Fund your New Hampshire business

When your own money is not enough, start with an advisor, then read which program actually sits beside a bank. The New Hampshire SBDC does not lend. Most of the Business Finance Authority’s programs are filed by a lender. Three are direct loans from the authority, and the early-stage funds take applications through their own partners.

What’s different in New Hampshire

• Advising is free. The SBDC offers confidential advising at no charge to New Hampshire enterprises¹.
• The authority is sometimes the lender. You do not send the Capital Access Program application to the authority by yourself. The bank does. Business energy loans, temporary loans, and direct financing are direct loans, with the sizes below.
• The same CAP page prints two caps. The introduction says a 100% guarantee on term loans and lines of credit up to $500,000. The FAQ says the maximum per borrower is $200,000².* Ask the lender which figure applies to your loan.
• One SBA office covers the state. It is in Concord, by appointment only, and it serves all ten counties⁹.

Do this

1. Write down what you need and what it is for. Participations allow commercial real estate, equipment, and working capital. Passive real estate, buying a business, and owner cash-outs are prohibited⁴. A startup is not eligible for a participation. The guarantee page says startups usually do not meet its credit or collateral tests.
2. Book advising. The New Hampshire SBDC says the advising is confidential advising at no charge to New Hampshire enterprises, for legal residents and citizens of the United States¹. Workshops are not in that no-cost line.* Ask what a class costs before you sign up.
3. Use the SBA office. The New Hampshire District Office is in Concord, by appointment only. It offers funding programs, counseling, federal contracting certifications, and disaster recovery for the entire state⁹.
4. Understand who lends the regular SBA loans. 7(a) and the other ordinary SBA loans come from participating lenders, not the SBA. The SBA loans guide explains who makes each kind.
5. Read CAP if a bank is willing to lend. On the CAP page, the bank submits the enrollment. Businesses need annual revenues of less than $5 million. $500,000 is one cap on that page. $200,000 is the other.* New businesses put in 20% cash equity, and that equity cannot be borrowed. The lender chooses 3% to 4% of the loan balance at closing, chargeable to the borrower. The authority matches that amount 2.5 times into a reserve at the bank, and there is no ongoing annual fee. The authority charges no application fee² for any program.
6. Read the guarantee only if a bank is already willing to lend. The guarantee page offers up to 75% on a line of credit and up to 90% on a term loan. There is no set maximum dollar amount on a term loan. A line of credit is capped at $2,000,000. The company should have at least 20 employees, or a credible plan to reach that number. The bank submits the request, and every guarantee needs approval from the authority and from the Governor and Executive Council. Startups are technically eligible and typically do not meet the credit or collateral requirements. The fee is 1% of the guaranteed portion at closing and each year after³, chargeable to the borrower.
7. Read participations only if you are not a startup. The participation page says startups are not eligible. The participation amount is $100,000 to $5,000,000, and the maximum loan size is $20,000,000. The bank submits the request. Zero interest in the first year, and reduced interest in the second year. Passive real estate, buying a business, and owner cash-outs are prohibited⁴.
8. Read early-stage capital only if you are raising an investment. The early-stage page says investment is applied for through the authority's partner funds. The Granite Fund is fully invested⁵. The other funds on that page say whether they are still investing.
9. Read the direct loans before you assume a bank has to be involved. Business energy loans are direct loans from the authority for energy-saving initiatives, from $100,000 to $1,000,000⁶. Temporary loans are direct loans from the authority for temporary needs, for up to three years, from $100,000 to $2,000,000, and need Executive Council approval⁷. Direct financing is a direct loan from the authority that fills a gap in a bank's financing, made through the state's Regional Development Corporations, typically $10,000 to $1,000,000, with a credit decision made jointly by the authority and the development corporation. The direct financing page says start-ups are technically eligible but typically do not meet the underwriting standards⁸.
10. Keep your paperwork ready. Lenders and advisors ask for your formation documents and EIN. Register your business and Get your tax IDs.
11. After a declared disaster, the SBA can lend directly. Disaster assistance covers several loan types, including physical damage loans and economic injury loans. Economic injury loans are for small businesses the SBA decides cannot get credit elsewhere¹⁰. A disaster by itself does not qualify you. Check the declaration and the loan type before you apply.

What you get back

An appointment with an advisor, and help preparing what a lender asks for. A loan decision on CAP, a guarantee, or a participation comes from the bank and, for a guarantee, from the authority and the Governor and Executive Council. On a direct loan, the decision comes from the authority, with the development corporation for direct financing and the Executive Council for a temporary loan. An equity decision comes from a partner fund only if it chooses to invest. These pages do not promise a finished plan or an approval.