General Business: Tightend Capital Markets

Hi guys:

I am in the process of looking for a business to purchase in the next few months (ideally a product company - production, distribution, CPG, but not retail, cash flow around $500K, but this could change if I see something else I like - if you know someone, let me know).

Have any of you been speaking with bankers about SBA loans lately? It sounds like loans are harder to come by right now because of what's been going on with the investment banks, the fact that SBA loans no longer cover goodwill, and the SBA loan fees are increasing, making it harder for banks to make a profit. This and the fact that banks are cutting back lines of credit to small businesses makes me wonder whether or not I can really get financing, even if I have a solid b-plan and management team lined up.

My understanding is that smaller, local banks did not take on much bad mortgage debt, so they are still lending money, but I bet it is still really difficult to get money from them. I am going to speak with someone from one of these banks next week.

Really, any insight you can give me would be appreciated. I figure we are all in the same boat, so we can all benefit from this discussion.

Joe