How to Set Up Customer Financing for Your Installation Business
Most contractors know that offering financing helps them close more deals. What nobody clearly explains is what "setting it up" actually involves. It is not a months-long process buried in lender paperwork. In practice, you need a dealer application, an approval, and one team training session.
According to the ACCA Contractor of the Future study (1,000+ contractors, 2025), contractors who present financing on every job finance 35% of their sales, compared with 17% for those who offer it selectively. That gap is not about which lender you picked. It is about how consistently your team uses the program. This guide walks the 6 steps from "I want to offer financing" to "I closed my first financed project," with a checklist for each step.
> Key Takeaways
> - Contractors who present financing on every job finance 35% of their sales vs. 17% for those who offer it selectively (ACCA, 2025).
> - Setup requires six steps: choose a partner, apply, get approved, complete onboarding, train your team, and close your first financed project.
> - The biggest operational gap is not the paperwork; it is the first customer conversation. Training your team to present a monthly payment is the step most contractors skip.
> - Eos Loan is a direct lender with no dealer fee, covering battery energy storage (6 to 240 month terms), EV chargers, and water filtration, subject to approval.
Become an Eos Loan financing partner
Step 1: Choose the Right Type of Financing Partner
The most important setup decision is not the paperwork. It is which type of lender you partner with. A direct lender funds loans itself. A marketplace routes your customers to third-party lenders. That distinction determines fee transparency, approval speed, and who is accountable when a deal gets complicated.
In 2025, the ACCA Contractor of the Future study found that installers who present four or more financing options push their premium-equipment mix from 26% to 42% of sales (ACCA, 2025). A lender with multi-vertical coverage makes that kind of range possible. It also matters what the residential credit situation is: the residential clean-energy credit (Section 25D) ended December 31, 2025 (IRS). This is general information, not tax advice; consult a qualified tax professional. In 2026, financing is the primary affordability lever for residential buyers, which raises the stakes on choosing the right partner.
Checklist for evaluating a financing partner:
- Is the dealer fee disclosed, or buried inside the system price?
- Does the lender cover all your verticals, such as battery energy storage, EV chargers, and water filtration?
- How fast does approval typically come back?
- Is this a direct lender (funds loans itself) or a marketplace?
- Are terms flexible enough to fit a range of customer budgets?
- Business license and contractor license number
- Years in operation
- Verticals you install (battery energy storage, EV charger, water filtration)
- Approximate monthly install volume
- Business bank account information for payment routing
- Platform walkthrough (how to submit a customer application)
- Loan approval flow (what happens after the customer applies)
- Customer disclosure requirements (what the lender must communicate)
- Document collection (digital vs. paper, what the customer needs to sign)
- Compliance basics (what you can and cannot say to customers)
- Sales reps who deliver proposals
- Project managers who hand customers a quote
- Anyone who takes a customer call where project cost comes up
- [ ] Quote includes a monthly payment line next to the cash price
- [ ] Financing was introduced early (not as a rescue after the customer hesitated)
- [ ] Customer submitted the application through the lender's digital flow
- [ ] Approval came back before the customer left (or follow-up was scheduled within 24 hours)
- [ ] All paperwork completed digitally
- [ ] Install was scheduled only after funding was confirmed
- How long did the approval take?
- What did the funding confirmation look like?
- When did you get paid, and through what process?
- ACCA, Contractor of the Future study (1,000+ contractors, 2025 data: 35% vs. 17% financed sales, 11% close rate lift, 26% vs. 42% premium equipment mix), retrieved 2026-06-17, https://hvac-blog.acca.org/inside-the-contractor-of-the-future-study-key-findings-from-1000-contractors/
- McKinsey, Buy Now, Pay Later: Five Business Models to Compete (point-of-sale financing conversion lift 20-30%), retrieved 2026-06-17, https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/financial-services/our-insights/buy-now-pay-later-five-business-models-to-compete
- Financeit, Home Improvement Financing (average transaction size rises ~15% with financing), retrieved 2026-06-17, https://www.financeit.io/home-improvement-financing/
- Internal Revenue Service, Residential Clean Energy Credit (Section 25D ended December 31, 2025), retrieved 2026-06-17, https://www.irs.gov/credits-deductions/residential-clean-energy-credit
Eos Loan is a direct lender. We fund the loans we offer, which is why we charge no dealer fee and maintain consistent terms. We cover battery energy storage (terms from 6 to 240 months), EV chargers, and water filtration, all subject to approval and eligibility. We are not a marketplace, a broker, or a platform that connects you to other lenders.
