Need free security agreement template for UCC-1 filing prep
Hi everyone, I'm working on a small business loan package and need to get a security agreement drafted before filing the UCC-1. The borrower is pledging equipment and inventory as collateral, and I want to make sure the security agreement language matches what I'll put in the UCC-1 collateral description. Does anyone have a good free security agreement template they've used successfully? I'm particularly concerned about getting the debtor name exactly right since I know UCC-1 rejections are common when the security agreement debtor name doesn't match the filing. Any recommendations for templates that work well with standard UCC-1 forms?
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Aisha Abdullah
I've been doing UCC filings for years and honestly the free templates online are hit or miss. The biggest issue I see is when people use generic templates that don't align with their state's UCC requirements. What state are you filing in? That makes a huge difference for the collateral descriptions.
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Mateo Rodriguez
•Filing in Texas. The loan is for about $150k secured by restaurant equipment and inventory. I just want to make sure the security agreement language flows naturally into the UCC-1 collateral schedule.
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Aisha Abdullah
•Texas SOS is pretty strict about debtor names matching exactly between the security agreement and UCC-1. Make sure your template has the exact legal entity name, not just the DBA.
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Ethan Wilson
I used a free template from LegalZoom last year and it worked fine for a simple equipment loan. But honestly after dealing with multiple UCC-1 rejections because of small discrepancies between my security agreement and the filing, I started using Certana.ai to cross-check all my documents before submitting. You can upload your security agreement and draft UCC-1 together and it flags any inconsistencies in debtor names, collateral descriptions, etc. Saved me tons of headaches.
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NeonNova
•How does that work exactly? Do you have to pay for each document check?
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Ethan Wilson
•You just upload the PDFs and it does an automated comparison. Really simple - much faster than manually checking everything line by line.
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Yuki Tanaka
•That sounds useful. I've had UCC-1s rejected for stupid stuff like having 'Inc.' in the security agreement but 'Incorporated' on the filing.
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Carmen Diaz
be careful with free templates!!! I downloaded one that had the wrong state law references and it caused major issues when we tried to enforce the security interest. The collateral description was too vague and didn't match our UCC-1 continuation filing. What a mess.
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Andre Laurent
•What kind of problems did you run into? I'm always worried about this stuff.
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Carmen Diaz
•The template said 'all equipment' but the UCC-1 had specific serial numbers. When we needed to do a termination later, there were questions about whether we had properly described the collateral. Cost us legal fees to sort out.
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Emily Jackson
For restaurant equipment specifically, make sure your security agreement includes language about after-acquired property if you want the UCC-1 to cover future equipment purchases. A lot of the free templates don't have that clause.
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Mateo Rodriguez
•Good point. The borrower mentioned they might be adding more equipment over the next year.
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Liam Mendez
•Yeah and if you don't get the after-acquired language right in the security agreement, you can't just add it to the UCC-1. The underlying security agreement has to support whatever you're filing.
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Sophia Nguyen
•This is exactly why I double-check everything with document verification tools now. Too many little details that can void your security interest.
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Jacob Smithson
I've used templates from Nolo and they're decent for basic situations. Just make sure you customize the debtor information section carefully. The number of UCC-1 rejections I've seen because someone copied the template example name instead of using the actual borrower name is embarrassing.
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Isabella Brown
•lol guilty of this exact mistake on my first filing. Had to do a UCC-3 amendment to fix it.
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Maya Patel
•At least you caught it! I've seen people not realize their UCC-1 was ineffective for months because of name mismatches.
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Aiden Rodríguez
The SBA has some sample security agreement language on their website that's pretty solid for small business loans. It's designed to work with standard UCC-1 filings. Just search for SBA security agreement templates.
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Mateo Rodriguez
•This is actually an SBA loan! I'll check their website. Thanks for the tip.
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Emma Garcia
•SBA templates are good because they're written with UCC compliance in mind. Much better than random internet templates.
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Ava Kim
Whatever template you use, please please please make sure the debtor name in the security agreement matches EXACTLY what you'll put on the UCC-1. I mean character for character. I've seen filings rejected because of extra spaces or punctuation differences.
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Ethan Anderson
•This is so important. Texas SOS search logic is very picky about exact matches.
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Layla Mendes
•I always pull the entity information directly from the Secretary of State database when I'm preparing documents. That way I know I have the exact legal name.
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Lucas Notre-Dame
•Smart approach. I started using Certana.ai's document checker specifically because it catches these tiny discrepancies that are easy to miss when you're reviewing documents manually.
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Aria Park
For inventory as collateral, make sure your template addresses how you'll handle the rotating nature of restaurant inventory. Some free templates don't have good language for property that's constantly being sold and replaced.
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Noah Ali
•Good point about inventory turnover. The UCC-1 collateral description needs to account for this too.
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Chloe Boulanger
•Restaurant inventory moves fast. Your security agreement should probably include proceeds language as well.
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James Martinez
I'd recommend having a lawyer review whatever free template you end up using, especially for a $150k loan. The cost of a legal review is nothing compared to having an unenforceable security interest.
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Olivia Harris
•Agreed. Free templates are a starting point but they're not one-size-fits-all.
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Alexander Zeus
•At minimum, use a document verification tool to make sure your security agreement and UCC-1 are consistent before filing. I learned this the hard way after multiple rejected filings.
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Alicia Stern
Make sure the template includes proper default and enforcement provisions. I've seen free templates that are missing key enforcement language that you'll need if things go south.
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Gabriel Graham
•What specific enforcement language should I look for?
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Alicia Stern
•Right to take possession of collateral, right to sell collateral, notice requirements - basic Article 9 enforcement stuff. Free templates sometimes skip these sections.
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Drake
•This is getting complicated. Maybe I should just hire a lawyer instead of trying to piece together a template.
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