The SBA Business Plan That Gets Deals Approved (And Why Most Fail)

In this episode of Happy Buyer, Happy Seller, host Shaun Thornton sits down with Katina Phillips, founder of Florida Funding Source, to break down one of the most critical, and often misunderstood, parts of buying a business with an SBA loan: the business plan.

Katina brings over 35 years of banking, lending, and underwriting experience into her consulting work, helping buyers create lender-ready business plans and financial projections designed specifically for SBA 7(a) approval.

Shaun and Katina go deep into how underwriters think, what they look for, and why most deals succeed or fail long before they ever reach the closing table.

📌Connect or follow Shaun Thornton

👉 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaunthorntonbusinessbroker/

👉 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ShaunThorntonBusinessBroker/

📌Connect or follow Katina Phillips

👉 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katina-phillips-6100b214/

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00:00 – Introduction: Happy Buyer, Happy Seller + guest Katina Phillips

02:10 – Katina’s background: banking, underwriting, and launching Florida Funding Source

06:05 – What an SBA underwriter actually does (and what they’re really looking for)

10:20 – The purpose of a business plan: telling the “right” story for approval

14:05 – Executive summary breakdown: why it’s the most important section

18:00 – Loan request overview: clarity that speeds up underwriting decisions

21:15 – Discovery process: interviews, questionnaires, and building the plan

26:10 – Financial projections: why conservative numbers win approvals

31:00 – Trailing 12-months + market data + why credibility matters

36:05 – Underwriting risk, deal rejection, and “don’t scare the underwriter” principle

40:10 – Business plans as living documents + final advice for owners

44:04 – Closing remarks + episode wrap-up

Deals don’t usually fail at the closing table. They fail in the story being told on paper long before underwriting begins. The stronger the clarity, structure, and realism of the business plan, the smoother the path to approval.

#HappyBuyerHappySeller #BusinessBroker #SBAloan #SBAlending #BusinessAcquisition #Entrepreneurship #SmallBusiness #BusinessPlan #Underwriting #FloridaBusiness #BusinessFinancing #DealMaking