Inventory
Floor plan vs. retail financing: two different files
Separate the dealer's stock loan from the buyer's equipment deal, with a unit sale checklist.
| Question | Floor plan | Retail equipment finance |
|---|---|---|
| Who uses it? | The dealer | The buyer |
| What is it for? | Stock held for sale | The buyer's machine purchase |
| What governs it? | Dealer inventory credit agreement | Buyer's loan, lease, or finance agreement |
| What happens at a sale? | Check unit payoff and release rules | Check the buyer's offer and purchase steps |
Do not mix the two
Floor plan financing is credit a dealer uses to buy stock. Retail financing is credit for a buyer's purchase. The word retail does not mean this is a personal loan. The buyer may be a business. The two files have different parties, costs, and rules. The buyer does not simply take over the dealer's stock loan.
What a floor plan does
A floor plan can be a line of credit for machines held for sale. FNB describes financed stock as collateral. Collateral is property that backs a debt. It also describes unit repayment when stock sells. Those are examples of how a plan can work. Your signed agreement sets your own duties.
Watch stock that sits
Some floor plans ask for payments as stock ages. A curtailment is a required paydown of part of the debt. Interest or fees may also be due. Do not assume that every plan uses the same clock. Ask your inventory lender to explain your own terms.
- Which units are financed, and what is owed on each?
- When are paydowns due?
- What reports or stock checks are required?
- What must happen when a unit is sold?
What the buyer's file does
The buyer's file covers how that buyer may pay for the machine. It can include business details, the quote, and money down. A firm may offer a loan, lease, or another contract. It makes the credit choice. Your floor plan rate does not set the buyer's rate. Approval of the dealer's stock line is not approval of the buyer.
Before a financed unit leaves the lot
Use your actual lender instructions, not a general web guide, to close a unit sale. A sale can affect who holds a claim on the machine. Keep the unit number the same across the quote, payoff request, and sale papers.
- Confirm the serial number and unit-level payoff.
- Ask how sale funds must be sent and when payment is due.
- Confirm any lien release or title steps with the lender.
- Keep the buyer's purchase and finance papers in the right secure flow.
- Reconcile the unit in stock records after the sale.
Who to ask when the file is unclear
Your inventory lender answers floor plan questions. The buyer's funding firm answers questions about its offer. A title or lien issue may need legal help. Do not guess that a machine has clear ownership just because the buyer's loan was approved.
This is not a floor plan offer
This site is a second-look dealer resource. This guide explains a difference; it does not offer inventory credit or promise that a provider will fund a unit. Keep stock finance discussions separate from the customer deal handoff.