The summary is only useful if it matches the documents beside it. Keep the master copy in your records folder and re-date it whenever you re-read it. If an assessor opens a summary that contradicts the statements, trust in the whole file falls.

Ready to lodge?

With a summary written, you are better prepared than most. Start your free enquiry whenever you like: it takes about a minute, does not touch your credit file, and goes to a real person, not a crowd of lenders.

Make the form’s answers match your summary, especially the amount, the purpose and your trading history. The two should read like the same story told twice, and that consistency is what gets the first call off to a quick, constructive start.