The U.S. Small Business Administration on Tuesday added Flagler County to the list of counties eligible for business and home disaster loans in the aftermath of Ian.
“This is great news for our businesses,” said Tourism Development Director Amy Lukasik. “There are a lot of businesses that really need this lifeline.”
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Available loans fall under three categories: Business Physical Disaster Loans, Economic Injury Disaster Loans and Home Disaster Loans.
“Though these loans are coming from the Small Business Administration, there is relief for homeowners and renters as well,” said Emergency Management Director Jonathan Lord. “These loans are available to repair or replace disaster-damaged real estate and personal property, including automobiles.”
Available disaster business loans:
- Business Physical Disaster Loans – Loans to businesses to repair or replace disaster-damaged property owned by the business, including real estate, inventories, supplies, machinery and equipment. Businesses of any size are eligible. Private, nonprofit organizations such as charities, churches, private universities, etc. are also eligible. The application filing deadline is Nov. 28.
- Economic Injury Disaster Loans – Working capital loans to help small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture, and most private, nonprofit organizations of all sizes meet their ordinary and necessary financial obligations that cannot be met as a direct result of the disaster. These loans are intended to assist through the disaster recovery period. The application filing deadline is June 29, 2023.
Loan amount limits:
- Business Loans – The law limits business loans to $2 million for the repair or replacement of real estate, inventories, machinery, equipment and all other physical losses. Subject to this maximum, loan amounts cannot exceed the verified uninsured disaster loss.
- Economic Injury Disaster Loans – The law limits EIDLs to $2 million for alleviating economic injury caused by the disaster. The actual amount of each loan is limited to the economic injury determined by SBA, less business interruption insurance, and other recoveries up to the administrative lending limit. EIDL assistance is available only to entities and their owners who cannot provide for their own recovery from non-government sources, as determined by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
- Business Loan Ceiling – The $2 million statutory limit for business loans applies to the combination of physical, economic injury, mitigation and refinancing and applies to all disaster loans to a business and its affiliates for each disaster. If a business is a major source of employment, SBA has the authority to waive the $2 million statutory limit.
- Home Loans – SBA regulations limit home loans to $200,000 for the repair or replacement of real estate and $40,000 to repair or replace personal property. Subject to these maximums, loan amounts cannot exceed the verified uninsured disaster loss.
Applicants may apply online, receive additional disaster assistance information and download applications at https://disasterloanassistance.sba.gov/ela. Applicants may also call the SBA Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance. Those who are deaf, hard of hearing or have a speech disability should dial 711 to access telecommunications relay services.