Why Your Best Q4 Deals Are Sitting in 'Approved-Expired' Right Now

The Missing Piece in Your Sales Funnel

There's a folder in most brokers' CRMs that gets treated differently than every other pipeline category. Active deals get worked daily. Dead deals get archived and forgotten. But approved-expired deals? Those live in this weird middle ground where brokers know they should probably do something with them but aren't quite sure what.

Some brokers work that folder religiously. Others open it occasionally, scroll through the names, feel vague guilt about not following up, and close it again. The reluctance makes sense. These are clients who got approved, saw terms, and didn't move forward. Calling them back feels like chasing deals that already said no.

But here's what's worth considering right now: the business circumstances that made clients hesitate in July or August have probably changed. Not for every client, but for a meaningful subset of those expired deals, November creates contexts that didn't exist six months ago.

Business owners have visibility on year-end performance instead of projections. They have finalized 2026 budgets instead of rough estimates. Their CPAs are running actual tax scenarios. Seasonal businesses have shifted from execution mode to planning mode. Cash flow pressures that didn't exist in summer are showing up in Q4.

If you're strategic about which expired deals you revisit and how you approach them, you’re likely setting yourself up for a very productive week.

What Makes November Different

When a business owner looked at an equipment financing decision in July, they were working with incomplete information. Revenue was a projection. Profit margins were estimates. Cash flow for Q4 was educated guesswork.

By November, that uncertainty is gone. They've closed October and can see how November is tracking. Equipment purchases that felt risky based on summer projections feel entirely different when based on actual performance data. A client who said "we're not sure if we can swing this" in July wasn't saying no to the equipment. They were saying no to making a major capital decision without knowing if their business could support it. Now they know.

The same applies to 2026 planning. Many deals that expired in Q2 and Q3 included "we're not sure about next year's budget" in the client's explanation. By November, businesses are finalizing 2026 budgets. Equipment decisions that felt premature in August are now concrete line items in approved plans. The question isn't "should we do this?" anymore. It's "when do we execute?"

CPAs are meeting with clients throughout November to run year-end tax scenarios. Equipment purchases and capital allocation decisions are being discussed right now in concrete terms with actual numbers. Business owners don't always naturally think about equipment needs in the context of tax strategy, but their accountants do. If a client said "not now" in July for timing reasons, their CPA might be saying "actually, yes now" in November for tax reasons.

Seasonal businesses add another layer. The HVAC contractor who couldn't think about equipment in July because they were slammed with installations may have bandwidth in November. The construction company fully deployed on projects in September has crews coming off jobs and is thinking about spring equipment needs. For these businesses, the equipment need didn't disappear. The window for discussing it was closed during their busy season. That window is open now.

Perhaps the business doesn’t need equipment right now, but Q4 is creating cash flow pressure that didn't exist in summer. Year-end bonuses, inventory purchases for Q1, equipment maintenance, tax payments. All of these create liquidity needs that weren't top of mind in July. For businesses with equipment equity, this fundamentally changes the conversation. A client who wasn't interested in financing new equipment might be very interested in unlocking equity from equipment they already own.

Which Deals Are Worth Revisiting

Not every expired approval deserves a phone call. Deals that expired because of unresolved credit issues aren't going to improve unless something fundamental changed. Clients who found alternative financing might not be on the top of your list for a call back either. Approvals more than 12 months old are too stale.

Focus on large-ticket deals from the last three to six months. Pay special attention to any client with equipment equity, regardless of why the original deal expired. If they own trucks, construction equipment, or manufacturing assets, they're candidates for asset-backed working capital conversations, even if equipment financing didn't work out.

Prioritize businesses in industries where Q4 drives planning activities. Tax-sensitive operations, seasonal businesses, companies with strong 2025 performance. And look for clients who cited timing or business circumstances as the reason for not moving forward. "We need to see Q3 numbers" is different from "we're not interested." The first is a timing issue that resolves. The second probably doesn't.

The goal isn't to call everyone in your expired folder. It's to identify the subset where November's specific business contexts make previously unworkable deals potentially viable again.

How to Think About Re-Engagement

The worst way to re-engage is with "Hey, just checking in on that equipment financing we discussed. Any updates?"