!A contractor at a desk reviewing a financing partner agreement in a bright daylight office setting.
For the full breakdown of lender models, see our guide to point-of-sale vs. marketplace vs. direct lender.
Step 2: Complete the Dealer Application
The dealer application is the formal step that establishes you as an authorized installer who can offer a lender's financing. Most applications take 15 to 30 minutes and are completed online. The lender uses your application to verify business legitimacy, license standing, and install experience in the relevant vertical.
According to the same ACCA 2025 study, close rates increase 11% when contractors offer financing (ACCA, 2025). That uplift is only accessible once you have an active dealer agreement in place. The application is the first gate.
What you will typically need to provide:
With Eos Loan, the team reviews applications within days, not weeks, subject to the completeness of your submission. There is no self-serve signup. Initiate the process by contacting our team directly.
Become an Eos Loan financing partner
Step 3: Go Through Lender Onboarding
Once approved, you go through an onboarding session that covers the lender's tools, workflows, and compliance requirements. This is where you learn how to submit a customer for financing, track application status, and handle the customer-facing parts of the process correctly.
According to McKinsey's Buy Now, Pay Later industry overview (2024), point-of-sale financing lifts checkout conversion by 20 to 30% (McKinsey, 2024). That lift depends on knowing how to run the offer cleanly. Onboarding is what turns an approved dealer account into a usable sales tool.
What lender onboarding typically covers:
A critical compliance point: you are not the lender. Do not quote interest rates to customers. Do not promise approval. Do not handle customer credit information outside the lender's system. Your role is to present the financing option and refer the customer to the lender's application flow. The lender handles all disclosures and underwriting.
With Eos Loan, onboarding covers digital submission, a single-party workflow with no handoffs, and the compliance basics you need to keep your sales conversations accurate.
!A contractor working through an onboarding session on a laptop in a bright, daylight office.
Step 4: Set Up Your Sales Presentation
The biggest operational gap among new financing partners is not the application or the onboarding. It is the first customer conversation. If your team does not know when and how to introduce the monthly payment, you have a financing program that nobody uses.
In 2025, close rates increased 11% when contractors offer financing, and average transaction size rises roughly 15% when a business offers financing as a default, not an afterthought (ACCA, 2025; Financeit, 2024). Both figures point to the same behavior: showing the monthly payment on every proposal, not just the ones where the customer hesitates.
How to introduce financing in your proposal:
Show the monthly payment next to the cash price on every quote. Not just when the customer flinches at the total. When the financed option is always visible, customers self-select into it without you having to rescue the deal.
Language that works:
"Most of our customers put this on a 12- or 24-month plan. Would that work better for you?"
Language to avoid:
"We also offer financing if you need it." (This positions financing as a fallback for customers who can't afford the project, which is the wrong frame.)
What you must never say:
Do not quote a specific rate. Rates depend on the customer's credit profile and the lender's review. Do not promise approval. Do not describe the lender as a bank, a platform, or a source of "free" money. Keep the conversation simple: "There's a monthly payment option, want me to submit your information?"
Update your proposal template to include a "Financed Monthly Payment (estimated)" line on every quote. That one change is the most direct lever you have on how often financing gets used.
For more on how consistent financing presentation affects your close rate, see how offering financing increases your close rate.
According to the ACCA Contractor of the Future study (2025), contractors who present financing on every job finance 35% of their sales vs. 17% for those who offer it selectively. This difference is mostly habit, not program quality. The lender handles underwriting; your job is to put the monthly payment in front of the customer every time (ACCA, 2025).
Step 5: Train Your Team
If you have a sales team or crews who face customers, one-person knowledge of the financing program is a bottleneck. The goal is simple: every customer-facing person can present the monthly payment option in under 60 seconds without quoting rates or promising approval.
The Financeit Home Improvement Financing report (2024) found that average transaction size rises roughly 15% when a business offers financing (Financeit, 2024). That uplift disappears if only one person on your team knows how to run the offer. Training is the distribution step.
Who needs training:
What training covers:
1. The one-sentence introduction: "Most of our customers put this on a monthly plan. Want me to submit your information?"
2. What to say when asked about the rate: "That depends on your credit profile and the lender's review. Most of our customers qualify for a payment that fits their budget."
