Maria Cruz Montoya, left, and Elvira Valles, right, both of Accion Texas Inc. with Phillip Silva of the U;S. Small Business Administration.
Nonprofit lender Acci?n Texas has been participating in the SBA's 504 loan program for only about 2?years, but has already become a big player in it.
Earlier this month, at the Mid-America Lenders Conference in Houston, the U.S. Small Business Administration's El Paso District office honored the local Acci?n Texas location for its participation in the 504 loan guarantee program.
For the second straight year, Acci?n was the top volume 504 lender in the district, which consists of El Paso County and nine other West Texas counties.
Acci?n issued 12 504 loans totaling $7.3 million in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012.
These loans will create nearly 100 jobs in the next two years throughout the El Paso region, said Maria "Cruz" Montoya, a senior business development officer with Acci?n Texas.
"The SBA prides itself on economic development," Montoya said.
The 504 program is one of a handful of the SBA's loan guarantee programs.
Businesses can use 504 loans to purchase land, buy an existing building, construct a new building or buy equipment with a useful life of 10 or more years. The loans can also be used to do a temporary refinance of an existing commercial real estate loan.
The 504 SBA-guaranteed loans typically range from $50,000 to $5 million. Acci?n, however, doesn't start getting involved until the $250,000 level.
For amounts less than that, Acci?n has its microlender program, which targets businesses that don't
qualify for traditional financing and offers loans of $500 to $250,000.For Acci?n, getting involved in the SBA's 504 loan program was the next logical step, said Elvira Valles, the organization's vice president for West Texas.
Its microlending program helps businesses get started or expand, establish credit and then graduate to traditional bank loans or SBA programs, such as the 504, Valles said.
"We are very excited about this," Valles said. "It allows our small-business owners an opportunity to purchase their own building at very low interest rates."
A key feature of the 504 program is a fixed interest rate for up to 20 years. Right now, that rate is 4.45 percent.
Business owners don't have to come up through Acci?n's microlending program to get a 504 loan, Montoya said. Any small business can apply.
Phillip C. Silva, director of the SBA's El Paso District office, said Acci?n's involvement in the 504 loan program has encouraged other 504 lenders to enter the market and make loans to businesses in the El Paso region.
"They've had a direct and indirect economic impact," Silva said.
At the same Mid-America Lenders Conference, the local SBA office also honored United Bank of El Paso del Norte and WestStar Bank for being the district's top volume lenders in its 7(a) loan guarantee program.
David Burge may be reached at dburge@elpasotimes.com; 546-6126. Follow him on Twitter @dburge1962.
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