SBA Offers Disaster Assistance to Pennsylvania Residents Affected by the Apartment Building Fire in Philadelphia County

WASHINGTON – Residents and businesses affected by the apartment building fire in Philadelphia County on Jan. 10, can apply for low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration, SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills announced today. rnrnMills made the loans available in response to a letter from Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett onrnJan. 20, requesting a disaster declaration by the SBA. The declaration covers Philadelphia County and the adjacent counties of Bucks, Delaware and Montgomery in Pennsylvania and Burlington, Camden and Gloucester in New Jersey. rnrn“The SBA is strongly committed to providing the people of Pennsylvania with the most effective and customer-focused response possible to assist homeowners, renters, and businesses of all sizes with federal disaster loans,” said Administrator Mills. “Getting businesses and communities up and running after a disaster is our highest priority at SBA.”rnrn“Loans up to $200,000 are available to homeowners to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate. Homeowners and renters are eligible for loans up to $40,000 to repair or replace damaged or destroyed personal property,” said Frank Skaggs, director of SBA’s Field Operations Center East in Atlanta. SBA’s customer service representatives will be on hand at the Disaster Loan Outreach Center to answer questions about the disaster loan program, explain the process, issue and help individuals complete their applications.rnrnThe Center will be located in the following community and the hours of operation are:rnPhiladelphia CountyrnSalvation Army Corps Center – Arch Street Entrancern5501 Market StreetrnPhiladelphia, PA 19139rnOpen: Tuesday, Feb. 1 through Thursday, Feb. 3 from 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.rnClosing: Thursday, Feb. 3 at 8 p.m., the close of businessrnrn“Businesses and non-profit organizations of any size may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other business assets,” said David C. Dickson, SBA’s Philadelphia district director.rnThe SBA may increase a loan up to 20 percent of the total amount of disaster damage to real estate and/or leasehold improvements, as verified by SBA, to make improvements that lessen the risk of property damage by future disasters of the same kind. rnrnFor small businesses and most private non-profit organizations of all sizes, the SBA offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) to help meet working capital needs caused by the disaster. EIDL assistance is available regardless of whether the business suffered any physical property damage.rnrnInterest rates are as low as 2.250 percent for homeowners and renters, 3 percent for non-profit organizations and 4 percent for businesses with terms up to 30 years. Loan amounts and terms are set by the SBA and are based on each applicant’s financial condition.rnrnIndividuals and businesses unable to visit the Center may obtain information on loan applications by calling the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (800-877-8339 for people with speech or hearing disabilities), Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET or by sending an e-mail to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Business loan applications can also be downloaded from the SBA website at www.sba.gov. Completed applications should be returned to the Center or mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155. rnrnThose affected by the disaster may apply for disaster loans from SBA’s secure website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela/.rnrnThe filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is March 28, 2011. The deadline to return economic injury applications is October 25, 2011.