The most common mistake I see in SBA transactions is not financial.

It’s relational.

Someone in the triangle treats another party like a tool instead of a partner.

Sometimes it’s a borrower who believes the lender is “just a hurdle.”
Sometimes it’s a lender who views vendors as interchangeable and purely transactional.
Sometimes it’s a vendor who forgets that the lender’s job is risk management, not education.

When that mindset shows up, communication becomes defensive.

People stop asking questions because they don’t want to look uninformed.
They stop sharing context because they don’t want to “risk the deal.”
They stop collaborating because they don’t believe collaboration will be reciprocated.

And then the file becomes heavier than it should be.

The irony is: SBA deals already contain enough uncertainty.
You don’t need relational uncertainty layered on top of it.

The best SBA lenders I’ve worked with treat their core vendors like part of the underwriting infrastructure. Not because they’re “friends,” but because they understand:

• Alignment reduces cycle time
• Trust improves transparency
• Transparency improves risk management

And from the vendor side, the best outcomes come when the vendor respects the lender’s role and communicates in lender language—clear, defensible, and proactive.

If you want smoother SBA deals, stop obsessing over tactics and start strengthening the triangle.

Competence is important. Humility is indispensable.