Many firms struggle to maintain their bank credit facilities, and securing a new line of credit or increasing a company’s current limit is nearly impossible.

So if the lending wells have dried up, what’s a small business owner to do?

Capitalize on the benefits of accounts receivables factoring.

Once a small business owner has been approved by an accounts receivable factoring firm, the basic invoice factoring process is as follows:

1.  A small business owner’s customer requests goods or services from the company.

2.  If it’s a new customer, the business owner should request a credit check and approval by the invoice factoring firm. Once approved, the company completes the service or delivers the goods.

3.  The business owner issues an invoice, reminding the customer that their receivable has been sold to and will be collected by the factoring firm.

4.  The business owner submits a schedule of accounts for purchase to the factor, including the supporting documentation (purchase orders, invoices, time-sheets, etc.).

5.  Upon verification of invoices for pre-approved customers, the A/R factor will advance funds within hours.

6.  The factoring firm provides all accounts receivable and collections services as required.

7.  In most cases, the customer makes payment(s) directly to the factoring company’s lock box.

8.  Upon receipt of the payment, the invoice factor remits the difference (reserve) between the collected amount and the advance, less the discount fee.

It’s easy to get things started. In most cases, the owner needs only to complete a brief application and present a current accounts receivables aging report to begin the process.

As if a quick approval process wasn’t good enough (banks can take months to approve a loan), there are numerous additional reasons why factoring invoices is an attractive alternative financing option for small and medium-sized businesses-the first being that entrepreneurs with less-than-perfect credit can qualify for financing based on their customers’ creditworthiness. This is simply not the case when looking for a bank loan. Traditional lenders review the applicant’s financial strength in combination with the company’s operating history before they are willing to extend credit.

Furthermore, healthcare invoice funding also gives business owners the ability to offer credit terms to their customers. Especially in today’s economy, customers appreciate the value of having a 30-day grace period to make a payment. Because a business owner receives up to ninety percent of the invoice upfront each time he/she factors, their cash flow remains unaffected by the net-30 terms.

Additionally, accounts receivable factoring helps owners build their company’s credit. Once an entrepreneur begins healthcare factoring and has adequate cash flow, he/she is able to pay vendors on time, establishing a good credit history with them. This makes it so much easier for business owners to get credit from other vendors and increases their chances of borrowing from bank in the future.

All in all, invoice funding instantaneously relieves business owners from many of the stresses involved with managing working capital. The ongoing factoring process is straightforward and easily adaptable. Accounts receivable factoring gives small business owners the ability to control their company’s cash flow as the business grows, while simultaneously improving their creditability.

About the Author: Philip Cohen is the founder and president of PRN Funding, LLC, which is an extraordinarily focused niche player in the healthcare accounts receivable invoice financing market place. Through a process known as factoring, PRN Funding provides healthcare business owners with the financial resources needed to grow and effectively compete in the industry. With no minimums or fixed terms, PRN Funding ( http://www.prnfunding.com) provides healthcare companies with flexible and immediate access to capital.

Article Source: EzineArticles: Accounts Receivable Factoring – An Alternative Funding Option For Small Businesses

In fact, there are many companies (i.e. respiratory therapist staffing agencies, radiology tech staffing firms, and physical therapist staffing agencies) that can greatly benefit from all that allied health staffing factoring has to offer. Namely, growing their companies without having to worry about how long it will take for their customers to pay them.

In order to help clear up any healthcare factoring misconceptions, this article will explain the allied health staffing factoring process step-by-step…

1.  The customer (i.e. hospital, medical clinic, nursing home, etc.) approaches an allied health staffing company to fill an open shift.

2.  If it’s a new customer, the factoring firm performs a credit check on the medical facility and if approved, determines a line of credit for that customer.

3.  The staffing firm provides the medical facility with a temporary employee to fill the shift.

4.  The agency issues an invoice to the medical facility for the shift, making sure to include the factoring firm’s remittance information directly on the invoice.

5.  At any time after the invoice has been issued, the allied health company submits a schedule of accounts receivable for purchase to the factoring firm. In addition to the invoice, this schedule also includes any supporting documentation (i.e. signed time-sheets).

6.  The invoice funding company will contact the staffing agency’s customers from time to time to verify that they are actively using temporary employees from the agency. Upon verification of the invoices, the factor will electronically advance funds within hours.

7.  Per the remittance information included on the factored invoice, the medical facility sends payments directly to the factoring firm’s lock box.

8.  Upon receipt of the payment, the factor remits the difference (reserve) between the collected amount and the advance to the agency, less the discount fee.

