If there are so many Government grants for women to start a small business why are they so hard to find??

Question by p_recovery_bot: If there are so many Government grants for women to start a small business why are they so hard to find??
I hear so many times that there are hundreds of different Government or Private Org small business grants for women but have yet to find a legitimate grant or website that is offering grants. And NO the SBA does-not offer grants for New business for women, they offer loans as do regular banks that I could just go to if it were an option. Where are these legitimate grants at??? Thank you for serious answers-

Minority Grants
Best answer:

Answer by imisidro
Grants are hard to find because it is not really true that there are “so many government grants.”

It is hard to find grants to start a business — whether male or female. Unlike the myths that some perpetuate, federal government and even private foundations hardly give grant money for starting a for-profit business.

One possible exception is for companies developing or exporting agricultural goods, including food and forest product. Another exception could be the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) or Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/sbir/index.html , which fund the research and development of technological innovation that meets specific government needs.

Your best bet actually will be from the states if they offer grant programs for women (or any other special interest groups — minorities, women, disabled, veterans, etc). Or check with non profit organizations, particularly women organizations if they offer grants. Examples include

Iowa Women’s Foundation http://www.iawf.org/
New Mexico Women’s Foundation http://www.nmwf.org/guidelines.html

Even SBA does NOT give out grants. From the SBA website http://www.sba.gov/mostrequesteditems/CON_FAQ2.html

“The U.S. Small Business Administration does not offer grants to start or expand small businesses, although it does offer a wide variety of loan programs. (See http://www.sba.gov/financing for more information) While SBA does offer some grant programs, these are generally designed to expand and enhance organizations that provide small business management, technical, or financial assistance. These grants generally support non-profit organizations, intermediary lending institutions, and state and local governments.”

Nonetheless, you can go to the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) http://www.cfda.gov and Grants.gov http://www.grants.gov – these are two sites created by the federal government to provide transparency and information on grants. Browse through the listings and see if you can find any grant that would support a for-profit venture.

Here is a listing of federal grants for small businesses. See if there is any available for individuals for starting a business — THERE’S NONE.
http://12.46.245.173/pls/portal30/CATALOG.BROWSE_BENEF_RPT.show

Most of the federal grants are given to specific target groups with specific requirements (e.g. minority business owners involved in transportation related contracts emanating from DOT – Grant#20.905 Disadvantaged Business Enterprises Short Term Lending Program

Grants are also often given to non profit groups or organizations involved in training or other similar activities (grant 59.043 Women’s Business Ownership Assistance that are given to those who will create women’s business center that will train women entrepreneurs

For private grants, you may want to check the Foundation Center’s Foundation Grants for Individuals Online http://gtionline.fdncenter.org . It’s a subscription based website (.95 per month) but their opening blurb only says that the database is ideal for “students, artists, academic researchers, libraries and financial aid offices.” Entrepreneurs are apparently not one of them, so I take it they also don’t have listings of private foundations who give grants to would-be entrepreneurs.

Add your own answer in the comments!

Minority Business Loans Can Play A Key Role In Your Financing

Minority Business Loans Can Play A Key Role In Your Financing

Thousands of entrepreneurs seek minority business loans , and many of them succeed. This type of financing is primarily meant for small businesses that are owned wholly or primarily by individuals from an historically under-represented background in commercial lending. These loans are different than grants and can accommodate special types of products including start up loans.


Minority financing was designed and established to help women and minority business owners develop their businesses, although it has become an exclusive opportunity for women belonging to disadvantaged communities. Applicants are privy to funding that is allied with various banks, federal agencies and business development companies. However, unlike minority business grants, these loans have to be repaid.


The loans can be used for various purposes like business upgrades, expansion, purchasing raw material, machinery, furniture, land, recruitment etc. Financing made available to minority applicants helps encourage female and ethnic minority business owners to start their businesses. There are many financing options open to these business owners including loans. A federal agency called the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) provides resources and information for like-minded entrepreneurs.


