Where to Find the Money in Today's Tight Credit Market

Crain's Cleveland Business published an excellent article in its February 9-15, 2009 issue, titled "Specialized lending programs available despite credit crunch." The article was written by Marsha Powers, CEO of Powers Financial Group Inc., a Cleveland, Ohio-based independent financial advisory group.

In her article, Ms. Powers provides an overview of existing funding sources in the State of Ohio that a small business might want to consider. Some of these sources are:

• credit unions (most virtually untouched by the subprime mess; some credit unions provide business loans, while others only lend to individuals)
• banks (yes, some are still lending, albeit with much stricter requirements and more strings attached)
• community reinvestment business loans from local community development corporations
• various State of Ohio programs offered through the Ohio Treasury or Ohio Department of Development, such as: community development, incentive loans and bonds, small business assistance, tax incentives, funding for technology research, interest rate reduction, and the Ohio Enterprise Bond Fund
• SBA 7(a) loan guaranty program and other SBA loan programs

For those with a print or on-line subscription to Crain's Cleveland Business, you can access the full article on its web site.