SBA Lending News SBA Office of Advocacy Releases Small Business Profiles for All 50 States The Office of Advocacy released the annual Small Business Profiles for the States and Territories. This is the 16th year Advocacy has published a state-by-state profile of American small business for the United States, all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. The profiles are an invaluable resource for small businesses, legislators, academics, government officials, and policymakers in each state. The profiles use the most recent data available to provide details about each state's small business employment; business starts and closings; bank lending; business ownership by minorities, women, and veterans; and firm and employment change by major industry and firm size. "Small businesses are the foundation of our nation's economic growth," said Dr. Winslow Sargeant, Chief Counsel for Advocacy. "By supporting policies that promote innovation and entrepreneurship, we help small businesses tackle these challenging economic times. These statistics are a resource for a path to economic growth." . . . keep reading Obama's Lack of Details Leaves Small Business Hanging Post-SOTU "The president's call to address the deficit was a welcome one," Todd McCracken, NSBA president and CEO, said in a statement. "However he failed to tell us how he would get there and he missed a critical opportunity to call for broad tax reform which could kick-start the economy--thereby reducing the deficit--while lessening the single biggest regulatory burden our economy faces: the tax code." . . . keep reading How Your Credit Underwriters Must Analyze Borrower Projections to Ensure the Validity of the SBA Guaranty Last year, SBA's Inspector General issued a scathing audit criticizing Banco Popular for its underwriting procedures for the franchise, Huntington Learning Centers. The IG wrote that the bank failed to properly analyze and underwrite applicant projections. This failure warrants the denial of the SBA guaranty for all of the bank's Huntington Learning Center franchise loans says the OIG. . . . keep reading How 'Small Business' and 'Entrepreneur' Fare in State of the Union Addresses "Small business" and "entrepreneur" weren't the most popular terms in President Barack Obama's State of the Union address last night. But that doesn't mean they haven't been a priority during his three -- going on four -- years in the White House. Though largely ceremonial, State of the Union addresses are meant to serve as a guidepost of the administration's agenda during the year ahead -- or the next four years, depending on when the address is delivered. So if certain issues get highlighted, there's a good chance that the President will push Congress to act on them.' . . . keep reading State of the State of Small Business Lending Coleman: Last time we talked, things were pretty dismal. But, now you are seeing deals getting done. Yesterday we did a webinar for the hotel industry, and what they are seeing is transactions being made. Mom and Pop's are buying these hotels, they're buying these franchises, and there is a lot of activity in that. It is very difficult for our small business bankers to lend money today, so the banks need to have some sort of inducement to reduce the risk. 90% of the deals beneath $5 million were done with an SBA guaranty. So, deals are being done, and that is great news. Tracy: That is great news. So, if I am a small business and I am looking for money, should I contact the SBA? . . . keep reading "Politics of Lending, Lipstick on a Pig, and What Really Matters to Lenders" This week on Franchise Today, Host, Paul Segreto welcomes as his guest, Bob Coleman, the country's foremost expert on franchise and small business lending. Bob is a frequent guest on Fox Business News and is often quoted by a variety of financial media outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Forbes, CNN/Money and the New York Times. He is the editor of the Coleman Report, a weekly small business lending newsletter, and the publisher of small business loan underwriting guides along with his great new book "Money Money Everywhere, But Not a Drop for Main Street". . . . keep reading SBA Readying Program to Invest in Start-Ups - NYTimes With its legislative agenda for job creation stuck for the foreseeable future, the Obama administration has turned inward, looking to the federal bureaucracy for new ways to jump-start the economy. Lately its gaze has settled on the Small Business Administration. Yes, it has proposed merging the S.B.A. into a much bigger government agency dedicated to business and trade. But an arguably more consequential decision came in December, when the S.B.A. unveiled a new $1 billion program to invest in young companies by loaning money to venture capital funds. Unlike the reorganization, which faces long odds in coming to pass, the new investment program, part of the administration's Startup America campaign, is likely to commence this spring. But what remains unclear is whether it can win over the venture capital industry that it is meant to assist. . . . keep reading Upticks