The main priority of the Minority Business Development Agency is to grow and aid development of minority owned businesses through the usage of targeted loans. This organization also controls many Business Development Centers which can assist local business owners with writing business plans and more.


The benefits you gain by using loan arrangement services of the Minority Business Development Agency are:


– Realistic interest rates

– Fast Approvals

– Outstanding knowledge by experts against various loan options

– Reaching a number of lenders with just one application


In order to take advantage of minority offered loans, a borrower has to fulfill the following criteria:


-Borrower can be any individual, sole proprietor or individuals who belong to the minority community

-Loans are available for those who are willing to start a minority business or expand an existing one

-Business endeavors should be physically located in a selected, chiefly minority-occupied region


Obtaining minority loan funding is not a difficult process if the proper research is done. Of utmost importance is that the business has a plan in place before applying for funding. The business plan should include a good overview of how your business is going to make money, and crucial to lenders will be accurate financial details. This plan should include information such as exactly how much capital is needed, and what this capital would be used for. The more detailed you can be, the better your chances of approval for the loan. The lender also wants to know how you plan to pay back the loan.


Having a great business plan is only the beginning; it is also necessary to have business credit scores in place. These scores are different from personal credit scores. However, the credit of the business owner is also taken into consideration. It is just as important to have good business credit scores, as it is to have good personal credit scores.

Minority Grants

Andrew Morris shows you the four secrets of finding first time business loans at http://www.businessloanzen.com

Related Minority Business Grants Articles

Business Grant Money Information

Business Grant Money Information

A successful business often starts with a single idea. Then, with a little help from outside financial resource, this idea is later turned to reality. See the trend here? While we’re not saying that money can make the world go round, it can do a lot of unusual feats, like turning your ideas into dollars, for instance.


But then, there lies a problem. How many bright ideas do you think have people come up with? A thousand? And out of all that, how many of them had been turned into successful business enterprises? Ten? Twenty? Thats because the person who came up with the idea doesnt have the financial means to make his idea work.


Now, what if we told you that there is a way for you to finance your dreams? No, we’re not talking about loans. We’re talking about business grant money.


Unlike a loan, a business grant does not require you to pay back the amount. In fact, thats the reason why many people refer to it as free money because it is, technically, free, though there may be obligations and sanctions imposed.


The great thing about business grants is that it is out there. It exists, though you may have to dig deep to find one that suits you perfectly. And when it comes to federally funded grant money, you may have to dig a bit deeper than usual.


You see, while many private institutions and nonprofit groups offer business grants to enterprising individuals, the real money (a hefty chunk of it, in fact) often comes from government.


Congress allocates about million in business grant money to be distributed to the 57 federal agencies all over the United States. For a simple street-paving project proposal, you may get awarded something around ,000 – ,000 in grants.


The only requirement that the federal government imposes is that your business project must be beneficial to the local community or the general public. A search through the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) will lead you to two types of business grants: one for rural businesses and one for minority business enterprises.


For a rural business grant, the purpose is to promote sustainable economic development in rural communities with exceptional needs. Since the program gives a strong emphasis on helping existing businesses grow, eligible applications for the grant money for starting a business are public entities and nonprofit corporations that may in turn award money to the residents they serve.


Other eligible applicants for the money for starting a business include Indian tribes on Federal or State reservations or other Federally recognized tribal groups, and cooperatives with members that are primarily rural residents and that conduct activities for the mutual benefit of the members.


On the other hand, minority business grants offered at CFDA is aimed at fostering new minority business enterprises and maintaining and strengthening existing firms to increase their opportunities to participate and receive benefits of our economic system.


Applications eligible for this program for grant money for starting a business are Federal, State or local government entities or quasi governmental entities, American Indian Tribes, colleges, universities, nonprofit organizations, and for project organizations.

