A Certified Development Company is a nonprofit corporation set up to contribute to the economic development of its community or region. CDCs work with the SBA and private-sector lenders to provide financing to small businesses. There are about 290 CDCs nationwide. Each CDC covers a specific area. Certified lenders account for nearly a third of all SBA business loan guaranties.
Approval focuses on character, credit and experience.
The SBA Women's Prequalification loan program was developed to promote the SBA's business loan program to current and prospective women small business owners. This program uses nonprofit organizations as intermediaries to assist prospective women borrowers in developing a viable loan-application package. The MicroLoan Program was developed to increase the availability of very small loans to prospective small business borrowers. Completed applications can usually be processed by the intermediary in less than one week.