Selling invoices to a factor improves the agency’s cash flow, allowing business owners to meet payroll, taxes and other monetary obligations in a timely manner. Thanks to this article, business owners are able to easily familiarize themselves with the factoring process. The next step in improving their cash flow is to start researching which allied health staffing factoring firm will best meet their company’s cash flow needs.

Philip Cohen is the founder and president of PRN Funding, LLC, which is an extraordinarily focused niche player in the allied health staffing invoice financing market place. Through a process known as factoring, PRN Funding provides business owners with the financial resources needed to grow and effectively compete in the industry. With no minimums or fixed terms, PRN Funding provides allied health staffing companies with flexible and immediate access to capital.

Article Source: Ezine Articles – A How to Guide – Allied Health Factoring

ACH (Automatic Clearing House) – One method factoring companies use to electronically transfer funds into an Account Creditor’s account. When an ACH is initiated, the funds are made available electronically in the Account Creditor’s account on the next business day.

Account Creditor – You, the client and provider of medical coding services.

Accounts Receivable – The money that is owed to an Account Creditor for the services it has provided to customers on credit. The amount indicated on an issued invoice.

Advance Rate – Money provided immediately to the Account Creditor-expressed as a percentage of the total invoice amount. Frequently, factoring firms advance between 70-90% of the invoices it buys.

Account Debtor – The purchaser of medical coding services who is responsible for paying the invoice, (a.k.a. your customer.)

Cash Flow – The measurement of cash coming into a company via accounts receivables and cash going out of a company via accounts payable and payroll.

Collateral – An asset that is promised or given to a funder to guarantee the discharge of an obligation by the Account Debtor.

Discount Fee – A fee assessed by a factor that purchases accounts receivable. Traditionally, the discount fee is determined by the size of the invoice, the length of time it takes to collect the funds and the creditworthiness of the customer.

Face Amount or Face Value – The total amount of an invoice.

Medical Coding Factor – A company that provides operating capital to businesses through the purchase of their invoices.

Medical Coding Factoring – An alternative financing arrangement, in which a factor purchases the accounts receivables of a company, advances a specific percentage of the invoice immediately and then collects on those invoices.

Medical Coding Invoice – A legal debt instrument which indicates the amount due from a customer to pay for delivered medical coding services.

Non-Recourse - The period of time in which the accounts purchased by the factor remain the factor’s accounts and do not revert to the Account Creditor if unpaid due to an insolvency event. The factor accepts full credit risk for any and all accounts that it purchases during this period.

Notification – The process whereby the factoring company communicates to an Account Debtor that an invoice has been purchased from the Account Creditor and that the Account Debtor is to pay the factoring company directly.

Recourse – The period of time in which accounts purchased by the factor are able to revert to the account creditor if unpaid due to an insolvency event. The client accepts full credit risk for any and all accounts that it sells to the factor during this period.

Reserve – Amount of money that is not immediately provided to the company factoring its accounts receivable when the account is purchased by the factor, expressed as a percentage of the total invoice amount. (Advance Rate + Reserve = 100% of Total Invoice)

Reserve Release – The Reserve, minus the discount fee, is transferred by the factor to the client after payment is received.

UCC (Universal Commercial Code) – The laws dealing with commercial business.

UCC-1 – The financing statement (Form UCC1) filed to perfect a security interest in named collateral.

Keeping this medical coding factoring terminology guide close by during conversations with factoring firms will help medical coding business owners better be able to speak and understand the “factoring language.” Using this article as a reference also allows medical coding business owners to save time by focusing on asking the right kinds of questions to locate the best medical coding factoring firm for their company.

Philip Cohen is the founder and president of PRN Funding, LLC, which is an extraordinarily focused niche player in the medical coding invoice funding market place. Through a process known as factoring, PRN Funding provides business owners with the financial resources needed to grow and effectively compete in the industry. With no minimums or fixed terms, PRN Funding provides medical coding agencies with flexible and immediate access to capital. We give you the freedom to factor what you want, when you want, whom you want, for as long as you want. Prior to founding PRN Funding, Mr. Cohen was an executive officer of The MRC Group, a national provider of Medical Transcription Services. Contact Philip Cohen at toll-free 866.776.5407 or via email at pcohen@prnfunding.com. Please visit PRN Funding, LLC on the web at http://www.prnfunding.com/

Article Source: Ezine Articles – Medical Coding Factoring Terminology

Unfortunately for consumers, that creativity often translates into price hikes, additional fees, reduced services or cut backs on productivity. But does it have to be that way?

Take a look at the airline industry. When fuel prices soared last summer, airline giants started charging extra for what were once common courtesy services in addition to the original ticket price. They started with charging for snacks and drinks and then quickly moved onto charging checked bag fees, assigned seat fees, fuel surcharges, curbside check-in fees, etc.