Minority Grants

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gettingyourminoritybusinessgrant.info
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Business Grants For Women

Business Grants For Women

Women have some advantages, for example, women can be very intuitive and they have the ability to blend analysis and creativity; very useful qualities for successful business startup and expansion, as proven by the growing number of successful businesses owned by women.

The United States government provides economic aid from the general federal revenue to various recipients in the form of Government Grants, to carry out public support or stimulation, as authorized by the law of the United States. Hundreds of billions of dollars of funds are distributed by 26 grant making agencies to around 900 grant programs administered by the states, local governments and various agencies. These grants are made with the intention of stimulating economic growth.

Business grants for women are not available directly from the U.S. government, but the government does provide free help for planning, starting and expanding businesses and cheap loans. The Small Business Administration provides planning, financing, training and advocacy for small businesses and it works with thousands of lending, educational and training institutions nationwide and is able to provide low interest loans.

The U.S. Small Business Administration, or SBA, has offices in every state, the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. The contact details for each of these can be found at www.citizensgrants.com/SBA-Womens-Business-Centers.php

The SBA can help you if your business is, or will be independently owned and operated, is not dominant in its field, and meets the maximum business size standards.

Business grants for women are available from the states and the contact details for each state can be found at www.citizensgrants.com/Grant-Resources-by-State.php. To be the recipient of grants you need to sot through the grants resources and discover which grants you are eligible for, and apply for them.

Business grants for women are also listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance. The CFDA provides a full listing of all Federal programs available to State and local governments (including the District of Columbia); federally-recognized Indian tribal governments; Territories (and possessions) of the United States; domestic, public, quasi- public, and private profit and nonprofit organizations and institutions; specialized groups; and individuals. It is of course comprehensive and, once again it is necessary to discover the grants for which you are eligible and apply for them.

The process of finding grants and applying for them is slow and tedious, and it is no surprise to find that software has been developed to speed up the process. This makes it very easy to find all the grants for which you are eligible, and write the applications, because tips and templates for application writing are included with the software.

Discover the grants for which you are eligible, and apply for them easily and quickly, at Business Grants For Women

Minority Grants

The hard work has been done for you so why wait?
Discover how to find and apply for your grants quickly and easily at Business Grants For Women.

government-grants.tv Learn how the government can give free grant money to women starting a business.
Minority Grants
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Minority Business Grants

Minority Business Grants

It can be quite difficult to start a business without adequate funding and making arrangements to line up the same is no easy task either. The only recourse is usually to approach banks or other financial lending institutions for help.

Fortunately, the facility of minority business grants comes as a boon for those entrepreneurs who wish to start their own business and are looking for funds. Under this facility, they can get up to ,000 to make a start with their business venture. They can thus through a profitable business pay back to society by providing people with jobs, paying their taxes and by encouraging competition in the said business.

The most convenient aspect of minority business grants over conventional loans is the fact that this money need not by repaid by the individual at all. These loans are provided by the government funding agencies and other private institutions as free money with no expectation of a payback irrespective of whether the said business is doing well or not. However, not everybody can get access to such a bonanza. You need to present a good business plan that can show profit once begun and the evaluating team would study the plan before recommending it for a grant.

In addition to the minority business grants, other types of grants are also available for entrepreneurs to start a profitable business. Venture capital funding is one such avenue where you can get access to required funds, though you would have to give up some percentage of ownership stake in the business. This would automatically mean relinquishing some control as well but as long as you are holding a majority stake, it should suit your purpose.

Minority business grants can be accessed and are typically preferred by Hispanic and other Asian American individuals with sound business plans. They find that this money helps them to set up offices, recruit employees and prepare the groundwork for their business without having to take traditional loans at high rates of interest. These grants are also offered to American citizens wanting to set up small businesses.

Minority Grants

Carl Evangelista helps you with a step-by-step guide to obtaining government grants for any need. Whether you’re looking for grant research, proposal writing tips, or just to see if there is a grant that fits your needs. For more info visit http://www.government-grants.tv/blog

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