12% of small business owners in the UK have had to put their own homes on the line as a guarantee for a loan to continue doing business in 2011, a survey by borro has found.

The survey of 300 owners and directors of small businesses also indicated that a further 33% of small businesses would consider using their home as a guarantee if they couldn’t get any other kind of finance to help with issues such as cash flow problems, late payments from customers, tax bills and staff wages.

The number of small business owners considering using a secured loan to get the capital they need to continue growing is now at the same level as those considering using an unsecured loan (38%) and an overdraft facility from their bank (33%).

Paul Aitken, CEO of borro, said: “It’s surprising to see that as many small business owners would consider applying for a secured loan as would apply for an unsecured loan or an overdraft. This is a sign that as banks continue to make it hard to access unsecured lending facilities