3. How to initiate the application: open the lender's digital flow, hand the device to the customer, and step back.
4. What not to promise: no guaranteed approval, no specific rate, no "you'll definitely qualify."
The role-play to run before your first live deal:
Have one team member play the customer who asks: "What's the interest rate?" Practice the answer until it feels natural. The correct response is: "That depends on your credit profile and the lender's review, but most of our customers qualify for a monthly payment that fits their budget. Want me to submit your information?" That exchange, practiced once, removes most of the hesitation that shows up in the field.
A reminder on compliance: direct all underwriting questions to the lender. Employees who quote rates or guarantee approval create liability. The rule is simple: present the option, let the lender handle the rest.
Step 6: Close Your First Financed Project
The first financed project converts a financing program from paperwork into a business tool. It is also a rehearsal. Debrief your team afterward on what worked and what felt awkward. The patterns you catch after the first deal are the ones that compound over the next hundred.
In 2025, contractors who present financing on every job financed 35% of their sales, compared with just 17% for those who offered it selectively (ACCA, 2025). The habit matters more than the program. Your first deal is the start of that habit.
Checklist for your first financed deal:
What to watch for after the proposal:
Customers who say "let me think about it" after seeing the monthly payment are often signaling that they want to qualify before committing. Follow up within 48 hours with the monthly figure in the subject line. That follow-up converts a surprisingly high share of stalled proposals.
After your first deal, review:
Those answers become your onboarding script for the next team member you bring into the program. For a primer on the program economics after your first deal, including how dealer fees work at other lenders, see dealer fees explained.
See how Eos Loan financing helps you close more projects
Next Steps: Expand Your Financing Program
Once your first deal is done, the next move is expanding which projects you finance. Battery energy storage, EV chargers, and water filtration are separate offers you can activate within the same dealer agreement, depending on what your dealer agreement covers. Each vertical adds an addressable customer segment your single-vertical competitors cannot reach.
The recap is short. The six steps are: choose a direct lender, complete the dealer application, go through onboarding, update your sales presentation, train your team, and close your first financed deal. Most contractors who are not offering financing are not missing a form. They are missing the first team conversation.
Your six-step checklist:
1. Choose a direct lender with no dealer fee and multi-vertical coverage
2. Complete the dealer application (15-30 minutes, online)
3. Go through lender onboarding (platform, compliance, loan submission flow)
4. Update your proposal template to show a monthly payment on every quote
5. Train your team with a role-play of the "what's the interest rate?" moment
6. Close your first financed project and debrief
Once your program is live, consider whether your customers are also asking about battery energy storage, EV chargers, or water filtration. Each is a separate financing offer that can go into the same onboarding. For more on financing across all three verticals, see our guide to financing every essential project.
For a comprehensive view of the contractor financing landscape, the full 2026 contractor financing guide covers dealer fees, the direct lender vs. marketplace distinction, and the 2026 market context in depth.
Offer your customers flexible financing on essential projects
Or call +1 833-989-3737 to talk through a financing program for your business.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to set up a contractor financing program?
Most of the setup (application, approval, and onboarding) can be completed in under two weeks. The timeline depends on how quickly the lender reviews your application and how fast your team completes the onboarding session. With Eos Loan, applications are reviewed within days, not weeks, subject to the completeness of your submission.
Do I need a license to offer financing to my customers?
You are not the lender, so you are not subject to lending licensing requirements. You are referring your customers to a licensed lender that handles all disclosures, underwriting, and credit decisions. That said, you must not quote rates, promise approval, or handle customer credit information outside the lender's system.
What projects can I use contractor financing for?
With a multi-vertical program like Eos Loan, you can offer financing on battery energy storage, EV chargers, and water filtration. Battery energy storage terms run from 6 to 240 months, subject to approval. EV charger and water filtration terms are flexible. Ask your lender which verticals your dealer agreement covers.
What is a dealer fee and does Eos Loan charge one?
A dealer fee is the discount a lender takes when it funds a loan through your business. Some lenders bury this fee inside an inflated system price so the advertised rate looks lower while the customer pays more overall. Eos Loan charges no dealer fee. For a full explanation of how dealer fees work at other lenders, see our guide to how dealer fees work.
Can I offer financing without a dedicated sales team?
Yes. The financing conversation can be handled by the same person who hands the customer the quote. The key is adding the monthly payment to every proposal and having a one-sentence introduction ready. Training a solo operator takes one practice run. The habit of showing the payment on every quote is more important than team size.
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About the author: Eduardo Donadi is the CEO of Eos Loan, the fintech built to finance essential projects (battery energy storage, EV chargers, and water filtration) for installers, contractors, and resellers across the United States.