Businesses are normally dependent on loans from banks, lenders, and private or public financing companies. Interest rates are never stable for a long period of time. It is dependent on the economic dip or rise of the country’s reserve. Bound by government laws, entrepreneurs observe rigidly the up and downs of interest rates.
The effect of an assigned interest rate ripples from the top agency down to the local agencies. If there is high interest rate, the prime rate also increases, which means the burden to the direct clients also adds up. Thus, consumers are always looking for a loan which offers low interest. Below are the known impacts of low interest rates to a business:
High Consumer Income
Business owners will have more savings than debts off their income. The less they need to pay for their loan interests, the faster the principal amount will likely be paid up. This means more room for expansion and more chances of earnings coming in. In fact, even if a business owner does not have any loan, the income rate of consumers will still be high. That means the amount to spend per household will also be higher.
The industries that suffer the most when interest rates go up are the luxury goods industry. That is since the disposable sources of buyers are spent more on the essential needs, instead of products which are sold high because it comes with a brand. This theory is based on an economic standard.
Affordable Business Loans
When lending companies offer business owners funds for use, the interest rate is always part of it. No financing institution has survived offering no loan percentage added on top of the principal amount borrowed. When interest rates are low, that means many entrepreneurs can afford and pay back whatever amount they owe.
Moreover, lenders have this approach of offering multiple loans to clients, provided they have the capacity to pay. A loan becomes affordable when the income of the industry is way higher than the loan amount plus incurred interest to be paid. The lower the interest rate, the more affordable it becomes.
More Business Profit
The pyramid effect of accumulating business profits is evident when only a small portion of the business profit is used to pay for a loan. After all the expenses and manpower payments are taken cared of, the business loan is another top priority. When the interest rate of the loan taken was low, that would mean more profit to the owner. And the longer such a low interest rate in effect is, the more chances of accumulating such profit which is always a long-range advantage.
The capital used by business owners are often loaned to them by financial institutions. Entrepreneurs must maintain good credit standing and good lending record for them to take advantage of funds to be used in whatever type of income-generating project they have in mind. When they lobby for loan provider, the lesser the interest rate, the more chances of them to have more profit as the business is on its wheels month over month.
Sustainable Cash Flow
When a business has lower monthly fees to settle, this may be brought about by the lower interest rates incurred off the startup capital or lower expenses, the cash flow may be sustainable. Meaning, one or two loan providers can have available resources for the client. Risk takers have sustainable cash flow during these times as businessmen would opt for more capital borrowing attempts knowing repayment would be affordable.
The longer the term, the higher the interest rate and vice versa. This means that although lower interest rate is too inviting, it is often a shorter loan term, most of the times. Interest rates are always fluid. No one can guess what will happen to the economy the following year so even the lenders will not gamble their chances of losing once it reaches all-time high.
Flexible Fund Sources
Business growth depends on the management but no matter how good the handling of the business, when the fund source is stiff, there is always a possibility of bankruptcy. When interest rates are low, business owners will have flexible fund sources. Since debt to be paid are not that huge, the supposed excess in the profits can be outsourced for either additional business project or addition to resources which would eventually result to double or triple of what the business is regularly earning.
The trend of interest rates is also never consistent. Even rich investors and lenders do not rely on a single year when deciding to loan for a business capital. Timing is essential and when rates are low, that explains the high rise of businesses opening. When it is high and appears to become consistent, small business owners are even at risk of closing.
A property investment, a real estate mortgage, or a business enterprise is dependent on the interest rate applied on the principal loan amount made available to consumers by lenders, banks, and financial institutions. Others would even compare prices. Other financiers may play along with the numbers, piling up hidden charges which would all come out on the monthly or annual dues to be paid. Consumers can tell when a low interest rate has been applied as it would also be tantamount to the monthly fees required of them to pay back.
