Equipment financing companies, banks and funding partners can price one Crossville, TN quote on different payment schedules, and a weekly schedule can cost more in total even when each payment looks small. An invented plumbing contractor's jetter and camera, priced at 48 monthly and 208 weekly payments, show how to compare the two by total and by timing.
One equipment quote can come back on a monthly or a weekly schedule. In this article's invented case, a $36,480 jetter and camera package costs $934.89 a month over 48 months on one schedule and $225.34 a week over 208 weeks on another, and the weekly schedule totals $1,996.00 more. Compare totals and payment timing, not only the payment.
48 monthly payments or 208 weekly ones on one invented equipment amount
An invented case, with every figure made up: a Crossville, TN plumbing contractor prices a trailer jetter at $27,690 and a sewer inspection camera at $8,790, $36,480 for the pair.
Invented schedule one runs 48 monthly payments at a 10.55% annual rate: $934.89 each, $44,874.72 over the term, $8,394.72 of it interest. Invented schedule two runs 208 weekly payments at a 13.05% annual rate: $225.34 each, $46,870.72 across four years, $10,390.72 of it interest.
| Invented schedule | Each payment | Paid in a year | Total of payments | Interest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48 monthly payments | $934.89 | $11,218.68 | $44,874.72 | $8,394.72 |
| 208 weekly payments | $225.34 | $11,717.68 | $46,870.72 | $10,390.72 |
In this invented comparison the weekly schedule takes $499.00 more out of the account each year and $1,996.00 more over the term. A weekly debit also lands four or five times a month, which matters to a contractor whose customers pay invoices once a month. A term loan with monthly payments is one way to keep the schedule in step with those invoices.
Collection dates to ask any equipment source about before signing
Dealer programs, banks and independent funding partners can each set the schedule, and the schedule decides when money leaves the account. Questions worth putting to any of them:
- Is the payment monthly, or collected weekly from the business account?
- How many days after delivery is the first payment due?
- Does the amount include freight, setup and training, or only the machine itself?
- Can a used unit go on the same schedule, and on what term?
Cumberland County, TN counted 17 depository credit intermediation employer establishments in 2023, the Census group that holds banks and credit unions (County Business Patterns, NAICS 5221).
An owner with a job lined up for the new jetter can open more than one conversation in the same week and compare whatever offers come back. A request for equipment financing through this site can run alongside a bank conversation.
Used equipment financing through independent funding partners
Independent funding partners are a third source next to dealers and banks. After a call about the purchase, Crownreach Lending can pass a request to such partners, and one of them may make an offer on new or used equipment bought from a dealer, an auction or another business.
Used machines bring their own paperwork. For an invented $5,400 sewer camera bought from another contractor, a funding partner may ask for the serial number, photos, the seller's bill of sale and a check that no lender still holds a lien on it. On an older unit, a partner may finance less than the invented price and leave the buyer to cover the difference; any offer states the amount.
Small hand tools such as drain snakes and press fittings can sit better on a line of credit than in an equipment agreement, since they are bought often and in small amounts.
Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors in Cumberland County, TN
County Business Patterns lists 13 plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors among Cumberland County, TN employer establishments for 2023 (NAICS 238220). Fewer than five people worked at 6 of those 13 contractors (46.2%), and payroll for the whole group came to $8.2 million for the year.
Owner-run contractors without payroll sit in a separate Census series: Nonemployer Statistics recorded 67 in the county's plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors group for 2024 (NAICS 23822).
Whatever the size of the business, the arithmetic in the table works the same way: price one amount at each source, then read the totals and the payment dates side by side. The other articles on the Crownreach Lending blog work through more cases like this one.
By Crownreach Lending · Updated
