Small Business Administration: We can help with lending money
Officials with the U.S. Small Business Administration want business owners who are still struggling from the impact of Hurricane Harvey to know they can still get help through the SBA.
It’s been nearly three months since Harvey hit, but the livelihoods of scores of small-business owners across the region remain in jeopardy as they struggle to rebuild, or at least regain income lost as a result of the hurricane.
With an entrepreneurial spirit and typically an independent streak, owners of shops, stores and small companies enjoy the benefits of working free of confining corporate structures and rules. But they also walk a financial tightrope when a disaster strikes, because when their business has to close for the day, for weeks, or longer, no income comes in. And unlike those who work in the corporate world, small business owners have no guarantee of a paycheck this week, next week or any time in the future.
Charles Abell, a public affairs specialist with the SBA, said in an effort to help continue to get the word out about programs for loans, officials the SBA continues to host a series of seminars to let small business owners know what kind help is available from the agency, including disaster loans.
The loans that are still available are not only open to business owners of all sizes, but also for private non-profit organizations, homeowners and renters who experienced financial losses because of Harvey between the dates of Aug. 24 and Sept. 15.
“We will continue to do these workshops at least once a month in this area,” said Charles Abell, SBA public affairs specialist.
During a workshop at Lone Star College-Tomball on Thursday, attendance was sparse, with only a handful of business owners turning out and SBA officials, who said they were delayed at an earlier event, showing up about 45 minutes late.
About 45 people had registered for Thursday’s workshop, but with more than 200 people showing up at another earlier event in The Woodlands, Abell attributed the low attendance to the two programs being held on the same day.
Still, the handful of business owners who did show up seemed to find the information helpful.
“It’s great information if you’re really trying to develop your business,” said Eric Weathersby, general manager of Pro Movers Houston, a moving company based in downtown Houston. Weathersby’s business was not damaged by Harvey, but he’s trying to expand the business he and his wife run by acquiring capital funding to buy more trucks and to hire more employees.
“If they really are trying establish their business, they [business owners] should come out to these meetings,” Weathersby said.
Meanwhile, as the Tomball workshop was being held, SBA District Director Tim Jeffcoat issued a statement that the Houston office of the SBA had calculated figures showing an increase in the amount of money being made available for small businesses.
“When we take into account the ‘Harvey-affect’ the small business capital market in Houston showed a persistent yearon-year increase in dollars available for small business growth and startup,” Jeffcoat said in the statement.
According to SBA statistics, an average of more than six loans were being made every business day, with 46 percent of those loans going to startup businesses, while 33 percent of the loans went to businesses with women ownership.
Also, while the overall average loan grew to $575,000, over 29 percent of all loans are still for less than $50,000.
Most of the SBA loans out of the Houston office have been granted to applicants in Harris County, followed by Fort Bend, Brazoria and Montgomery counties.
Besides what the SBA terms its Physical Disaster Loans to help pay to repair damage from natural events like Harvey, the SBA also offers Economic Disaster Loans, which are loans to help meet financial obligations after a disaster. And the SBA also offers loans to homeowners and renters to repair or replace damaged property.
The process for getting a loan from the SBA is like applying for any other loan, with an application process that considers credit history, the ability to repay and available collateral.
For more information the SBA can be reached at is Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center at 800 699-2955 or at www.sba.gov/disaster.