As reported in the Evening News & Tribune by Daniel Suddeath, help is here for the recent flood victims in the mid-west.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency may have denied Indiana disaster aid, but the SBA will lend a helping hand by, well, lending to flood victims, both business and homeowners.

By applying to the SBA, victims of the August 4th flood can get low-interest SBA loans to rebuild their homes and businesses. Homeowners can borrow up to $200,000, and the limit for business owners is $2 million. Even renters can obtain loans up to $40,000 to replace personal property.

Interest rates for the loans can be as low as 2.75 percent for homeowners and renters, and 4 percent for businesses, with the duration of the loans lasting up to 30 years. How much received and for how long is determined by the SBA on a case by case basis.

“The SBA is strongly committed to providing the people of Indiana with the most effective and customer-focused response possible to assist homeowners, renters and businesses of all sizes with federal disaster loans,” SBA Administrator Karen Mills said.

You can receive an application by calling SBA at 1-800-659-2955, or by email at disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. The filing deadline for SBA disaster relief applications is Jan 5, 2010.

The program was announced last month and was given the name of ARC for American Recovery Capital loans. You can apply for this short term loan up to $35,000 to established small businesses with cash-flow problems.

Borrowers will have five years to repay, and the SBA will pick up the interest payments. Question you will be asked when applying for ARC can be found here and you can see if you’reeligibility. Contact your lender and they can help you determine if you’re a candidate for the ARC Loan.

No, we aren’t in, or heading to a depression, but the horror stories are beginning to fly. On the radio, I listened to a man with an American Express account since 1972 tell how his credit limit was slashed from $11,000 to $250 without warning. He found out in a form letter. I’ve read about another man with excellent credit and a perfect track record have his revolving loan limit knocked to $16,000 by his bank. It used to be $150,000.

Banks are extremely skittish these days. They realize how close to the precipice they came and don’t want to revisit the edge anytime soon. As a result, Banks are looking out for themselves first, and passing on any proposal that doesn’t come with a “belt and suspenders” type guarantee. Decisions that used to be made by collateral values, research, and updated financial information are now made using rejection as the automatic – and safe – choice.

But wait a second. Didn’t the banks just get a huge government bailout check? Yes, says Joe Nocera, but to them, those checks are to secure and rebuild their institutions, and not to be passed on to small business. Even SBA backed loans, traditionally a much more attractive proposition to Big Banking, aren’t enough to get their attention. No, damage control is the daily catchphrase for who knows how long.

So where does that leave the small business owner? Nocera suggests that smaller community banks may still be a good resource for loans. While they are in the same boat as big banks, community banks still seem to take the time to study proposals on a case by case basis, and utilize the SBA program.

If you are getting treated harshly by conglomerate banking institutions, your local community bank may be a life-saver.

While it’s obvious why it is difficult to impossible to get a decent loan from a bank these days, it may not be so clear why even SBA loans are becoming scarce. The short answer is they aren’t. The long answer is: depends on where you look for one.

Inc.com asked Christopher Hurn, CEO of Mercantile Commercial Capital, an Orlando-based SBA lender to give his insight on what is going on with SBA loans specifically, and the banking industry in general. “The biggest SBA lenders have been the large national banks that we’re now reading about in the news. The easiest thing for them to do is cut back in all areas, which they’ve done — including in their SBA divisions.”

SBA loans are still available, but not if you’re going to a bank that’s in duck-and-cover mode. It’s a sad fact that the institutions that are receiving billions of taxpayer dollars for mistakes the banks made and using it to heal themselves while at the same time making things tougher on the people who gave them that money. The banks do have one excuse though. Federal banking regulators are insisting that standards and protocols are met immediately, many of which prohibit the banks from pouring money back into the market. In a sense, they can’t win for losing.

So what is a small business owner to do? Right now, doing the big bank franchises are making it very difficult to do business with them, so steer clear until they have recovered – if you still want to deal with them, that is. Your best option right now may be to visit your local community bank or private institution for an SBA loan.

If you recently fell victim to a disaster, be certain to check on the deadlines for disaster loan applications for people from your area.  The terms and the amount of money you can receive are determined by the SBA based on your individual circumstances, but the deadlines for renters, businesses, and non-profits do not vary. When a deadline is set for an area, it applies to all who were affected.

For example, those whose property sustained physical damage from a mid-June fire at the Queen Anne’s Gate Apartments in Massachusetts have until September 2, 2008 to file an application.

The SBA gives loans in amounts up to $200,000 to be used for the repair of primary residences that have sustained damage from a disaster. Businesses and non-profits can get up to $2 million that they can put towards the repair of their damaged real estate, machinery, inventory, and equipment.

If you think you are eligible to receive such a loan, call the SBA Customer Service Center at 1-80-659-2955, between 8 am and 9 pm, Monday-Friday. You can also request information and assistance by sending an e-mail to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

There are reports that the Small Business Administration’s business loan that was most popular with those seeking financed has fallen 19 percent. The recent economic downturn has had an effect an on the availability of small business loans, but the news is not all bad.

