The Millionaire Contractor Coach™

Saturday Newsletter

February 21, 2026

Read on my website ⏱️ Read Time: 5 minutes 30 seconds

Why Bank Love Contractors

I spent 30 years in banking.

Reviewed over 10,000 financial statements. Personally approved over $2 billion in loans.

Contractors were among my favorite clients. Hardworking. Resilient. Built things you could see and touch. But they were also the hardest to say yes to.

Not because they weren't good at what they did. Most were excellent.

The problem was almost always the same: their financials didn't tell the story their work ethic deserved.

Today I want to share the three reasons contractors struggle to get bank financing — and a story about a client I'll call Mike that still sticks with me almost two decades later.

Reason #1: Progress Billings

Construction is messy. You're billing for work that isn't done yet. You've got costs piling up on jobs that won't pay out for months. Retainage sitting in limbo.

Banks don't love financing incomplete work. But that's the nature of your business — so it's not going away.

The real issue isn't progress billings themselves. It's sloppy financial reporting.

When a banker opens your financials and can't reconcile your WIP schedule with your balance sheet, confidence evaporates. Fast. We start wondering what else is off. And once a lender loses confidence, you're fighting uphill.

The fix: Get a professional bookkeeper AND a CPA who both specialize in construction accounting. Not your brother-in-law. Not your cousin who "does taxes on the side." Someone who understands percentage of completion, overbillings, under billings, and job costing.

This isn't an expense. It's insurance for your borrowing capacity.

Reason #2: Reducing All Your Profit to "Not Pay Taxes"

I get it. I don't want to pay a dollar more in taxes than I have to.

But here's what a lot of contractors don't realize: banks lend on cash flow, not tax strategy.

When your CPA helps you zero out your profit every year — buying trucks in December, maxing out every deduction — the bank sees a company that doesn't make money. On paper, you're barely breaking even. And we can only lend to what we can document.

You walk in asking for a $2 million line of credit, but your tax returns show $50K in net income. The math doesn't work.

The fix: Invest a percentage of your profits back into the business. Build up retained earnings. Grow equity on your balance sheet. Yes, you'll pay more in taxes some years. But you'll also become bankable — and that opens doors that staying "tax efficient" never will.

Reason #3: Personal Lifestyle at the Expense of the Company

This one's harder to talk about. But it's the one I've seen sink the most contractors.

Let me tell you about Mike.

Mike ran a well-known electrical contracting firm. Second generation. His parents built the company from nothing, and when they were ready to step back, Mike took over. He was sharp, confident, and had grown up in the business. Mom and Dad stayed involved from a distance, but Mike was running the show.

Before the 2008 crash, Mike was taking $750,000 a year out of the company. Distributions, salary, bonuses — it all added up. And honestly? The business could support it. Revenue was strong. Backlog was full.

Then the economy collapsed.

Suddenly, the jobs dried up. Margins got squeezed. Mike's company could only support about $500,000 in owner draws.

But here's the thing: Mike's lifestyle was $750,000 a year.

Private school tuition for the kids. A boat. Multiple vacation homes. And savings? Essentially zero.

I sat across the table from Mike and told him the truth: the recession demanded a different approach. He needed to scale back. Cut expenses. Preserve cash.

He fought me on it.

I understood why. Nobody wants to hear that the life they've built needs to shrink. Especially when you're the second generation — when you feel like you're supposed to be 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 on what your parents created, not pulling back.

But the numbers didn't care about feelings.

Mike resisted, and the losses mounted. Eventually, we had to cut back his line of credit and freeze further advances. It was one of the most stressful seasons of my career. I genuinely liked Mike. I wanted to see him win.

The company did pull through. Barely. It took years to dig out.

And you know what Mike told me afterward?

"Thank you. For your help. And for your candor."

He didn't thank me for being nice. He thanked me for telling him the truth when he didn't want to hear it.

The Lesson

Mike's story isn't unique. I've seen versions of its dozens of times.

The contractors who scale during prosperity AND survive during downturns have one thing in common: they don't go it alone.

They have a banker who tells them the truth. A CPA who understands construction. An advisor who's been through cycles before and can see what's coming.

The best time to build those relationships isn't when you're desperate. It's now — when things are good, when you have options, when you can make changes on your terms instead of the bank's.

If you're running a $5M, $10M, or $30M contracting business and you don't have a financial advisor in your corner, you're flying blind. You might be fine for years. But when the turbulence hits — and it always does — you'll wish you'd asked for help sooner.

Join Us in Tampa

This is exactly what Jerry Aliberti, and I are helping contractors do at 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗘𝗢: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗵 𝗙𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁 in Tampa this May.

Two days. 30 contractors. No competitors in the room — just colleagues who are facing the same challenges you are.

We're going to dig into the 7 numbers that make you bankable, bondable, and capital-ready. The financial mechanics behind contractor growth. And how to build a business that thrives in good times and survives the hard ones.

If Mike had been in a room like this in 2007, his story might have been different.

Don't wait until you need help to ask for it.

[Reserve Your Seat → Link]

Patrick Shurney, MBA | The Millionaire Contractor Coach™

Helping Contractors Become Bankable, Bondable, & Capital-Ready

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About Me:

As a veteran in financial coaching with over 30 years of corporate banking experience, my mission is to help you become a Millionaire Contractor by mastering just 7 numbers so you can keep more of what you earn and build generational wealth.

Ready for More?

Here’s how I can help you:

1. Profit Blueprint Program: Get your finances sorted and build out a 3-year financial roadmap in the next 30 days.

2. Loan Consulting: Get Bank Ready. With 30+ years of banking experience, I’ll make sure you're ready to approach lenders with a winning loan package.