Colorado Lending Source designated Community Advantage lender

Colorado Lending Source has been designated a Community Advantage lender by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Community Advantage loans are financed by mission-based lenders like Colorado Lending Source, rather than directly through a bank. Colorado Lending Source is partnering with Peoples Bank to process the $50,000 to $250,000 loans for a variety of business needs.

"We are very excited that Colorado Lending Source is one of the nation's newest Community Advantage lenders," says Mike O'Donnell, executive director of Colorado Lending Source. "We feel that the Community Advantage loan program will be huge for the state of Colorado. These loans are more flexible than conventional bank loans because the program is specifically focused on underserved small businesses from the perspective of accessing debt financing."

Colorado Lending Source prefers that at least 80 percent of small businesses be located within an underserved market, defined as low- to moderate-income communities where 50 percent of the workforce is low income or resides in a low- to moderate-income census tract.

A requirement for receiving a Community Advantage loan is that either a bank has referred the project or the small business can show that a bank has declined its loan request. The referring bank will maintain a relationship with the small business, which will be encouraged to refinance its Community Advantage loan through that bank.

"By providing a line of credit to Colorado Lending Source to make loans to underserved small businesses, we are not only helping local businesses expand but are creating a pipeline future Peoples Bank customers when they are ready to obtain traditional bank financing," says Brett Haigler, community bank president at Peoples Bank.

Contact Confluence Denver Development News Editor Margaret Jackson with tips and leads for future stories at margaret@confluence-denver.com.