Some would-be business owners have had to go to several banks before getting a loan. If you are using your home as collateral, some banks are less than willing to help because of the shakiness of the housing market.

Those of you who are seeking business loans should know that banks are expecting higher down payments and plan accordingly. This is a challenge, but it is not an impossible hurdle.

People with strong credits ratings are getting loans. At least one expert feels that the standards had been rather lax. So what seems like a tightening may be a return to the status quo. When you do get a loan, you’ll know that you are in a good position to succeed. Strong businesses help the economy, so that may not be such a bad thing.

Visit www.sba.gov to learn about loan prequalification and read about loan requirements.

As we prepare to celebrate the day our country declared its independence, this is good time to remind people that the SBA has loans to help U.S. citizens operate their own businesses independently.

Last year, the SBA started the Patriot Express program to provide support for veterans. These loans are available to veterans who want to start a small business or keep one going. You are eligible for the Patriot Express program if you are a veteran, service-disabled veteran, an active duty service member, a member of the National Guard, a Reservist. Patriot Express also helps businesses run by the spouses and widows of service members.

Business owners who are veterans have to apply, have a good business plan, and fit the basic qualifications, but these loans are processed fairly quickly. Some loan applications are processed in less than a week, while others may take several weeks.

One of the reasons that banks are so willing to take on these loans is that the SBA is really behind these loans. The SBA will guarantee loans of $150,000 for up to 85 percent of the loan.

Read more about the Patriot Express Loan Program at http://www.sba.gov/patriotexpress/.

The Small Business Administration offers a program especially suited for military reservists, if they are ordered to active duty status. This program applies to military conflicts occurring or ending on or after March 24, 1999.

The Military Reservists Economic Injury Disaster Loan program provides funds to eligible small businesses. These funds can be used when a reservist is unable to meet his or her ordinary and necessary business operating expenses because of being called back onto duty.

These MREIDL funds cannot be used to pay regular commercial debt. They cannot be used to expand the business or refinance long term debt. They do provide working capital funds that will be needed by a small business to pay its necessary obligations. Funding will continue until the reservist is able to return to their business after being released from active duty. Assistance can begin as of the day the reservists return to active duty and will end 90 days after being released from active duty.

This program is still considered to be a loan. If the SBA determines that applicants can fund their own businesses, they are not eligible for assistance. Good credit is still required. The maximum interest rate that can be charged is 4%. Loan terms can be for a maximum of 30 years. Collateral is required for loans over $5,000 with a maximum loan amount of $1,500,000. Application approval time is from 7 to 21 days.

Visit www.sba.gov for more information on this valuable program.

There is approximately $300 million in capital projects that is available from the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE). In the past, most of these projects have been awarded to non-women, non-minority based, and non-small business types of companies. Times are changing in Maryland, and definitely for the good. Governor Martin O’Malley signed legislation this week, to extend encouragement of the inclusion of small, minority owned, and women-owned companies in their contact awards.

The new bill requires that good faith efforts become standard practice with the Maryland Department of the Environment. They intend to divide project components into smaller tasks, with reasonable schedules, so that minority; small and women-owned business can complete the projects. Businesses should also see more advisements in the media that will be intended to encourage these types of companies that would normally not bid on certain contracts. They will also develop a solicitation list that includes qualified companies, who will be notified of what projects are due to be available.

According to reports, this new legislation “will make full use of state and other resources such as the Maryland Department of Transportation, U.S. Small Business Administration; the Minority Business Development Agency; and the U.S. Department of Commerce lists, to identify qualified minority and small business enterprises.”

If all states would implement these policies as standard practices, small businesses would continue to thrive around the country.

In continuation from Wednesday’s post.

The rate for the Patriot Express Loan can be negotiated by borrowers, but lenders cannot charge more than 2.25 percent over Prime for loans less than 7 years long. Loans that are over 7 years cannot exceed 2.75 percent over the Prime Rate. Lenders are allowed to charge 1 percent more for any loan that is over $50,000. If the loan is $25,000 or less, the lender can charge as much as 2 percent more for the loan. The rates can be either variable or fixed.

The office of Veterans Business Development wants to maximize the availability, usability and applicability of small business programs for Veterans, Reserve Component Members, Service-Disabled Veterans as well as their survivors and dependents.

Veterans who are in need of a SBA backed loan must meet certain requirements. Veterans who have been dishonorably discharged are not eligible to obtain a loan through this program. Active Duty military personnel who are due to retire within 24 months, Reservist and National Guard who own 51 percent of the business are eligible to apply. Current spouses or spouse of service member who died in the line of duty are also eligible.

SBA Loans are not available to all companies. The types of companies that are not eligible for loans are: medical facilities providing extended care and/or assisted living services; farm or agricultural businesses; or fishing or shore operations businesses (including construction of boats). Companies that have offices, facilities or operate overseas; mines; or businesses that engage in instructing, counseling, or teaching religious beliefs are not eligible for the Patriot Express Loan program.