COMMUNITY
12 June 01, 2012
IACCGH Small Business Reception and Lecture with Manuel Gonzalez U.S. SBA District Director discusses SBA loan guarantee programs
SUGAR LAND: During the Small Business Outreach, on May 24, organized by The Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IAACCGH), The District Director, (Small Business Administration, SBA, Houston), Manuel Gonzalez, addressed the gathering. Gonzalez provided a list of the many programs and services that the SBA offers - capital/financial assistance, contracting assistance (8a, HUBZone & woman-owned small business programs), counseling, training, disaster assistance, advocacy, laws/ regulations, implement special initiatives including ‘Young Entrepreneurs and Startup America’ to name a few. His talk was centered on an overview of three SBA Loan Guarantee Programs; 7(a) Guaranty Loan Program, 504 Debenture, and SBAEXPRESS Loan. He expressed that many well known companies like Nike, AOL, Apple and others have taken advantage of such loans. The 7(a) program is the very basic type of loan the SBA offers to small businesses. It is not a loan per se, but a guaranty that the SBA provides participant lenders, making it easier for them to make a small business loan which they otherwise wouldn’t consider. The 7(a) loan program has a maximum loan amount of $5 million with a guaranty of 75 percent. The lower the amount, the higher the guaranty, which goes up to 85 percent on loans of $150,000 or less. The SBA encourages longer terms, but actual loan maturities are based on the purpose of the loan and the useful life of the assets financed. In general, though, 7(a) loan maturities can go from seven years for working capital, to a maximum of 25 years for land and buildings, or debt refinancing. Interest rates are negotiated between the borrower
Manuel Gonzalez District Director, U.S .SBA Keynote speaker
Ajit Thakur CPA (President, IACCGH)
Mark Winchester(SBA) Swapan Dhairyawan (Treasurer, IACCGH), Manuel Gonzalez(District Director US SBA), Ajit Thakur CPA (President, IACCGH), Katrina Lava (SBA) Joya and the lender. However, since interest rates Shukla(Secretary IACCGH), Dennis David (Wells Fargo) Jagdip Ahluwalia(Executive can be an important factor in the repayment Director, IACCGH)
ability of borrowers, the SBA has established limits that vary according to the size and maturity of the loan. Gonzalez said that the 504 loan program is a long-term/fixed-rate financing tool for major fixed assets. The SBAEXPRESS Loans are expedited loan processing and closing. Lenders use internal loan documents, not SBA documents. This particular loan program has the same criteria as the standard 7(a) Guaranty loan Program. Ajit Thakur, President of IACCGH, thanked Manuel Gonzalez and Mark Winchester, SBA, Katrina Lava of Wells Fargo Bank, and Priscilla Burroughs of Port of
Houston, for sharing beneficial information with the attendees. Jagdip Ahluwalia, Executive Director of IACCGH, highlighted the importance of small businesses connecting and building relationships with organizations such as SBA, Wells Fargo, Port of Houston and Greater Houston Business Procurement Forum. He encouraged IACCGH members, guests, and supporters of the Chamber to make a strong effort to seek out and utilize Houston’s many resources, for greater success in their businesses. This event was sponsored by Wells Fargo. The Bank was represented by Dennis David,
Katrina Lava and Dennis David of SBA
Vice President specializing in SBA Lending and Katrina Lava, Vice President, Business Development, who wrote to the organizers of the event: “I commend you, for your excellent leadership in facilitation of networking and inclusion of participation/acknowledgement of partners/resources for IACCGH members’ benefit. You are creating a fantastic culture by asking members to be aware of what benefit they are giving AND receiving from participation in chamber connections! How I wish your leadership could be duplicated to other “network” events I attend around the city. I watched you yesterday and thought to myself, “That is how it is done!”. IACCGH Small Business Outreach Program’s purpose is to provide community business professionals with tools and information to grow their businesses and create jobs in the Houston area. This outreach also provides community members with guidance to start a small business. IACCGH has promoted small business in the past 12 years of the Chamber’s existence and has partnered with agencies that help small businesses succeed. The SBA is one of those agencies. “Created by Congress in 1953, the SBA is an independent federal agency with a mission to aid, assist, counsel, and protect small business. We accomplish this mission through a variety of programs and with a variety of partners. As the nation’s largest single financial backer of small business, the SBA guarantees loans made by private lenders or certified development companies.” For detailed information about SBA programs and services, visit the SBA Web site at http://www.sba.gov/financing/index. html.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 01, 2012 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM