Cedarland Lending, a small-business funding service in Roswell, NM, arranges funding for general contractors, home builders and specialty trades across Chaves County, NM. This page covers working capital between draws, retainage, equipment financing for crews, what partners review, a labeled example of sizing a gap, and the county's construction figures from the Census Bureau.
| Construction employers, Chaves County, NM | 122 employer sites (CBP 2023 county file) |
|---|---|
| Under five employees | 59.8% of them, CBP 2023 |
| Construction firms without payroll | 334 (Nonemployer Statistics 2024) |
The contractor cash cycle
A construction job spends money in a set order: deposits on materials, rental or fuel for equipment, weekly wages, subcontractor invoices. The money comes back in a different order: progress billings approved by an owner or general contractor, draws released after inspection, and retainage held back until the job is closed out. The longer the job, the wider the gap.
That is why business loans for contractors are mostly about timing rather than profit. A profitable firm can still miss payroll if two draws slip in the same month.
Retainage in construction billing
Retainage is a share of each progress payment that the paying party holds back until the work is finished and accepted. It protects the owner, but it means the contractor finances part of every job until closeout. A builder with several jobs open can have a meaningful sum tied up in retainage at any time.
Partners understand retainage, but they want to see it documented: the contract terms, the billings to date and the retainage balance by job.
Working capital for construction companies
Working capital loans for construction companies cover wages and materials while billings are in review. For gaps that repeat across jobs, a business line of credit lets the firm draw against each slow payment and pay it down when the draw lands.
Sizing the working capital a construction company needs
- List each open job's costs due in the next sixty days: wages, materials, subs, rentals.
- List the billings expected in the same window and their realistic pay dates.
- Subtract retainage that will not be released in the window.
- The largest running shortfall across those weeks is the gap worth funding.
Illustrative only: a Roswell, NM framing contractor has $48,000 of costs due over six weeks on two jobs, about $8,000 a week. It expects $55,000 in draws, but $9,000 of that is retainage held to closeout, so $46,000 is paid in two draws of $23,000, one in week three and one in week six that is likely two weeks late. By the end of week six the contractor has spent $48,000 and received $23,000. The $25,000 shortfall lasts until the late draw lands in week eight, so that figure, not the full contract value, is what to request.
Construction equipment financing
Skid steers, trailers, compressors, concrete tools and work trucks are usually financed against the equipment itself. Equipment financing spreads the price across the machine's working years. Construction equipment financing calculators online use the same inputs a partner does: price, down payment, rate and term; the loan payment calculator on this site can test the loan side.
Partners look at the backlog that will keep a machine busy, so attach the contracts or bids it is bought for.
What goes in a contractor's funding folder
- Business bank statements and the last two years of tax returns
- A work-in-progress or job list with contract values, billed to date and retainage
- Signed contracts for the jobs the funding supports
- An aged receivables report
- Existing equipment loans and their payments
- Proof of the firm's contractor license; see the New Mexico checklist below
Licensing can come up in a contractor review. The New Mexico contractor license guide explains what to keep ready, and where to look a license up.
Chaves County, NM construction in the Census figures
Chaves County, NM had 122 construction employer establishments in 2023 with 1,099 employees and about $51.0 million in annual payroll, and 59.8% of those establishments had under five employees (County Business Patterns 2023). Separately, 334 construction businesses reported receipts with no paid employees in 2024 (Nonemployer Statistics 2024); the two series count different firms and are not added.
Within the sector, 26 establishments were residential building contractors (NAICS 2361), 88.5% of them with under five employees, and 8 were nonresidential builders (NAICS 2362). ZIP 88203 alone held 50 construction employer establishments (ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023); A ZIP count covers the whole postal area, which reaches well past the city line. Builders also track permits: Chaves County, NM authorized 75 new housing units in 2025, after 72 in 2023 and 88 in 2024 (Building Permits Survey).
Trades covered on separate Cedarland pages
Plumbing and HVAC contractors have a separate page because their cash cycle mixes service calls with installs: plumbing and HVAC business loans. Electrical contractors (12 county employer establishments in 2023, County Business Patterns 2023) and other trades are summarized on the industries hub.
County sector counts beyond construction are on the Roswell, NM page.
By Cedarland Lending · Updated