That signals you're cycling through your CRM looking for deals to close, not thinking about the client's business.

Better re-engagement starts with what's changed in their world. If the client told you why the timing wasn't right in July, that's your opening. "When we talked in July, you mentioned needing visibility on year-end numbers before you could make equipment decisions. Now that you've closed Q3 and can see Q4 shaping up, did that clarity change your thinking?"

You're not following up on your pipeline. You're following up on their concern. You're demonstrating that you listened and checking back to see if that specific constraint has been resolved.

Acknowledge reality directly. Don't pretend the deal didn't expire. "I know the timing wasn't right in the summer. But I'm seeing a pattern with businesses in your industry where what didn't make sense in Q2 is starting to look different as they think about year-end planning. Is it worth exploring whether your circumstances have shifted?"

This shows respect for the fact that they made a decision based on their circumstances at the time. You're acknowledging that circumstances change and positioning yourself as someone who understands their industry well enough to recognize patterns.

Bring new context to the conversation. Don't re-pitch the same deal with the same information. Maybe market conditions have changed and terms are more favorable now. Maybe you've added working capital options that weren't available when you first spoke. Maybe their CPA is running year-end tax scenarios that include equipment strategy.

You're not asking them to reconsider the same decision with the same information. You're introducing new variables that legitimately change the equation.

Make it collaborative. End with "Worth a 10-minute conversation to see if anything's changed, or should I check back with you in Q1?" If they're not ready, they can say so without feeling pressured. And if they say "check back in Q1," you've converted an expired deal into a Q1 pipeline opportunity.

The Working Capital Pivot Many Brokers Miss

Here's a pattern I see constantly. A broker submits an equipment financing deal in July. It gets approved. The client doesn't move forward. The broker marks it expired and moves on.

Three months later, that client needs working capital. They go to their bank, get turned down or get terms they don't like, and they work with a different broker who positioned working capital as a solution.

The first broker never made that call because they were working an "equipment financing opportunity," not a "business with assets and potential capital needs."

Equipment financing and working capital solve different problems. Equipment financing addresses a growth or replacement need. Working capital addresses a liquidity need. Those don't always surface at the same time or under the same circumstances.

A client who said "we're not ready to buy new equipment" in July might be very ready in November when the conversation shifts to "can you unlock 60 to 70 percent of the equity in equipment you already own to fund Q1 priorities without touching your operating reserves?"

Q4 creates cash flow pressure that didn't exist in summer. Year-end bonuses, equipment maintenance, tax planning, inventory purchases for Q1. All of these items bring liquidity needs to the fore, and  make leveraging equipment equity strategically relevant.

The approach is straightforward. "When we talked about equipment financing in July, the timing wasn't right. But I'm curious, are you looking at Q1 growth priorities that would benefit from additional working capital? If you could access equity in equipment you already own without selling it, would that create flexibility?"

That's not re-pitching the dead equipment deal. That's recognizing business circumstances changed and offering a solution that fits where they are now.

What to Do This Week

Pull your approved-expired deals from the last three to six months. Filter for deals over $75,000. Look for clients who cited timing or business circumstances rather than credit concerns.

Identify five to ten worth calling. Clients with equipment equity. Businesses in industries where Q4 drives planning. Deals where the client stayed engaged but couldn't commit.

Make the calls. Start with what changed in their situation. Acknowledge the timing directly. Bring new context. Make it a question, not a pitch.

You're not going to resurrect every deal. You're looking for the subset where November's circumstances genuinely changed the equation. Even converting two or three of those calls into active opportunities is revenue that was sitting dormant in your pipeline.

The Broader Point

The best brokers don't think about their pipeline in binary terms. They think in three categories: active deals, dead deals, and deals waiting for the right timing or context.

November is when some of those waiting deals become viable. Not all of them, but some. And if you're strategic about identifying which ones and thoughtful about how you re-engage, you're not manufacturing urgency, you're recognizing when business circumstances have genuinely shifted and positioning yourself to offer value at exactly the moment clients need it.

Your best Q4 deals might not be the new submissions you're chasing. They might be the approved deals already sitting in your CRM, waiting for the right conversation at the right time.