Muhammad Mushtaq Khattak is the owner of Wildwood Inn, a hotel located in a quaint resort village in Twain Harte, California. Prior to the statewide shutdown, this charming hotel provided the perfect stay for tourists and business travelers who wished to be surrounded by the tranquility of nature, enjoy fine country cuisines and visit the famous Yosemite National Park.
Khattak and his family acquired Wildwood Inn in 2017, however, their journey to hotel ownership was laced with several financial challenges. As a Pakistani immigrant, Khattak had a limited credit history and struggled to obtain low cost real estate financing.
Khattak was forced to settle for a conventional real estate loan with an astounding 11% interest rate. Fortunately, in 2019, Khattak partnered with TMC Financing and took advantage of the SBA 504 Refinance Program. The SBA 504 Refinance loan not only lowered Khattak’s occupancy costs by approximately $3,000 per month but proved to be a vital tool against the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Why Muhammad Khattak Chose SBA 504 Refinance Program
The SBA 504 Refinance Program allowed Khattak and his family to refinance their high interest conventional loan with a more affordable and advantageous SBA 504 loan.
“When I moved to America from Pakistan, I had trouble finding a business suitable for my family,” explained Khattak. “Then we found Wildwood – I knew it would be a good fit. It was in the center of a beautiful location with a classic alpine structure. I decided hospitality would be the industry that could meet the standards I wanted for my life.
“The problem was, I didn’t have the required source of income to qualify for a conventional loan with a reasonable interest rate. A high interest, hard money loan was my only option, so I kept my head down and agreed to this loan for two years. Once my credit record improved and my company made some headway – I began to research an alternative source of financing. That’s when I discovered TMC Financing’s SBA 504 Refinance Program.
“TMC helped me put together a loan package that drastically lowered my monthly mortgage payments,” continued Khattak. “My original payment was roughly $8,600 a month, now my payments have decreased to $5,700 out the door. This change allowed me to retain precious working capital, my shoulders relaxed and I could breathe again.”
Anna O’ Brien, TMC Financing’s senior vice president who facilitated the project explains, “The 504 program is specifically designed to help small business owners secure real estate financing with below-market, fixed interest rates. Muhammad’s 11% interest rate was not sustainable long term. By utilizing the SBA 504 Refinance Program, Khattak now has a below market rate that is fixed for 25 years.”
“My wife and I now joke about our SBA 504 loan process,” says Khattak. “We were approved quite unexpectedly, so my wife had to leave a family reunion and fly back from Pakistan to sign paperwork – she is petrified of flying. It was two very exhausting travel days for both of us, but we got the job done. It was entirely worth the urgent effort because this 504 loan also helped Wildwood withstand the financial impact of the pandemic.”
SBA 504 Refinance Loan Helped Wildwood Inn Stay Afloat in 2020
Khattak’s SBA 504 refinance loan was approved in January 2020 and according to Khattak, it would be one of the reasons his hotel business would stay afloat throughout the current COVID-19 crisis.
“Wildwood Inn had t
o completely close for 3 months beginning in March of this year,” Khattak explained. “All of our European customers cancelled their holiday reservations due to travel restrictions. My business was in trouble. I took out a PPP loan and a disaster loan – but it wasn’t enough. It was truly a scary time.”
“With the disaster loans, my personal cash reserves and the SBA 504 refinance loan, I believe Wildwood Inn will survive and will make up for most financial loses by next year. I am so thankful I decided to work with TMC, their professionalism and expertise helped guide me in a direction that unknowingly helped save my business.” “We then received news that the SBA would provide 6 months of debt forgiveness on our 504 loan. I was extremely grateful. We reallocated those funds to where it was needed most – it helped my business survive. Imagine if my wife and I didn’t travel to complete the required paperwork, we would still be paying that outrageous monthly payment while attempting to curb the financial impact of this pandemic.”
To book a stay at wildwood Inn please visit www.wildwoodinn.com or call 209.586.2900
More About TMC Financing
Founded in 1981, TMC Financing is the nation’s No. 1 provider of SBA 504 financing, which allows small-business owners to finance or refinance commercial real estate and other fixed assets with long-term, below-market, fixed interest rates. SBA 504 loans can be used to finance the total project cost, which can include the purchase price, construction/renovations, equipment, soft costs and closing costs.
TMC Financing has secured financing for projects worth more than $12 billion across California and Nevada. More than 5,000 businesses have benefited from this financing, resulting in the creation of an estimated 60,000 jobs.