Financing Your Small Business

Unless you’re independently wealthy, financing your small business — whether you’re looking to start a business or expand your current one — is a key consideration. The vast majority of new small businesses are funded with debt financing via financial institutions. But there other options you should consider before you sign on the dotted line.

If you go the traditional financing route, you will want a competent and experienced business attorney to carefully review the terms of your financing as well as the documents to make sure they treat you fairly and to help you think through the feasibility of the proposed financing. You’ll also want to make sure your company is organized to minimize the liability you will assume under the terms, another important area in which there is no substitute for competent legal advice.

We’ve compiled a comprehensive repository of resources that cover all aspects of financing your business. Each of these links is a portal to even more information.

Guides to Raising Money from Entrepreneur.com
Everything you will ever want to know about raising capital to start your own business or expand an existing business. This site provides guides that cover the following financing topics. Read more.

  • Royalty Financing
  • Angel Investors
  • 401(k) Financing
  • Institutional Venture Capital
  • Startup Financing
  • Equipment Leasing
  • Microloans
  • Bank-Term Loans
  • Private Loan Guarantees

About.com’s Financing and Funding Primer
About.com provides a Financing and Funding Primer that explores a variety of funding alternatives, including self-funding, angel funding, venture capital, grants, conventional loans, and special loan programs spsecifically for small businesses. The primer includes links to many articles, such as the ones listed below. Read more.

  • Getting a Business Line of Credit
  • 2009 Venture Technology Investment Outlook
  • Startup Business Financing — Finding Funding for Your New Small Business
  • Equity Financing — Is It Right for Your Small Business?
  • Debt Financing — Pros and Cons
  • Before You Apply for a Business Loan
  • Private Lending as Alternative Funding: Where Do Entrepreneurs Go When the Bank Says “No”?
  • Building Business Credit
  • Business Equipment Leasing
  • Presenting Small Business Financial Statements to a Lender
  • Due Diligence Is No Mystery
  • Finding Startup Money
  • Angel Investing: Changing Strategies During Volatile Times
  • Bootstrapping Your Start-Up
  • Second Round Funding
  • SBA Loan Information
  • SBA Microloan Participants

New York State Financing Resources
The New York Loves Small Business website provides a plethora of financing resources for small business owners. Check out financing opportunities offered by the following entities. Read more.

  • New York State Banking Department
  • New York Business Development Corp.
  • New York City Financial Network Action Consortium
  • Venture Capital

Small Business Administration Financial Assistance for Small Businesses
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent Agency of the Executive Branch of the Federal Government and provides financial assistance to U.S. small businesses. The SBA provides a number of financial assistance programs for small businesses. You’ll learn about eligibility requirements, SBA’s loan programs, surety bonds and the role of SBA, equity capital topics, special purpose loans, SBA partner topics and 7(a) lender programs. A great place to start is to check out the SBA’s Governor’s Office of Regulatory Reform:>Finance Primer: A Guide to SBA’s Loan Guarantee Programs (Flash video). The site also lists many grant programs available to small businesses. Read more.

Federal Loan Programs
Get specific information from the govloans.gov website about a variety of loans, compare options, or take a short questionnaire to determine your eligibility for each program. Includes a comprehensive list of loan programs for small businesses. Read more.

Financing and Incentives for New York City Businesses
If you own and operate a business in New York City, there are a mind-boggling number of financing and incentives programs at your disposal. This page will give you links to track those resources down and put them to use for you. Here are some examples of what you’ll find there. Read more.

  • Incentives Finder
  • Incentives Estimator
  • Discounted Energy Programs
  • Financing
  • Tax Exemptions
  • Industrial Development Agency
  • NYC Capital Resource Corp.
  • Additional Resources

Funding for Women and Minorities
The state of New York offers a multitude of programs specifically for women and minority business owners. Here are a few of the resources you’ll find on this page. Read more.

  • New York Business Development Corp.
  • Community Development Financial Institution Assistance Program
  • 8(a) and Minority & Women Business Enterprise Certification
  • 10 Places That Lend Money to Women in Business
  • Womens Business Centers (PDF)

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Return to Small Business Resource Center.

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Too many questions? Too much information? Need help?

What kind of attorneys would compile the most comprehensive repository of resources for New York business owners? Ones who care that you have everything you need to properly focus your efforts to ensure the success of your business.

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