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SBA briefed Washington County residents on disaster loans, deadlines and recovery centers
Summary
An SBA representative told the Board of Supervisors that disaster loans are available to businesses, homeowners and renters, described interest rates and mitigation provisions, and urged residents to use staffed disaster recovery centers before upcoming deadlines.
Jim McKershow of the U.S. Small Business Administration spoke to the Washington County Board of Supervisors on Oct. 24 about SBA disaster‑loan options and local help centers. He said the SBA offers physical-damage loans (up to $2 million for businesses; up to $500,000 for homeowners), economic injury disaster loans for working-capital needs, and content loans for renters (up to $100,000).
"We offer three types of disaster loans, to businesses as well as homeowners and renters," McKershow said. He described typical interest rates discussed during the meeting: "It's 4% for businesses, 3.25% for nonprofits, and 2.83% for homeowners and renters." He also noted that SBA loans are deferred interest-free for the first year and carry no application fee.
McKershow urged residents to visit one of the staffed disaster recovery centers operated in partnership with FEMA and local offices; he listed six regional centers and two SBA locations (including a site at the Highlands Business Incubator and a center in Galax). He also cautioned applicants not to wait on insurance conversations before starting an SBA application, because SBA funds are provided above and beyond insurance payments and the program requires applicants to report insurance recoveries to loan officers.
The SBA representative said that, as of the meeting, about 150 Virginians had applied for SBA disaster assistance in the regional response; he reported 17 applications from Washington County to date. He encouraged outreach events and webinars to help applicants navigate economic-injury and physical-damage loans before FEMA and SBA operations scale down.
McKershow highlighted mitigation funding: homeowners and business owners may be eligible for a mitigation loan equal to 20% of the reported damaged amount for eligible measures, available for up to two years after the disaster report. He recommended applicants speak with SBA staff at the recovery centers to determine eligibility and loan options.
The SBA presentation was offered as part of the county’s recovery agenda and was followed by board business.
