Quality of Earnings for SBA Loans

    By Shepi Editorial TeamUpdated 2026-08-31

    SBA acquisition lending lives or dies on the timeline to close. Shepi compresses the QoE phase from 4–8 weeks to 24–48 hours, with deliverables in the format SBA underwriting expects.

    24–48 hrs

    Lender-ready output

    $1,000

    Per project

    100%

    GL coverage

    What SBA Lenders Need from a QoE

    SBA SOP 50 10 requires lenders on acquisition loans to independently validate the seller's reported earnings — they can't underwrite on the seller's word. In practice, this means a Quality of Earnings analysis that establishes:

    Adjusted EBITDA

    Reported EBITDA bridged to a defensible adjusted figure, with each add-back categorized and supported

    Revenue quality

    Recurring vs project revenue, customer concentration, AR aging, trend stability

    Working-capital peg

    Multi-period NWC build with turnover ratios and a normalized peg for the close

    Cash proof

    GL-to-bank reconciliation that surfaces unrecorded liabilities or commingled expenses

    Anomaly review

    Round-dollar entries, period-end clustering, duplicate detection across 100% of the GL

    Owner add-back support

    Personal expenses, owner compensation normalization, related-party transactions — each with source detail

    Lender-Ready Deliverables

    Shepi exports a PDF QoE report and a structured Excel workbook with every supporting schedule. The Excel ties out to the GL, so underwriting can drill into any adjustment without bouncing emails back and forth.

    Timeline

    PhaseTraditional CPA QoEShepi
    Engagement letter / kickoff1–2 weeksSame day
    Data ingestion & mapping1–2 weeksHours
    Analysis & adjustments2–3 weeksSame day after ingestion
    Draft report1 weekSame day
    Total4–8 weeks24–48 hours

    Shepi vs Traditional QoE for SBA Deals

    DimensionTraditional CPA QoEShepi
    Cost$25,000–$50,000$1,000–$5,000
    Timeline impact on closingOften gatingRemoves the constraint
    Re-runs after data correctionsBill againIncluded
    Lender review workbookPDF + custom ExcelPDF + structured Excel with GL traceability
    Attestation opinionAvailableNot offered — analysis only

    FAQ

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