Once the industry giants established that this additional fee policy was going to be part of the standard flight-booking procedures, it didn’t take long for all of the airlines to jump on the “Hidden Fee Bandwagon.” From a customer’s perspective, it seemed as though the airline industry as a whole started seeing dollar signs instead of thinking about its customers needs. Then along came Southwest Airlines with its clear thinking and its “No Fee Policy.”

In some ways, the accounts receivable factoring industry can appear to be a lot like the airlines industry. Both operate world-wide, both industries should be service-oriented, and both industries are notorious for tacking on extra fees in addition to the basic fee. Much like Southwest Airlines, the factoring industry has a handful of healthcare factoring companies who do not charge extra fees in addition to the base fee. This article will discuss three areas where factoring firms might insert hidden fees.

First and foremost, a business owner needs to understand the basics of how a factor charges for its factoring services. It’s important to note that healthcare factoring firms do not loan money; rather, they purchase a company’s invoices at a discounted rate. This discount rate can be a one-time flat fee, or it can vary depending on how long the factor owns the invoice.

In general, discount rates can be affected by a number of things, including the contractual commitment, the average monthly purchase volumes, the average size of the invoices sold, the number of account debtors (customers) that will be factored and the credit quality of those debtors. Variations in each of these will lead to potentially substantial changes in the fee structure. In many cases, factoring firms will have extra fees in addition to their factoring discount fee. More often than not, these “hidden fees” are disguised as set-up fees, administrative fees and penalty fees.

Set-up Fees
There are some factoring companies that start charging fees as soon as a potential client applies for  healthcare factoring services. Set-up fees range from a minimal application fee of $25 to a hefty origination fee of $500. In some cases, factors will add in individual fees for due diligence procedures (i.e. running credit and background checks) and legal documentation fees (i.e. assembling legal documents and filing liens). When all is said and done, a new factoring prospect could be $1,000 out of pocket before knowing if he/she has been approved for funding.

When business owners are comparing and contrasting factoring companies, it’s important to inquire whether the factor charges specific set-up fees. Sometimes, the factor will say yes, and sometimes it will say no. It’s up to the business owner to decide whether or not the factoring services outweigh the start-up costs before moving forward.

Administrative Fees
In addition to application, origination and due diligence fees, some factoring firms charge their clients for the time it takes to compile and ship legal documents, billing for postage, long-distance phone calls, photocopying documents and/or time spent on the computer while assisting their clients. There are also fees associated with funding procedures. Most factors will institute set prices for a same-day wire or an overnight transfer of funds.

When a business owner is contemplating the notion of factoring his/her receivables, it’s important to factor any administrative costs into the equation. Without doing so, a business owner could wind up paying a lot more than he/she had initially anticipated.

Penalty Fees
The last way a factoring firm could potentially squeeze in some additional “hidden fees” is when it assigns fees for various “penalties.” Under this umbrella of penalty fees, a factoring firm could designate fees for misdirected payments, early termination of a contract, aged invoices, expedited funding (within 24 hours or less), not hitting a monthly minimum factoring requirement or going over the maximum allowable factoring amount. In addition, a healthcare factoring firm could also penalize its client by holding onto the funds within the reserve account (cash that is owed back to the client once payments have been received).

When choosing an accounts receivable factoring company, business owners should take the time to read all of the terms and conditions before signing on the dotted line. Entrepreneurs should not be afraid to dig deep into the factoring contract and ask a question when something is unclear. Otherwise, those hidden fees hidden fees will reveal themselves at a point where it’s too late to re-negotiate the terms.

So in conclusion, it does appear that the factoring industry is similar to the airlines industry in that players in both are notorious for charging “extra fees.” The plus side to this realization, however, is that both industries also have some players who stand firm in their “No Extra Fee Policy.” The bottom line-much like when shopping for the best airline deal, it’s extremely important to look at the all-inclusive price, including possibly extra fees, before agreeing to do business with an accounts receivable factoring company.

About the Author: Philip Cohen is the founder and president of PRN Funding, LLC, which is an extraordinarily focused niche player in the healthcare staffing invoice financing market place. Through a process known as factoring, PRN Funding provides business owners with the financial resources needed to grow and effectively compete in the industry. With no minimums or fixed terms, PRN Funding provides medical staffing agencies with flexible and immediate access to capital. We give you the freedom to factor what you want, when you want, whom you want, for as long as you want. Prior to founding PRN Funding, Mr. Cohen was an executive officer of The MRC Group, a national provider of Medical Transcription Services. Contact Philip Cohen at toll-free 866.776.5407 or via email at  pcohen@prnfunding.com. Please visit PRN Funding, LLC on the web at http://www.prnfunding.com/

Article Source: EzineArticles Freedom From Factoring Fees