Small Business Administration SBA established an initiative targeted at small businesses through a community Advantage loan program. The Community advantage loan program aims at elevating underserved communities through the provision of traditional loans. Community Advantage loans are unique in their administration and management. They partner with other credit lenders who identify businesses to finance. Upon offering credit, they will go the extra mile in providing technical and management assistance to successful entrepreneurs.
Any entrepreneur looking into applying for a community advantage loan needs first to understand the qualification process and how beneficial this credit facility is when it comes to business expansion.
Small Business administration, community advantage loans work pretty closely with lenders who are mission-focused on working and improving the communities they serve. Some of the lenders that get committed to this mission include certified development companies, microloan program intermediaries. And institutions such as non-regulated community development institutions. These institutions must all get certified by the United States Department of the treasury.
For a business to qualify for any community advantage loan, such aspiring companies must fulfill specific criteria. The following are some of the requirements that community development institutions look for in underserved community business applications.
Any business applying for this type of credit facility must prove to have 50 percent and above of its labor force from low to moderate-income communities. Consequently, their companies should get located in areas designated as empowerment zones or Small Business
Administration hub zones. Similarly, businesses placed in rural areas or opportunity zones also qualify for this program.
If your business is a startup that has not seen its second birthday, qualify for community advantage loans. Finally, veterans who opt to operate a business are offered priority in community advantage loans when applying.
Community Advantage loans program through Small Business administration is committed to ensuring that this business they finance scale-up. They have partnered with other like-minded partners to provide and offer technical assistance to this individual in matters management and finance.
Community Advantage loans have a maximum loan limit capped at approximately $250,000 and an interest rate that Small Business Administration has already set at 6 percent. The credit facility provided by the Community Advantage program usually covers issues with capital or equipment purchase, with a repayment period ranging from 10 years to 25 years depending on the type of credit facility forwarded to the business.