Focus

Although Chicago was able to escape reality for a short time as the Blackhawks won the city's first Stanley Cup in 49 years, the rest of the U.S. was still struggling to survive in a weak economy. Fortunately, some small-business owners have been finding respite in institutions that specialize in microlending.

Microlenders typically are community-based nonprofit organizations that receive financing from the Small Business Administration (SBA); federal, state and local government agencies; and some philanthropies. And though microlending organizations focus mostly on the poor and disenfranchised and offer small loans (some as small as $25), some microlenders have realized their services are perfect for struggling small businesses that have been denied credit by traditional banks and credit card companies.

According to the Aspen Institute, a policy and research organization based in Washington, D.C., small-business loan applications to microlenders have increased 66 percent during the past two years. The Aspen Institute says of the 700 microlending groups it studied, about 400 offer small-business loans. The average maximum loan amount is $35,000. Most small-business loans fall between $5,000 and $35,000.

According to The New York Times, each microlender has an annual lending limit of $750,000, which SBA sets. The average microloan in 2008 was a 10-year loan of $11,500 at an annual interest rate of about 11 percent.

Advantages of pursuing a microloan include being able to develop a more personal relationship with a lender; often, loan officers will spend several hours getting to know an applicant, taking into consideration the applicant's personal story before rejecting or approving a loan. However, interest rates from microlenders can be steep: CBS News reports interest rates from microlenders can go as high as 31 percent.

As the economy continues to pose difficulties for small businesses, it can be comforting to know all options are not lost. Just ask Blackhawks fans.

Ambika Puniani Bailey is editor of Professional Roofing and NRCA's senior director of communications.