One drawback of the standard SBA 7(a) loan is that the application process can take months. In order to address this problem, the SBA offers an expedited processing service called the SBA Express Loan Program, which guarantees a response to an application within 36 hours (note: this means the SBA will notify your lender within 36 hours if your application has been approved.
An SBA Express Loan generally follows the same guidelines as the standard SBA 7(a) loan, but the maximum loan amount is $350,000, and only select lenders are qualified to participate in this program. Because the SBA guarantees only a maximum of 50% of SBA Express loan amounts, the lender is assuming more risk. Therefore, the interest rates on an SBA Express loan can be a bit higher than other 7(a) loans.