He has written a book titled ‘How to Buy the Right Business the Right Way’.
Chaudhary was inspired to write a book because it takes about two years to buy a business – from when a customer starts thinking about it to when they execute the deal.
“I have always had a passion for helping small business enterprise (SME) owners because I had felt the pain when I set up Auckland Business Solutions. It is a long cycle from initially getting the business idea to making it successful.”
He sees many people wish to start a business, but don't know what to do, how to do it and which business is right for them. “It is a really underserved market by banks and lenders in general.
“There's nobody to handhold. There is no real resource available, especially from the funding point of view. This book will help people understand the numbers and their financial capacity.”
Having worked at Westpac as a business manager from 2020-2022, Chaudhary dealt with nearly 1,000 small businesses and was able to help them, even though the bank did not have a specific portfolio for SMEs. During that time he learned how business operates. Lending for small businesses has now become a niche for his business.
“I know how to obtain business funding. As long as people can be helped and understand the numbers around their financial capacity, it makes life so much easier for them.”
He gives an example of one business owner who went to one of the biggest mortgage adviser firms in the country as a first home buyer. “The firm told him as he hadn’t operated his business for 18 months no bank would give him a mortgage and he would have to wait another 18 months to make an application.
“He approached me. I was confident I could get him into his first home with his past 12 months of business financials, the profit and loss (P&L) forecast and financials for this year. He got the mortgage at a high LVR with a 10% deposit. He didn’t have a 20% deposit.”
Chaudhary says the myths floating around the mortgage advising industry need to be called out and flattened. The biggest problem, he says, is many advisers do not have business banking experience.
“Having business banking experience gives a next level of comfort when dealing with self-employed customers. Specialising in SME lending has been possible because I have that banking experience.”
Another example is of a client who worked as a handyman at a rest home with his wife. “He decided it wasn’t for him and he was no longer interested in the work.
“He set up a business and three months down the track, he and his wife wanted to buy their first home. Because he was newly employed in his franchise business and although his wife was working full-time at the rest home, none of the banks would give him a mortgage. His own bank said he needed two years of financial history before it would consider his mortgage application. He was told repeatedly to go to a private lender.”
Chaudhary says by the time the client approached him, he was on the edge of defeat. He obtained a mortgage for the client by getting him to provide his business financials, P&L forecast, what guaranteed income could be generated, the franchise agreement and a statement on the franchiser’s credibility, packaged it together and presented it to the banks. It’s the difference between being approved for a mortgage or not being able to obtain one.”
Chaudhary says his book will be useful for business owners in similar situations. “Bank branches don’t want to serve them and the ‘big boys’ at the main offices want to write bigger deals in the commercial space. It is a market that is totally underserved.”
