The New Jersey Office of Emergency Management announced today that low-interest Small Business Administration loans of up to $200,000 are now available to South Jersey homeowners to repair damaged or destroyed real estate, resulting from severe storms and straight line winds which took place on June 30, 2012.  Homeowners and renters are also eligible for loans up to $40,000 to repair or replace damaged or destroyed personal property.

The following counties are included in the SBA Disaster Declaration:  Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester and Ocean.

Starting Tuesday September 25, 2012 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, and issue and help individuals complete their applications. 

The location of the Disaster Loan Outreach Center is:

Township of Hamilton – Atlantic County
Town Hall
6101 Thirteenth Street
Mays Landing, New Jersey 08330

Opening:  Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Hours:   8:30 am until 4:30 pm

Open: Tuesday, September 25, 2012 through Thursday, October 4, 2012
Hours: 8:30 am until 4:30 pm

Open:   Saturday, September 29, 2012
Hours:   10:00 am until 2:00 pm

Closed:  Sunday, September 30, 2012

 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. The 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 the SBA, to make improvements that lessen the risk of property damage by future disasters of the same kind.

For 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. 

Individuals 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., and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET, or by sending an e-mail to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

Business loan applications can also be downloaded from the SBA website atwww.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.

Those affected by the disaster may apply for disaster loans from SBA’s website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela/. 

The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is November 20, 2012. The deadline to return economic injury applications is June 21, 2013.   See attached fact sheet for detailed information concerning interest rates.

— News release from the N.J. Office of Emergency Management