Your Local SBA
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Financing Small business is big business: it accounts for more than half of the private work force in the country and more than half of all sales. Small business also has the highest potential for growth of any sector of our economy, creating roughly 60 percent of all new jobs. To fund that growth, small businesses need access to capital, both long-term and short-term loans and investment capital. Yet small firms often do not have the collateral or credit history to qualify for financing through normal lending channels.
That’s where SBA comes in. We provide loan guaranties to lenders to partially offset the risk incurred by lenders who provide the loan funding (SBA does not provide direct business loans or grants). We offer guaranteed loan programs and services to meet most of your business needs, as the following discussion and additional web links will show.
7(a) Loan Guaranty Program- Participating Lenders 7(a) loans are the most basic type of loan of SBA's business loan programs. Its name comes from section 7(a) of the Small Business Act, which authorizes the Agency to provide business loans to American small businesses. All 7(a) loans are provided by banks and other lending institution who are called participants because they participate with SBA in the 7(a) program.
The most active and expert lenders qualify for the SBA's streamlined lending programs. Under these programs, lenders are delegated partial or full authority to approve loans, which results in faster service from SBA.
Certified lenders are those who have been heavily involved in regular SBA loan-guaranty processing and have met certain other criteria. They receive a partial delegation of authority and are given a three-day turnaround by the SBA on their applications (they may also use regular SBA loan processing). Certified lenders account for nearly a third of all SBA business loan guaranties.
Preferred lenders are chosen from among the SBA's best lenders and enjoy full delegation of lending authority in exchange for a lower rate of guaranty. This lending authority must be renewed at least every two years, and the lender's portfolio is examined by the SBA periodically. Preferred loans account for more than 10 percent of SBA loans.
The SBAExpress program, which is available for loans up to $350,000, authorizes lenders to use mostly their own forms, analyses, and procedures to process, service, and liquidate SBA guaranteed loans. Participant lenders must submit only basic applicant information to a processing center, which conducts an eligibility review, but does not recreate the lender's credit analysis.
The Community Express Loan Program, which is available for loans up to $250,000, will be offered to pre-designated geographic areas serving mostly Low and Moderate Income areas and New Markets small businesses. The program will include technical and management assistance, and is designed to help increase the loan applicant's chances of success. List of Technical Assistance Providers and their territories.
Patriot Express - SBA has established a new pilot program for veterans and members of the military family planning to establish or expand a small business. This program improves on the SBA Express program with loans up to $500,000 and qualifies for SBA's maximum guaranty of up to 85% for loans up to $150,000 and 75% for loans between $150,001 and $500,000. Patriot Express loans feature SBA's lowest maximum interest rates of 2.25% - 4.75% over prime depending upon the size and maturity of the loan.
Special Purpose Loans
Export Working Capital and International Trade Loans - Designed to increase short-term and long-term financing for exporters.
Export Express - combines lending and technical assistance to help small businesses that have difficulty in obtaining adequate export financing. Allowing for a wide variety of uses for loan proceeds, it is the SBA's most flexible export financing program.
Other SBA Loan Programs (For a description of all these programs – /sba_hp/services/financialassistance/sbaloantopics/index.html)
7(m) Micro Loan Programs-The Micro Loan Program was developed to increase the availability of very small loans to prospective small business borrowers. Under this program, the SBA makes funds available to nonprofit INTERMEDIARIES, who in turn make loans to eligible borrowers in amounts that range from under $100 to a maximum of $35,000.
504 Certified Development Company (CDC) Loans -The 504 Certified Development Company (CDC) Program provides growing businesses with long-term, fixed-rate financing for major fixed assets, such as land and buildings. A CERTIFIED DEVELOPMENT COMPANY is a nonprofit corporation set up to contribute to the economic development of its community or region. CDCs work with the SBA and private-sector lenders to provide financing to small businesses. There are about 290 CDCs nationwide.
Equity Capital Loan Program - If you are seeking venture capital rather than a conventional or SBA guaranteed loan, you will be interested in our Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) program.
Borrower Services
Review "HOW TO APPLY FOR A SBA GUARANTEED LOAN" for an outline of the process and the documents required to obtain an SBA loan.
Information for Lenders Training-The North Florida District Office regularly provides loan program training for banks and other lending institutions. For the dates of the next training program and to reserve your place, register online at North Florida’s home Page.
Specific Questions?
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