in Small Business Lending at Chase, Citi - Reuters Chase and Citi said they substantially increased loans to U.S. small businesses last year, both exceeding previous commitments. Chase said its small business loans rose to $17 billion in 2011, up 52 percent from 2010. Citi said it lent $7.9 billion to small companies last year, an increase of more than 30 percent from the prior year and exceeding its previous commitment of $7 billion. Since the start of the economic downturn in late 2008, many small businesses have been struggling to get loans, lines of credit and other financing. . . . keep reading Do Businesses Need SBA Assistance Centers and Minority Programs? - Entrepreneur With funding for SDBCs on the chopping block at both the state and federal level, the SBA has documented the SBDCs' impact in a new report. It appears entrepreneurs definitely visit the SBDCs -- more than 500,000 of them in 2010, the study found -- and the business owners report the resources there helped their businesses thrive. One of the biggest advantages users of SBDCs gained was knowledge of how to get a business loan. There's also good crossover with business education, as many of the centers are hosted on college campuses. . . . keep reading Sales of Small Businesses Rise Again Acquisitions rise as lending conditions ease, but price tags for the deals lag revenue. For the second year in a row, sales of small businesses have increased. Acquisitions of small businesses were up 3.3 percent in 2011 to a total of 6,703 deals, according to BizBuySell.com. Improvements in small-business lending conditions may have contributed to the deal increase, BizBuySell.com general manager Curtis Kroeker told the Wall Street Journal. But buyers seem to be bargain hunting, too: Median price tags for the deals also grew 3.3 percent, while revenue growth at the sold businesses was up a higher 6.7 percent. . . . keep reading Small Business Strategies: Obama's proposal could hurt - USA Today By Rhonda Abrams, USA TODAY. Everyone can agree it's a good idea to make it easier to navigate government programs and reduce government waste. But is this really the place to start? After all, it's not like small-business programs are rolling in dough. The network of Small Business Development Centers -- one of the most efficient and effective government programs ever created -- now receives what one person so aptly described as "budget dust." "These changes would help small-business owners like you. It would also help medium and large businesses," Obama said. Uh-oh. What do you think's going to happen when programs charged with helping businesses like yours and mine get subsumed in an agency charged with helping large corporations, too? Who do you think is going to get the bulk of attention? . . . keep reading Geoff Miller Joins Community 1st Bank as Senior Vice President/Commercial Loan Officer Community 1st Bank has named Geoff Miller its Senior Vice President/Commercial Loan Officer. He has nearly 25 years of experience in the financial services industry. "We're really excited about Geoff becoming part of our team," said Robert Haydon, President & CEO of Community 1st Bank. "He demonstrates a high level of knowledge in Commercial and SBA real estate lending. Geoff gives added strength to our management group and was the ideal candidate for this position." During his banking career, Miller has served in various capacities, including business client management, commercial real estate lending, government guaranteed SBA lending, retail branch management, and other related banking management activities. . . . keep reading 4th Annual Hospitality Financing Webinar -- New Concerns for 2012 Hotel values are down 40% over the past two years. But, prudent buyers and savvy lenders can do well in today's economic environment with SBA's 7(a) lending programs. Government guaranteed loan programs (both SBA and USDA B&I) appear to be one of the few areas where hotel financing is still available, even if it is limited. When people want to know what hotels to buy, their best chance is finding a property that fits the SBA 7(a) loan box with a maximum loan of $5 million. There's a lot of liquidity in the 7(a) program. . . . keep reading Perry Adds New Agency to Chopping Block: SBA Another day, another federal agency on Rick Perry's hit list. This time it's the Small Business Administration. Perry on Tuesday during a question-and-answer session with voters at a VFW hall in Murrells Inlet made the proposal to eliminate the agency. A former small-business man told the presidential hopeful that he found the SBA -- which provides loans, counseling and other assistance to small businesses -- to be useless. The governor agreed. "I'd just do away with them," Perry said. . . . keep reading Report Says SBDCs Are Essential for Small Business Access to Programs The U.S. Small Business Administration's national network of Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) plays an essential role in the economic development of their states and local communities through their direct, face-to-face counseling for small businesses, according to a