Construction financing for contractors means business funding for equipment, materials and payroll, not real-estate construction loans. Kitehill Commercial Capital, a small-business funding broker in Greenville, South Carolina, helps Greenville County builders and specialty trade contractors choose among equipment financing, lines of credit and working capital, and connects them with lending partners, which decide and set terms.
| Typical needs | Equipment, materials, payroll between draws, retainage gaps |
|---|---|
| Funding types discussed | Equipment financing, lines of credit, working capital, term loans |
| Greenville County construction | 1,460 employer establishments in 2023, 63.0 percent under five employees (Census CBP 2023) |
| No paid employees | 5,966 construction businesses in 2024 (Census Nonemployer Statistics 2024) |
| Not offered | Real-estate construction loans |
| Who decides | The lending partner, not Kitehill Commercial Capital |
Business funding for contractors, not construction loans
Search for construction financing and most results are about real-estate construction loans, the kind that pay to build a house or commercial building and are secured by the property. Kitehill does not arrange those. This page is about funding the contracting business itself: the machines, the materials, the payroll and the wait for payment.
Greenville County's construction businesses
Greenville County had 1,460 construction employer establishments in 2023, with 12,180 paid employees and about $889.6 million in annual payroll. Of those establishments, 920, or 63.0 percent, had fewer than five employees (U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023).
| Group | Employer establishments, 2023 | Share under 5 employees | Businesses with no employees, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction of buildings (NAICS 236) | 458 | 67.2% | 1,951 |
| Specialty trade contractors (NAICS 238) | 942 | 61.7% | 3,938 |
| All construction (NAICS 23) | 1,460 | 63.0% | 5,966 |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023; U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics 2024. The two programs count different businesses in different years, so the columns are not added together. Together they describe a sector made mostly of small crews and one-person operations, the businesses for which a single delayed payment hurts most.
Where the work comes from
Residential building has been steady. Greenville County authorized 4,774 new housing units in 2023, 5,575 in 2024 and 4,947 in 2025. Of the 2025 total, 4,222 were single-unit homes and 693 were in buildings with five or more units (U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey). Those counts cover new homes only, not commercial work or remodelling, but they show the volume of residential projects that builders and trades bid on.
Builders and specialty trades are not the same business
The county's 458 building contractors employed 3,161 people in 2023, about seven per establishment, while its 942 specialty trade contractors, the electricians, plumbers, roofers, HVAC and finishing trades, employed 8,041, about eight and a half per establishment (U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023). Among businesses with no employees, 1,951 building contractors reported about $260.1 million in receipts and 3,938 specialty trade contractors about $347.1 million in 2024 (U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics 2024).
The difference matters for funding. A builder's cash is tied up in a handful of large projects, each with its own draw schedule, so one late draw can stall everything. A specialty trade usually juggles many smaller jobs, so its gaps are more frequent but smaller, which is the pattern a revolving credit line handles well. Equipment needs differ too: builders lean toward heavy machines and trailers, trades toward vans, tools and diagnostic gear.
Why contractors run short of cash
- Draw schedules. Payment arrives in stages tied to progress, so costs for each stage are paid before its draw clears.
- Retainage. Many contracts hold back part of each payment until the job is complete, which keeps money owed to you for months.
- Materials up front. Suppliers may want payment on order, while the customer pays on completion.
- Payroll every week. Crews are paid on schedule whether or not the general contractor has paid you.
- Equipment that wears out. A machine that fails mid-job has to be replaced now, not after the next draw.
Public and institutional work adds paperwork and often longer payment cycles. Partners treat signed contracts and payment history from those customers as useful evidence of future income.
Matching the need to a funding type
| Need | Funding type | Why it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Excavator, skid steer, trailer, work truck | Equipment financing | The machine secures the funding; terms can follow its useful life |
| Materials and wages before a draw | Working capital | Covers a gap with a known end date |
| Recurring gaps across many jobs | Line of credit | Draw for each job, pay down when paid, draw again |
| Expanding into a new trade or territory | Term loan | One sum for a planned step, on a fixed schedule |
A contractor line of credit is often the most useful single tool for a firm juggling several jobs, because draws can follow each job's costs. Equipment is better financed on its own, so the line stays free for timing gaps.
What partners look at for a construction business
- Recent business bank statements, read for the size and regularity of deposits.
- A list of current contracts or jobs, with expected payment dates.
- Receivables: who owes you, how much and how long it has been outstanding, including retainage.
- Equipment quotes, with model, year and hours for used machines.
- Existing equipment notes, credit lines and advances.
Merchant cash advances are sometimes pitched to contractors with steady deposits. An advance is not a loan, and its collections come out of the same deposits that fund payroll; compare its total cost with a credit line before taking one.
How Kitehill works with contractors
We start with the job calendar: what you are paying for, when, and when each customer pays. That usually makes the right funding type obvious. Call (864) 302-0567 or visit 101 W Court St. The Greenville, SC page has more county data, and funding by industry covers other sectors.
By Kitehill Commercial Capital · Updated
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