Business Resources During The Global COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has left millions of Americans unemployed, and many more have seen lost wages and reduced working hours due to various shelter-in-place orders across the country. It’s scary and I don’t know about you but staying on top of it all is exhausting.
So, I have compiled some useful information to help us weather the COVID-19 storm!
The financial losses have many households worried about how they’ll pay the bills and, for homeowners, in particular, their mortgages—for most the largest bill of the month.Fortunately, the federal government has stepped in to offer help. Under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Security Act (the CARES Act), homeowners with federally-backed home loans can request forbearance if the COVID-19 pandemic has caused financial hardship. Forbearance allows these borrowers to pause monthly payments for an extended period of time while they get back on their feet.
Mortgage Relief
Up to 360 days of forbearance
No fees or additional interest charged, beyond the regularly scheduled interest and fees
Documentation of hardship not required
No foreclosures or foreclosure-related evictions until at least mid-May
Deferred payments cannot be reported to credit bureaus as delinquent
What Loans Qualify for Forbearance Under the CARES Act?
Any federally backed mortgage loan can qualify for forbearance under the CARES Act. This includes:
Loans owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac
FHA loans, including Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (reverse mortgages)
VA loans
USDA loans
Native Hawaiian Housing loans
HUD-guaranteed Indian Home loans
Grant alert:
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is launching a fund to provide assistance to small businesses in the form of $5,000 grants. The Save Small Business Fund, in collaboration with Vistaprint and with support from Merck, S&P Global Foundation, and Travelers, will include contributions from corporations and philanthropies. The grant is expected to address small businesses’ immediate needs. This will include things like closures and job losses, as well as to support their long-term recovery. Applications for the Chamber’s fund open April 20th.
More SBA Funding is Coming……
If you are still interested in applying for the PPP Loan or the EIDL Loan, you should still apply. Talk to your bank first or look at the Fintech firms such as PayPal, Quickbooks, NAV, and Fundera. Many are still taking applications. I believe Congress is going to authorize more funding, so you will want to get in line early this time.
Spanx Grant
Spanx and The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation have been dedicated to elevating and supporting women through entrepreneurship. Knowing the ripple effect that empowering women can have to strengthen neighborhoods, cities, and countries, The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation donated $5 million to support female entrepreneurs in the wake of COVID-19 and teamed up with GlobalGiving to establish The Red Backpack Fund. GlobalGiving will be overseeing the fund, making 1,000 grants of $5,000 each to female entrepreneurs in the U.S. to help alleviate the immediate needs and support the long-term recovery of those impacted by this crisis.
In partnership with Verizon, the digital fundraising and advocacy platform Hello Alice offers emergency grants of up to $10,000 for companies impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
Google is offering $340 million in advertising grants for small and medium-sized businesses, a credit that will be added automatically to Google Ads accounts.
Verizon has allocated $5 million to the Local Initiatives Support Corporation to distribute via grants to small businesses. The first round of grant applications is closed but will reopen in mid-April, and you can register to be notified on their website.
GoFundMe has partnered with Intuit QuickBooks, Yelp, GoDaddy, and Bill.com to give small businesses a $500 grant if they raise at least $500 on GoFundMe.
I know we are all in a state of uncertainty right now, but we are not in this alone.