report released today by the SBA. The report, produced by the National Small Business Development Center Advisory Board, focuses on SBDCs' impact on small business access to SBA's programs and services, including access to SBA capital, procurement, disaster and international trade programs. "SBA's Small Business Development Centers give new and growing small businesses the resources they need throughout the year to grow and create jobs," said SBA Administrator Karen Mills. "The soundness of our economy depends on stable small businesses across the country and SBDCs are front and center helping entrepreneurs start, grow and expand their companies. These institutions reflect the diversity and individuality of their nearly 900 home towns and play an active and vital role in those." . . . keep reading Will Obama move help small businesses? CNN But his announcement came with a mixed signal. The president gave SBA Cabinet ranking at the same time that he proposed merging six government agencies into one department focused on commerce and trade. Is the political theater in an election year? Because actual policy to support small business growth matters much more, particularly since the engine of small business growth is not what it used to be. Over the past few years, companies are starting smaller and staying smaller. Kauffman data show that U.S. firms have generated around 3 million new jobs each year historically, but starting in 2009, similar cohorts created only 2.3 million jobs. And, firms are originating with small teams. In the 1990s, new firms started with about 7.5 jobs on average compared with 4.9 jobs today. . . . keep reading Obama to Elevate SBA Chief - WSJ President Barack Obama said Friday that he will exercise his executive authority to elevate the head of the U.S. Small Business Administration to a cabinet-level position. The announcement came along with a broader proposal from Mr. Obama to combine the SBA with five other government offices that would become a single, streamlined agency. Under the Obama plan, the SBA administration would no longer be in the Cabinet once the reorganization is complete. One reason for the move might be to counter any perception that small business was being slighted in the broader reorganization. The White House didn't provide details concerning whether the SBA's current administrator, Karen Mills, would be granted a higher authority or additional responsibilities as a result of her elevated position. . . . keep reading Small Business Owners Should be Aware of 'Lender Fatigue' Earlier this month, it was reported that Bank of America capped credit lines and restructured repayment plans for an undisclosed number of its small business customers. The move came as a complete surprise to some of these business owners. After all, the capital market is supposedly rebounding, and economic forecasts for 2012 have been encouraging. So, could these small business owners have predicted a falling out with their bank? Perhaps. Small businesses, more vulnerable and considered more risky by lenders, have a responsibility to evaluate their lending relationships and to look for signs of lender fatigue -- signals that their ability to borrow capital may be threatened. I have identified some of the reasons why your bank might consider changing its relationship with you. Some may be the result of what you do, and some may be out of your control. Stay aware of these signs, so you're not caught by surprise. . . . keep reading Obama Promotes SBA Administrator to Cabinet Position By simultaneously seeking to promote the stature of the head of the Small Business Administration to cabinet-level status, the president appears to be seeking to show that he is looking out for a part of the business sector that Republicans say is the main engine of job growth, and one that other Obama policies have hurt. The plans would affect the Commerce Department's core business and trade functions, the Small Business Administration, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the Export-Import Bank, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the Trade and Development Agency. . . . keep reading Community Reinvestment Fund, USA Initiates SBA 7(a) Lending Program to Help Small Businesses With Financing in 2012 and Beyond Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (CRF), a Minneapolis-based national non-profit and Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), announced it was selected as one of only 14 nationwide non-banking institutions to offer the U.S. Small Business Administration's (SBA) 7(a) loan program. While many U.S. banks participate in this program, the SBA limits the number of non-bank 7(a) licenses to just 14 institutions nationwide, enabling them to offer eligible small businesses SBA Guaranteed Loans up to the program maximum. CRF is participating in this program for the first time. Many small businesses that aren't eligible for bank loans may access longer-term loans from CRF to make capital improvements, add jobs and restructure or renew debt. . . . keep reading More

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