SBA Makes Small Businesses Bigger

The top officials at the U.S. Small Business Administration have apparently decided that the fastest, easiest way to help American small business is to simply redefine large businesses as small ones. This might help their public affairs staff from having to answer embarrassing questions like, “Why did those contracting dollars supposedly set aside for small [...]

U.S. Small Business Administration Offers Videos on YouTube

The SBA recently launched their own channel on YouTube, with 15 original videos as of today. The majority are part of a series of entrepreneur interviews on various topics, collectively titled “SBA Delivering Success.” The information shared by the business owners isn’t ground breaking, but I think it’s a good idea to study those who [...]

SBA Expands Microloan Program

Nice to see that the SBA is taking our advice and expanding the microloan program with funds from the Recovery Act: With the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding an additional $50 million for loans and $24 million for technical assistance, the U.S. Small Business Administration is expanding its Microloan program and increasing access to [...]

SBA ARC Loans for Emergencies Only?

I overlooked some details when reading about the new SBA-guaranteed American Recovery Capital loan program…file any earlier, positive posts in the “seemed like a good idea at the time” drawer. As Gene Marks of Business Week points out: To qualify [businesses] have to show evidence of immediate hardship, like a significant drop in sales, trouble [...]

What Makes a Business “Small,” and Why Does It Matter?

There is no objective definition of “small business,” though the U.S. government has a 44-page document that lets us know what “small” is in various industries for the purposes of federal contracting. Many people might be surprised to know that companies with up to 500 employees (or up to 1,500 in some fields) are considered [...]

SBA ARC Loans Available Now!

Existing small businesses can apply for America’s Recovery Capital (ARC) loans as of June 15, 2009: ARC loans are deferred-payment loans of up to $35,000, available to established, viable, for-profit small businesses that need short-term help to make their principal and interest payments on existing and qualifying business debt. ARC loans are 100 percent guaranteed [...]

Consensus Is…Money Is Available, Just Ask

I’ve been wondering how much truth there is in the current common wisdom that credit markets are “tight” or “frozen.” Small business owners might infer that this means it is difficult to get a loan. According to the latest newsletter from the SBA’s Office of Advocacy, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 provides [...]

Which Lenders Make SBA-Guaranteed Loans?

If you’re curious about what banks have historically distributed the most SBA small business loans and microloans, check out the latest report here. Note that this report is based on data collected in 2007 and 2008. The report provides data on the top institutions lending to small businesses in each state. …. The information is [...]

SBA Announces New Loan Program for Established Businesses

If you already own a viable business but are having trouble with payments on previous loans and certain other commitments, the U.S. SBA announced a new loan that is 100% guaranteed with no interest and no fees: Beginning on June 15 [2009], SBA will start guaranteeing America’s Recovery Capital (ARC) loans.  ARC loans are deferred-payment [...]

12 Hispanic Businesses Honored at SBA’s Small Business Week

A dozen Hispanic-owned businesses received awards at the U.S. Small Business Administration’s annual National Small Business Week event, including the National Small Business Person of the Year and Prime Contractor of the Year: “Hispanic-owned small businesses make important contributions to the American economy. We salute the many Hispanic-owned firms among our winners, and are pleased [...]