UCC Document Community

Just to add one more perspective - if this is SBA financing, they have specific requirements about UCC filings that might influence your decision. SBA typically requires UCC-1 filings for all personal property collateral regardless of how it might be classified by state law. Worth checking if SBA is involved in your deal.

This is a great discussion - I'm dealing with something similar on a manufacturing deal right now. One thing I'd add is to consider the priority implications too. UCC-1 filings generally give you priority from the filing date, while fixture filings can sometimes relate back to construction financing if there's a fixture filing on record. Also, don't forget about purchase money security interests - if any of this equipment was recently acquired with financing, you might have PMSI priority that affects your filing strategy. The key is making sure your security agreement clearly identifies which collateral is being treated as fixtures versus personal property so there's no ambiguity later.

Quick follow-up question - does anyone know if experimental aircraft follow the same UCC rules? I have a client with a kit-built plane that doesn't have standard registration.

Great discussion here! I've handled several aircraft UCC filings and want to emphasize the importance of getting both the collateral description AND the debtor name exactly right. For a $285K Cessna deal, I'd recommend: 1) Use the exact N-number from the FAA registry, 2) Include make, model, year, and aircraft serial number, 3) Triple-check the LLC name matches state records exactly (including punctuation), 4) Don't forget the parallel FAA security interest filing in Oklahoma City, and 5) Set up your continuation reminder system immediately. The dual filing requirement trips up a lot of people - you need both UCC perfection AND FAA registration to be fully protected. Also consider doing a comprehensive UCC search first to identify any existing liens that need to be satisfied or subordinated.

Thanks everyone for all the advice. I'm definitely filing the continuation this week. This thread has been incredibly helpful and I feel much more confident about the process now. Going to also look into setting up those automatic reminders to avoid this panic situation in the future!

Just want to echo what others have said about not waiting any longer - you're absolutely right to be concerned about losing your secured position on $180K. I've seen too many lenders get burned by UCC lapses. One thing I'd add is to make sure you're filing in the correct jurisdiction. If your borrower moved their chief executive office to a different state since 2020, you might need to file the continuation in the new state rather than where you originally filed. Also, since you mentioned the equipment has been upgraded, consider whether you need to broaden your collateral description to cover "all equipment" rather than specific serial numbers. This gives you better coverage if they continue to upgrade or replace machinery. Get that UCC-3 filed ASAP and sleep better at night!

Update us when you get the certified copy! Always curious how smooth these processes actually are in practice vs what the state websites promise.

Just went through this exact same process last month in Delaware! The online portal is actually really user-friendly once you find it. One tip - when you're entering the filing number, make sure you include any leading zeros if they're shown on your printout. The system can be picky about the exact format. Also, if you're ordering multiple certified copies (which might be smart if you have other lenders or need extras for your files), there's usually a bulk discount. Took about 4 business days to get mine delivered via regular mail.

For your $2.8M manufacturing facility, you'll want to be comprehensive but precise. Based on what you've described, your main categories should be: (1) Equipment - all machinery, tools, vehicles, computer hardware, furniture; (2) Inventory - raw materials, work-in-progress, finished goods; (3) Accounts - all accounts receivable, payment intangibles; (4) General intangibles - IP, software licenses, customer lists, goodwill, contract rights; (5) Deposit accounts - all bank accounts; (6) Investment property if applicable. Don't forget to add "and all proceeds and products thereof" to each category. Given the loan size, I'd strongly recommend having an experienced UCC attorney review your collateral descriptions before filing - the cost of getting it wrong far exceeds the review fee.

As someone new to UCC filings, this thread has been incredibly educational! I'm working on my first major secured transaction and was getting overwhelmed by all the different asset categories. The systematic breakdown from @Ava Williams really clarifies things - I had no idea about the distinction between chattel paper and general intangibles, or that investment property needs control agreements beyond just the UCC-1 filing. One thing I'm still confused about: if a manufacturing company has both raw materials AND finished goods, do those get listed as separate line items in the collateral description, or can you just say "all inventory" and have it cover both? Also seeing multiple mentions of Certana.ai's document checker - is that something most firms are using now for UCC verification?