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OnDeck Review

Cons:

  • Requires low minimum credit score
  • Lower costs for repeat customers
  • Cash available within the same business day

Cons:

  • Requires frequent repayments
  • Rates can be expensive

Average Rating: 5

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Do you own a business that needs quick and easy funding?

OnDeck might be what you are looking for, so let’s go ahead and check out the good and bad things about this company.

In this OnDeck Review, I am going to write about:

  • Their loans
  • Qualifications, fees, and repayments
  • Application process
  • OnDeck Reviews
  • Competitors
  • Customer service
  • Pros and Cons
  • Conclusion

For starters, let’s check out the basic information you need to know about OnDeck:

OnDeck Bio and History

Who are they? What do they do?

OnDeck is an online company that lends money to small businesses as fast as the same business day after you have been approved for financing.

The company was founded in 2006 and is listed in the United States. It has offices in New York; Arlington, Virginia; and Denver, Colorado in the United States; Toronto and Montreal in Canada; and Sydney in Australia.

  • OnDeck offers 2 types of loans:
    – Short-term loans
    – Revolving lines of credit
  • To qualify for an OnDeck loan, you need:
    – A minimum credit score of 600
    – Annual revenue of $100.000
    – 1 year in business.

But we are just getting started, so let’s not wait and get into more detail.

OnDeck borrower requirements, terms, and repayments

As already mentioned, OnDeck offers 2 types of loans: Short-term loans and revolving lines of credit.

Let’s check out the borrower must-haves and terms of usage.

Feature Data
Minimum time in business 1 year
Credit score required 600
Annual revenue required $100.000
Borrowing amounts range $5.000-$500.000
Borrowing fee $20 per month
Origination fee 0-5% on your loan
Funding time Same day funding
Location requirements USA (excluding Nevada, North Dakota, South Dakota), Canada, Australia 
Bankruptcies No active bankruptcies allowed
Eligible industries 700+ eligible industries (excluding: drug dispensaries, firearms vendors, religious organizations, boarding houses, vehicle dealers, governments, non-profits, horoscope industries, money services, and adult entertainment)
Personal loan guarantee required Yes
Collateral A personal guarantee or a general lien of business assets
APR Term loans – from 11.89%

Lines of credit – from 10.99%

What about repayments?

  • You don’t have to worry much about repaying OnDeck because they deduct money from your bank account when the time comes. This happens daily or weekly for the term loans, and as for lines of credit, the repayments are made weekly. This might be a little difficult for businesses that don’t even have cash flows all the time.
  • OnDeck does not have any prepayment penalties, but this does not matter much since they have fixed fees, although the borrowers repay amortizing loans early save on interest.
  • There might be additional fees when a borrower misses a payment or when the debit order does not go through. The exact amounts of the late payment penalty and the returned payment fee are included in the loan arrangement document.

Application Process

You can apply for an OnDeck loan very quickly. Here are the steps of the process:

  • Step 1 – Visit the website https://online.ondeck.com/ and complete the questionnaire.
  • Step 2 – Enter the basic information:
    – The amount of funding that you need
    – When you need the funds
    – Personal details and contact information.
  • Step 3 – Write down business details and specifications.
  • Step 4 – Submit:
    – Bank statements from the last 3 months
    – Personal social security number
    – Tax ID number
    – Estimated annual gross revenue
    – Average bank balance.
  • Step 5 – Accept OnDeck’s disclosure form after reviewing the application. Also, accept credit authorization and consumer pricing information.
  • Step 6 – Your application will be reviewed in a couple of minutes.
  • Step 7 – If you are approved for funding, you will receive funds even on the same day.

Additionally, if you want to apply for an OnDeck loan, you can also phone (888) 727 – 5449/(888) 269 – 4246 or click on the Chat Live icon at the bottom of the page.

