Home
>
Small Business
>
The SBAs Savviest Program

The SBAs Savviest Program

Forget everything you've ever heard about the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The negative connotations may have been warranted in the past, but the SBA is different these days. The SBA is worth every penny of its more than $22 billion budget on the basis of a single program alone: the SBA 504 Loan Program for small business owners who want to acquire or develop their own facilities.

In fact, SBA 504 loans may rank as one of the most effective domestic economic development programs the federal government administers.

Lots of entrepreneurs ?? and far too many bankers, ironically ?? dismiss the SBA on the basis of its 7(a) lending program that always seems to need supplemental appropriations by the U.S. Congress.

The 7(a)'s reputation may or may not be deserved, but some of its negativity has managed to soil other truly effective SBA programs.

SBA 504 loans, by contrast, are a dynamo. They work; they work well; and unfortunately by some of the historical problems in the SBA's 7(a) program, a dark shadow has been cast over 504 loans causing not many people to know about them.

In fact, for too long, I have heard many otherwise knowledgeable lenders dismiss SBA 504 loans based on faulty and out-dated information.

I've been providing SBA 504 loans for more than eight years. Over two years ago, I founded Mercantile Commercial Capital, LLC to focus exclusively on providing 504 loans, and we're still the only lender nationwide to primarily do this. To date, we've closed more than 60 loans worth a total of more than $67 million in only 30 months of business. We offer other financing options too, but SBA 504 loans are by far our most popular and most rewarding program.

So far, every qualified 504 loan proposal we have submitted to the SBA has been approved and funded, or is soon to be funded.

The SBA knows the 504 is a hot property. Funding has grown about 22 percent a year since 2000. Last year, 504 loans helped fuel about $10 billion in total capital investments for 8,000 small businesses throughout the U.S. In fact, these loans helped create about 75,000 new jobs last year through the "equity savings" small business owners experienced.

Entrepreneurs, real estate brokers and accountants are gradually waking up to the fact that 504 loans were designed to level the playing field for small businesses in the marketplace. With 90% loan-to-cost financing of most commercial real estate projects, 504 loans are very powerful.

For the borrower, SBA 504 loans offer long-term, below-market, fixed-rate financing at better terms than are available from any private sector lender. And if that wasn't good enough, borrowers generally put half as much money down for 504 loans, which enable them to grow their businesses a lot faster. For every $50,000 of SBA guaranteed funds, small business owners need to create or retain one job in the next two years. It is in this way that 504 loans have become an engine for economic growth in America.

Lending amounts are generally not capped or limited and only non-public, for-profit businesses qualify. Three financial qualifications, however, set some limits: the borrower's small business must have a tangible net worth under $7 million; the operating company's net income for the previous two years must average less than $2.5 million annually; and the borrower cannot have liquid, non-retirement assets greater than the total project amount.

Most small businesses have no trouble meeting these qualifications. In fact, over 98 percent of all businesses in Florida, for example, qualify for SBA 504 loans.

What sorts of businesses make the most appropriate SBA 504 loan candidates? We see an extraordinary number of service professionals (physicians, attorneys, accountants, etc.), and we also finance plenty of franchisees, manufacturers and distributors. But in truth, any business with a track record or at least some solid, related experience is an appropriate SBA 504 loan candidate. The 504 Loan Program collateral requirements are generally limited to the commercial real estate facility that the loan finances, and approvals and closings happen in days and weeks, not in multiple-months as it was in the past.

Historically, the SBA was usually considered a lender of last resort. But compared to ordinary commercial financing, 504 loan terms and conditions are so good that for almost every small business, an SBA 504 loan should rank as their top choice.

Bankers have any number of reasons they've dreamed-up why not to consider SBA 504 financing and, to be candid, I'm okay with that. It just means we'll be here to help a lot more small businesses grow with our focus on the SBA's savviest program: 504 loans.

* * *

www.mercantilecc.com

Chris Hurn is President and Chief Executive Officer at Mercantile Commercial Capital, LLC, a leading provider of SBA 504 loans for business owners.

Chris actively participates in, among other things, the business development, underwriting and marketing functions of MCC. Previously, he worked as a senior management consultant, financier and executive with companies such as GE Capital, Heller Financial and NAI Realvest Partners. He has advised, financed and helped many small to mid-sized businesses throughout Florida and the Northeast for over ten years.

best cleaning company Highland Park ..

In The News:

The ClickFix campaign disguises malware as legitimate Windows updates, using steganography to hide shellcode in PNG files and bypass security detection systems.

Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University designed a 21-foot dome that combines aquaculture and hydroponics to create a self-sustaining urban food system.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Android rolls out Emergency Live Video for 911 calls, letting dispatchers see real-time scenes during emergencies. Great for holiday travel safety.

Malicious Chrome and Edge extensions collected browsing history, keystrokes and personal data from millions of users before Google and Microsoft removed them.

Google's new Call Reason feature lets Android users mark calls as urgent before dialing, displaying an urgent label to recipients using Phone by Google app.

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.

Learn what background permissions, push notifications, security updates, auto-join networks and app refresh mean to better manage your phone's privacy settings.

Criminals test stolen data by applying for deposit accounts in victims' names to prepare bigger attacks. Learn why banks won't share fraud details.

New study of 10,500+ kids reveals early smartphone ownership linked to depression, obesity, and poor sleep by age 12. Earlier phones mean higher risks.

A phone phishing attack compromised Harvard's alumni and donor database, marking the second security incident at the university in recent months.

AutoFlight's zero-carbon floating vertiport uses solar power to charge eVTOL aircraft while supporting emergency response, tourism, and marine energy maintenance.

A new phone return scam targets recent buyers with fake carrier calls. Learn how criminals steal devices and steps to protect yourself from this fraud.

New Anthropic research reveals how AI reward hacking leads to dangerous behaviors, including models giving harmful advice like drinking bleach to users seeking help.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Holiday email scams, including non-delivery fraud and gift card schemes, spike in November and December, costing victims hundreds of millions, the FBI says.

Holiday visits offer the perfect opportunity to help older parents with technology updates, scam protection and basic troubleshooting skills for safer digital experiences.

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.