The SBA 504 Loan Program remains one of the U.S. Small Business Administration's best kept secrets, but we plan to change this since the 504 loan is one of the most valuable resources currently available for America's entrepreneurs!
We will raise the public's awareness of this valuable source of small business financing by getting information into the hands of those business owners who can utilize and benefit from an SBA 504 loan.
NADCO Participates in Small Business Financing Forum
The CDC industry was well represented at the Small Business Financing Forum held at the U.S. Department of Treasury on November 18, 2009. The forum, held at the request of President Obama, brought together the U.S. Department of Treasury, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), small business borrowers and small business lenders to discuss the inability of America’s small businesses to obtain credit and to come up with concrete recommendations for solutions. Treasury Secretary Geithner's opening statement is available here.
NADCO Chair, Jean Wojtowicz, (Indiana Statewide CDC) was a speaker on one of the panels and provided an overview of the benefits of the SBA 504 loan program to small businesses and the excellent return on investment on the cost of running the SBA 504 loan program for the federal government. She also advocated increasing bank participation in SBA lending by suggesting that the SBA work with the American Bankers Association to promote SBA's guaranteed lending programs. Jean's comments are in the video available in Part 1 of the forum.
Chris Crawford, NADCO President, Kurt Chilcott, NADCO Past Chair, (CDC Small Business Finance) and Charlie Cleary from Self-Help Ventures Fund were also present at the forum. All attendees participated in the breakout sessions and contributed to the list of suggestions compiled at the forum. At the conclusion of the forum, the ideas and suggestions were summarized and can be seen in the video available as Part 2.
As a follow up to the Nov. 18, 2009 Small Business Financing Forum, Treasury and SBA issued their Report to the President on December 3, 2009 summarizing the policy ideas and recommendations discussed. The 52-page Report is available here.
Metropolitan Archives, a small business that obtained an SBA 504 loan to purchase their building in 2009, was the site of a presidential press conference on new Small Business Lending Initiatives on October 21, 2009.
President Barack Obama announced his support ofincreasing the lending cap on SBA 504 loans from the current level of $1.5 million to $5 million. NADCO proposed this increase to both Congress and the Small Business Administration as an important way to assist more successful small businesses.
NADCO President, Chris Crawford, an invited guest at the event, remarked, "This increase in the loan cap for our borrowers will allow many more successful small businesses to continue to expand and add jobs in their communities. There is no better way to improve our national economy than to support the expansion of our country’s successful small businesses. We applaud the administration for their continued efforts to increase small business access to capital.”
Below are links to publicity on the SBA 504 loan program and Certified Development Companies. Please note, some media links are provided for a fixed period of time and are then archived.
September 23, 2009 - MarketWire - TMC Development Finances $855,000 Building Purchase for Oakland Manufacturer Using SBA Financing
September 17, 2009 - Absolutely Business - Small Business Financing Still Available through Banks and SBA
September 17, 2009 - iStockAnalyst - TMC Development Closes $1.1 Million Real Estate Purchase for Mansa, LLC Using SBA 504 Real Estate Financing
September 16, 2009 - PRLog - 504 Energy Efficiency Project: Partner Energy Plays Role in Financing of Two California Real Estate Projects
September 16, 2009 - National Real Estate Investor - SBA 504 energy efficiency loan program provides financing for real estate projects up to $10 million
September 9, 2009 - Santa Cruz Sentinel - Staff of Life natural foods store to expand at new Eastside location
September 9, 2009 - Richmond Times-Dispatch - Daystar Desserts CEO chef shares recipe for survival