Competitors

Let’s check out some OnDeck alternatives and see how those companies differ. Three of OnDeck’s top competitors are Kabbage, BlueVine, and Credibly. Let’s see why:

OnDeck vs. Kabbage
Both OnDeck and Kabbage offer lines of credit, but Kabbage’s lines of credit are larger, and they’ve got longer terms. On the other hand, OnDeck offers a short-term loan product that can be repaid over a longer time and the loan amounts are higher.

OnDeck vs. BlueVine
While OnDeck has a lower APR (starting and maximum), it has a monthly maintenance fee. On the other hand, BlueVine does not have any ongoing fees, but it has higher APR ranges.

OnDeck vs. Credibly
OnDeck offers a revolving line of credit from $6,000 to $100,000 and a term loan from $5,000 to $250,000. Compared to OnDeck, Credibly has lower loan requirements. To apply for OnDeck funding, you need a FICO score of at least 600.

With effective APRs that could reach up to 98.3%, this lender’s loans can be far from cheap. For comparison’s sake, lenders that offer more traditional term loans usually carry APRs that cap off at 40% or less.

Customer Service and Technical Support

How can you reach OnDeck? Easy, since there is more than one way. Let’s check them out. OnDeck is available by:

  • Phone – +30 21 1345 5000
  • Email – On the site, you can email some of OnDeck’s representatives
  • Live chat
  • Social Media (Facebook, Twitter)

Additionally, they have amazing FAQs on the site, from which you can find out the answers to most of your basic questions about this company.

The borrowers are paired with a single representative for the entire loan until the end of that loan. Overall, people are happy with the customer service OnDeck provides because they are helpful and resourceful.

OnDeck User Reviews

Every company has positive and negative feedback from its customers. Let’s see what people have to say about OnDeck’s services:

Negative reviews and complaints

OnDeck has an A+ rating and is accredited with the BBB. Despite that, there have been some complaints from customers (31 out of 124 reviews), but it is not a big number if we consider the size of the company.

Let’s check out some of the things people have complained about:

  • High borrowing cost
    Since APRs can reach up to 98.3%, the borrowers face very expensive loans, which does not bid well for some business owners.
  • Unclear Advertisement
    Some people have complained that they hadn’t fully understood the loan’s costs since they had not been well informed beforehand.
  • Application Delays
    Although OnDeck is very quick, some people have had trouble getting their applications reviewed. Despite this, things like this are not common with OnDeck.
  • Repaying daily
    Although this might be a good thing if you take into account that you don’t have to pay a larger sum every month, it is a little difficult for some businesses that don’t have even
    and constant cash flows.

Positive reviews and testimonials

Not only that OnDeck has some video testimonials on its site, but it also has a 4.9/5 rating on Trustpilot, which is extremely high.

Let’s check out what people liked about this company:

  • The fast and easy application process
  • Quick and efficient short term loan processing (fast time to funding)
  • The friendly, knowledgeable customer service
  • OnDeck reports to business credit bureaus, which helps you build business credit

Furthermore, OnDeck rates 3.72/5 on BBB. Since most people are happy to have worked with OnDeck, maybe you should consider them for your loan as well.

Pros and Cons

Now let’s check out some of the company’s pros and cons listed below:

Pros:
Cash can be available within the same business day
Requires low minimum credit score
Less paperwork than most lenders
Borrower qualifications are lower than with banks
Multiple types of financing available
Lower costs for repeat customers
Builds business credit

Cons:
Financing isn’t available in some states
Not available to businesses in some industries
Rates can be expensive
Fixed-fee structure means early repayment will not save interest
Requires frequent (daily or weekly) repayments

Conclusion

If you want short-term loans and quick financing, then OnDeck is the right option for you. OnDeck can deliver decisions in minutes and funding in as fast as 1 business day.

What is helpful is that OnDeck reports to three of the major business credit bureaus—Experian, Equifax, and Paynet—so any future lender can see your good business credit profile if you make timely payments and pay down the loan in full.

We hope that we have been helpful with the information provided in this OnDeck Review, so take OnDeck into account when considering a loan.