The Small Business Administration tries to connect capital with small business owners who are trying to start or grow a business here in Nebraska.
Michael Foutch, Economic Development Specialist for the SBA, says they have stepped up their efforts to eliminate upfront fees for borrowers of loans worth $150,000 or less.
He says upfront fees are what the SBA uses to pay guarantee to banks on small business loans.
Foutch says the elimination of upfront fees has led to a 30% rise in the number of borrowers so far this year compared to the first quarter of 2014.
"This gets more money into the hands of startups who can’t necessarily afford the upfront fees the SBA charges. So we’ve seen an explosion of those $150,000 loans or less using the SBA’s guaranteed program. That’s more than a 70% increase in those small loan sizes from last year.”
Foutch says the SBA’s small loan advantage program offers lenders a streamlined application process. He says borrowers can use that federal government program for loans up to $350,000.
Foutch says loan approvals for that program in Nebraska are up more than 100% from last year.