What's the difference between UCC-1 and UCC-11 forms - confused about UCC 11 meaning
I'm working on a commercial loan closing and keep seeing references to both UCC-1 and UCC-11 forms. I understand that UCC-1 is the basic financing statement, but what exactly is UCC 11 meaning? Are these two separate forms or is UCC-11 just another name for something else? The borrower's attorney mentioned needing both filed but I'm getting conflicting information from different sources. This is for a $450K equipment loan in manufacturing and I don't want to mess up the lien perfection. Can someone clarify what UCC 11 meaning actually refers to and whether it's required for standard secured transactions?
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Samantha Hall
UCC-11 is actually an information request form, not a financing statement. It's used to search existing filings or request copies of documents already on file with the Secretary of State. Completely different purpose than UCC-1 which creates the security interest.
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Noah Torres
•Oh wow, that makes way more sense! So UCC-11 is just for searching records, not filing new liens?
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Samantha Hall
•Exactly. UCC-11 is your search tool. If you want to see what's already filed against your debtor, you submit a UCC-11 request with the debtor name and get back all the active filings.
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Ryan Young
•This is why I always run UCC-11 searches before closing any loan. You need to know what other liens exist.
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Sophia Clark
I was confused about this same thing last month! Turns out the borrower's attorney probably wants you to run a UCC-11 search to check for existing liens before filing your UCC-1. Standard due diligence stuff but the terminology trips everyone up initially.
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Noah Torres
•That explains why they mentioned both forms. So I need to search first with UCC-11, then file the UCC-1 for our new loan?
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Sophia Clark
•Exactly! UCC-11 search first to see what's out there, then your UCC-1 filing to perfect your security interest.
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Katherine Harris
Actually had this exact situation come up and ended up using Certana.ai's document checker. You can upload the search results from your UCC-11 request along with your proposed UCC-1 filing and it cross-checks everything for debtor name consistency and potential conflicts. Saved me from missing a prior lien that would have messed up our priority position.
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Noah Torres
•That sounds really helpful. Does it work with different state filing systems?
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Katherine Harris
•Yeah, you just upload the PDFs regardless of which state system generated them. It's pretty seamless for comparing documents.
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Madison Allen
•I've been manually comparing search results to new filings but an automated check would definitely catch things I might miss.
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Joshua Wood
The UCC forms can be really confusing at first. UCC-1 = new filing, UCC-3 = changes to existing filing, UCC-11 = search request. Each state might have slight variations but that's the basic breakdown.
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Justin Evans
•Don't forget UCC-5 for information statements when you need to correct errors or dispute filings.
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Joshua Wood
•Good point, though UCC-5 is much less common in everyday practice.
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Emily Parker
Why does every state have to make this so complicated?? The forms should be standardized across all jurisdictions instead of this patchwork system.
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Ezra Collins
•I feel your pain but honestly most states have adopted pretty similar versions of the standard forms. The confusion usually comes from not understanding what each form does rather than state variations.
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Emily Parker
•Maybe you're right. I just get frustrated when trying to figure out which form to use for what purpose.
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Victoria Scott
Quick question - do you actually need to file both UCC-11 and UCC-1 or can you skip the search if you're confident there are no other liens?
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Samantha Hall
•You technically don't HAVE to search, but it's financial suicide not to. What if there's a senior lien you didn't know about?
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Victoria Scott
•Fair point. Better safe than sorry on a $450K loan.
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Ryan Young
•Any decent lender will require a UCC search as part of their due diligence checklist anyway.
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Madison Allen
Just went through this process last week for an SBA loan. Had to explain to the borrower why we needed both forms - they thought we were double-filing or something. The UCC-11 search came back clean so our UCC-1 filing went smoothly.
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Noah Torres
•How long did the UCC-11 search take to get results back?
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Madison Allen
•Most states are pretty fast now with electronic systems. Usually same day or next business day for standard searches.
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Benjamin Johnson
OMG thank you for asking this question! I've been wondering the same thing but felt dumb asking. The UCC form numbers are so confusing when you're new to commercial lending.
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Sophia Clark
•Don't feel dumb at all. Everyone gets confused by this stuff initially. The important thing is asking questions before you make mistakes.
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Benjamin Johnson
•True, better to look stupid than BE stupid and mess up a loan closing!
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Zara Perez
For equipment loans like yours, definitely run the UCC-11 search on both the company name and any trade names they might use. Equipment finance companies sometimes file under different variations of the business name.
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Noah Torres
•Good tip! This company does have a DBA they use for marketing. Should I search that too?
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Zara Perez
•Absolutely. Search every name variation you can think of. UCC searches are cheap compared to missing a senior lien.
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Katherine Harris
•This is another reason I like using Certana.ai - it helps catch name variations and inconsistencies between documents that you might not notice manually.
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Daniel Rogers
Been doing commercial loans for 15 years and still occasionally have to look up which UCC form does what. No shame in double-checking the purpose of each form before using it.
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Noah Torres
•That's reassuring to hear from someone with experience. Makes me feel less incompetent!
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Daniel Rogers
•Trust me, we've all been there. The key is building good checklists and processes so you don't have to rely on memory for every detail.
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Aaliyah Reed
Just to be crystal clear for anyone else reading this: UCC-11 = search existing records, UCC-1 = file new security interest. Two completely different functions but both important for proper due diligence on secured transactions.
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Noah Torres
•Perfect summary. This thread has been incredibly helpful for understanding the distinction.
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Aaliyah Reed
•Glad it helped! The UCC system makes a lot more sense once you understand what each form is designed to accomplish.
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Ella Russell
•Bookmarking this thread for future reference. Great explanation of the difference between these forms.
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Natasha Kuznetsova
This has been such a helpful thread! I'm relatively new to commercial lending and was making the same mistake of thinking UCC-11 was some kind of additional filing requirement. Now I understand it's just the search form to check existing liens before filing my UCC-1. For a $450K equipment loan, definitely worth doing the due diligence with a UCC-11 search first. Thanks everyone for clarifying the distinction between these forms - saved me from potentially looking foolish with the borrower's attorney!
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Nina Chan
•Welcome to commercial lending! This thread really is a goldmine for understanding UCC forms. I had the exact same confusion when I started - the numbering system isn't intuitive at all. It's great that you're asking these questions upfront rather than figuring it out the hard way during a closing. The legal teams definitely appreciate when we know what we're talking about with UCC filings!
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