12 COVID-19 Financial Relief Resources for Small Businesses
Hey there. How are you holding up? Yeah, we’re not feeling great about the state of things either. COVID-19 is no joke and its impact on small business owners is real.
First, we want to say that it’s normal to be afraid of whether your business will be able to bounce back. It’s normal to feel out of your depth. It’s normal to feel the loss of... normalcy.
We’re in it with you, and we’re not going anywhere. Studio Brinks is passionate about helping small businesses, no matter the bumps in the road. We want you to recover from this crisis, sustain your business, and keep growing. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of relief resources to help you right now. From the Federal Reserve lowering interest rates to a recent $2 trillion economic stimulus package, the government is getting involved in the economic fight against COVID-19. We’ve covered the main ways to mitigate financial loss and ease some of the burden: low interest loans, small business grants, and pausing your student loan payments. You've got options, and you've got this.
Low Interest Loans
U.S. Small Business Administration SBA Disaster Assistance
“The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering designated states and territories low-interest federal disaster loans for working capital to small businesses suffering substantial economic injury as a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Any such Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance declaration issued by the SBA makes loans available statewide to small businesses and private, non-profit organizations to help alleviate economic injury caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-19). This will apply to current and future disaster assistance declarations related to Coronavirus. These loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable and other bills that can’t be paid because of the disaster’s impact. The interest rate is 3.75% for small businesses. The interest rate for non-profits is 2.75%. SBA offers loans with long-term repayments in order to keep payments affordable, up to a maximum of 30 years. Terms are determined on a case-by-case basis, based upon each borrower’s ability to repay.”
Kiva
“Kiva is an international nonprofit, founded in 2005 in San Francisco, with a mission to expand financial access to help underserved communities thrive. Kiva lenders have shown their commitment to providing financial assistance to all by making 0% interest loans to entrepreneurs in the U.S. on Kiva.org for the last 10 years.” Effective immediately, U.S. applicants for a Kiva loan will have access to the following:
Expanded eligibility: More businesses in the US will be eligible for a Kiva loan.
Larger loans: The maximum loan on the Kiva platform will increase from $10,000 to $15,000.
Grace period: New borrowers may access a grace period of up to 6 months for greater financial flexibility.
Opportunity Fund
Opportunity Fund is a nonprofit microlender that’s now encouraging new and existing customers to reach out for financial assistance. If you’re an existing customer, you can contact them at: 877-629-2709 or customercare@opportunityfund.org. For new customers: 888-720-3215 (888-648-7859 en espanol) or loans@opportunityfund.org.
Small Business Grants
Facebook Small Business Grant Program
“Facebook is offering $100M in cash grants and ad credits for up to 30,000 eligible small businesses in over 30 countries where we operate. We’ll begin taking applications in the coming weeks. In the meantime, you can sign up to receive more information when it becomes available”.
Zapier Small Business Assistance Program
“Today, we're committing $1 million to help our most impacted small business customers keep their most important workflows going. Our support team will set up qualified customers with a free 3-month credit for a Starter plan.”We’re offering our small business assistance program to heavily impacted people who meet some combination of these criteria:
You work in a business with 10 employees or fewer, or you're a solo entrepreneur.
Your business is privately owned.
Your business is impacted by "social distancing" in an outsized way. The tourism, foodservice, hospitality, salon and spa, fitness, and education industries are some examples.
You’re a paying Zapier customer as of 3/20/2020”
Bumble Loves Small Businesses
The details: “We will be granting a number of small businesses up to $5k USD to help during this trying time. If you own a small business, please fill out this form and we will do our best to help you out. At this time, we are only accepting requests from small businesses and will verify all company registration numbers. If you’re not a small business owner, you can fill out this form to nominate a small business.”
The GoFundMe.org Small Business Relief Fund
“The Small Business Relief Fund will provide one-time matching grants to qualifying small businesses to help alleviate the financial burdens during these pressing times. Donations to the relief fund will be paid out as grants to businesses that qualify, and which businesses have created a fundraiser through the Small Business Relief Initiative or had an existing GoFundMe.For small business fundraisers started prior to March 24 , or outside of the Small BusinessRelief Initiative partnerships, the organizer can update their fundraiser description with the hashtag #SmallBusinessRelief to be considered for a grant from this fund.To qualify for a matching grant from the Small Business Relief Fund, the GoFundMe fundraiser must raise at least $500 and verify that your small business has been negatively impacted by a government mandate due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Your small business must be independently owned and operated, and must not be nationally dominant in your field of operation. “
How to apply:
Claim your fundraiser: “Many small businesses will have a fundraiser automatically created for them through the Yelp platform. To claim this fundraiser and donations made to it, you can submit a request through the form above.”
Start a New Fundraiser: “If you do not have a fundraiser already created for your business, you can start one now. In your fundraiser description, please make sure you add the hashtag#SmallBusinessRelief. Then fill out this form to confirm your small business.”
Truist Financial Corporation
“Truist pledged $1 million each to LiftFund and Nature Capital Investment Fund, two community development financial institutions providing grants to small businesses affected byCOVID-19. Grants range from $5,000 to $25,000.” Business owners in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee andTexas can apply for grants through LiftFund. Business owners in Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina,Virginia, West Virginia and Washington, D.C. can apply through the Nature Capital InvestmentFund (NCIFund).
Pause Payments on Your Student Loans
Department of Education Federal Student Loan Relief
This is the time to pause your federal student loan payments because President Trump has temporarily waved the interest rate. You can pause your payments without worrying about interest accruing.“To provide relief to student loan borrowers during the COVID-19 national emergency, federal student loan borrowers can be placed in an administrative forbearance, which allows you to temporarily stop making your monthly loan payment.”If you’re having trouble making payments, contact your loan servicer as soon as possible. If you have a Federal Perkins Loan, contact your school. You can easily avoid the consequences of delinquency or default by staying in touch with your servicer or school.Your servicer or school can provide information about deferment or forbearance options that allow you to temporarily stop making payments on your loans. You may also be able to change to a different repayment plan that would give you a lower monthly payment”.
How to apply: Contact your school, or if you have a Federal Perkins loan, contact your school
Additional Resources
Forbes’s “Small Business Relief Tracker,” an ongoing list of initiatives, state-specific grants, funding options, and information that gets updated daily. Calculate how much you’ll receive from the coronavirus checks that the Senate stimulus package will be providing.
The Washington Post has created a calculating tool for people to estimate how much they’ll receive.
Brown Ambition with Mandi and Tiffany. Two businesswomen of color with extensive backgrounds in entrepreneurship and journalism tackle different business-related topics each week. For this week’s COVID-19 response episode, check it out here.
During these tough times, your state or local chamber is a tremendous resource to help your business. Find yours and stay connected so you’ll know what aid is available in your particular area.