Almost all of NJ eligible for some SBA loans for Ida damage – New Jersey 101.5 FM
Residents and business owners in six New Jersey counties, so far, have been declared eligible to apply for both Physical and Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration connected to damage incurred by what was left of Hurricane Ida pummeling the Garden State.
Those counties are Bergen, Gloucester, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Passaic, and Somerset.
A Presidential disaster declaration defined the timeframe of storm damage as between Sept. 1 and 3, and Jack Camp, SBA Field Operations Center East public affairs specialist, said those affected have several months to apply.
“They’re available through Nov. 4, 2021 for physical damages, and for the economic injury, the small businesses have until June 6, 2022,” Camp said.
Interest rates are “very affordable,” according to Camp. For homeowners and renters, who can claim up to $200,000 worth of real estate damage and a maximum $40,000 in damage uninsured personal property, the rate is as low as 1.563%.
“In addition to that, our Economic Injury Disaster Loan program, these are working capital loans, are available to small businesses in the adjacent counties,” Camp said.
Specifically, that refers to Atlantic, Camden, Cumberland, Essex, Hudson, Mercer, Monmouth, Morris, Salem, Sussex, Union, and Warren counties.
“Those loans start at 2.855%, and the term on these loans can go up to 30 years,” Camp said.
Burlington, Cape May, and Ocean are the only New Jersey counties not covered under this round of applications.
There are multiple ways to apply, and Camp said direct help will soon be available.
“In the coming days, both FEMA and the SBA will be announcing and establishing centers where people can visit, in the disaster area, to get one-on-one assistance,” he said.
If an in-person application is not necessary, anyone eligible can go to disasterassistance.gov, which is run through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or disasterloanassistance.sba.gov if referred to the SBA by FEMA.
FEMA is also offering a phone number, 1-800-621-3362, or help through its mobile app.
The number to call for the SBA is 1-800-659-2955.
Patrick Lavery is New Jersey 101.5’s afternoon news anchor. Follow him on Twitter @plavery1015 or email patrick.lavery@townsquaremedia.com.
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