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No. 71 Spring/Summer 2009

PUBLISHED BY THE
COMMUNITY AFFAIRS
DEPARTMENT OF THE
FEDERAL RESERVE BANK
OF PHILADELPHIA

INSIDE:
2 — Message from the
Community Affairs Officer
3 — Recovery Act Gives SBA
Tools to Boost Small Businesses
4 — New State and Federal
Resources Help New Jersey
Businesses Face Challenges of
National Recession
6 — Established Businesses
Seek Help from SBDCs
7 — Credit Unions Pursue
Small Business Loans
8 — Spotlight on Research:
Small Businesses’ Access to
Credit
10 — LDDs Offer a Window on
Rural Pennsylvania
11 — State of Delaware and
Banks Assist Businesses
16 — Calendar of Events

A COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PUBLICATION

CASCADE
CDFI Business Lending Grows During Recession
By Keith L. Rolland, Community Development Advisor
The current economic situation has
changed financing prospects for small
businesses around the country. To better
understand how community development
financial institutions (CDFIs) are responding to the need of small businesses for financing, we asked the executive directors
of seven CDFI business lenders about their
recent experience in loan demand, lending
policies, and loan performance.*
To summarize, the CDFIs are receiving
more inquiries and applications, including some from established businesses
approaching CDFIs for the first time. The
CDFIs are making more loans, and the
average loan size increased from 2008 to
2009 at most of these institutions.
The CDFIs are experiencing a rise in
delinquencies and are
therefore increasing
loan monitoring, working closely with existing
borrowers and making
loan modifications when

* Comments are organized in
order of the three CDFIs with a
large business loan dollar volume
in the past three years (Cooperative Business Assistance Corporation, Community First Fund, and
The Progress Fund), followed by
four microlenders (Community
Capital Works Inc., Economic Opportunities Fund, First State Community Loan Fund, and Rising
Tide Community Loan Fund).

www.philadelphiafed.org

necessary. They are also more carefully
scrutinizing loan requests from start-ups.
In addition, regarding their own funding,
the CDFIs are concerned that past levels of
bank support may not be maintained.

Application Demand

The Cooperative Business Assistance
Corporation (CBAC), based in Camden,
N.J., reported that it received 102 completed
applications in the eight-month period that
ended February 27, 2009, nearly equal to
the number it received in the full year that
ended June 30, 2008. CBAC’s portfolio increased 7.5 percent during the eight months.
Michael Diemer, CBAC’s executive director, said: “Our financing has risen as conventional financing has fallen and owners
...continued on page 11

Swisco Inc., a window manufacturer in Camden, N.J., obtained a loan
from the Cooperative Business Assistance Corporation. Shown are
David Pallas, owner (left), and his brother Paul.
1

CASCADE

No. 71
Spring/Summer 2009

Cascade is published three times a year by the
Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s Community Affairs Department and is available at www.
philadelphiafed.org.
Material may be reprinted or abstracted provided
Cascade is credited. The views expressed
herein are not necessarily those of the Federal
Reserve Bank of Philadelphia or the Federal
Reserve System.
Send comments, address changes, and subscription requests to Keith L. Rolland at (215) 5746569 or keith.rolland@phil.frb.org.
COMMUNITY AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT
Kenyatta Burney
Senior Staff Assistant
(215) 574-6037
kenyatta.burney@phil.frb.org
Jeri Cohen-Bauman
Lead Administrative Assistant
(215) 574-6458
jeri.cohen-bauman@phil.frb.org
Christy Chung Hevener
Consumer Specialist
(215) 574-6461
christy.hevener@phil.frb.org
Andrew T. Hill, Ph.D.
Economic Education Advisor
(215) 574-4392
andrew.hill@phil.frb.org
Amy B. Lempert
Community Development Advisor and Manager
(215) 574-6570
amy.lempert@phil.frb.org
Erin Mierzwa
Community Development Specialist
(215) 574-6641
erin.mierzwa@phil.frb.org
Dede Myers
Vice President and Community Affairs Officer
(215) 574-6482
dede.myers@phil.frb.org
Harriet Newburger, Ph.D.
Community Development Research Advisor
(215) 574-3819
harriet.newburger@phil.frb.org
Keith L. Rolland
Community Development Advisor
(215) 574-6569
keith.rolland@phil.frb.org
Marvin M. Smith, Ph.D.
Community Development Research Advisor
(215) 574-6393
marty.smith@phil.frb.org
Brian Tyson
Research Assistant
(215) 574-3492
brian.tyson@phil.frb.org
John J. Wackes
Community Development Specialist
(215) 574-3810
john.j.wackes@phil.frb.org
Todd Zartman
Economic Education Specialist
(215) 574-6457
2
todd.zartman@phil.frb.org

Message from the
Community Affairs Officer
Late last year, as the subprime mortgage crisis unfolded, the credit crunch
expanded, and the economic downtown continued, we began getting requests to address the concerns of small
business. Although we were then
focused on the residential turmoil,
we planned this issue of Cascade to
respond to that need. It will be no surprise to learn that what we confirmed
is that there is a problem, but there are
also some interesting solutions.
Marty Smith reviews a study prepared
for the National Federation for Independent Business Research Foundation. The business owners surveyed
expressed their concerns about the
recession’s impact on their operations
and their subsequent inability to get
bank financing. Clearly some are
worried that they may not survive the
recession.
Additionally, a more direct indication
of changing credit standards and lending volumes can be found in the Fed’s
quarterly Senior Loan Officer Opinion
Survey. The survey (available at www.
federalreserve.gov) clearly indicates
that banks have reduced lending and
tightened underwriting in response to
the economic downturn.
But as the banks have tightened their
underwriting criteria, other entities
are stepping into the breach. Caren
Franzini, CEO of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority
(NJEDA), has written an article on
three NJEDA programs created to
reduce risks to banks while also
addressing the needs of business
borrowers. She also discusses how

the federal government’s economic
stimulus efforts detailed in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
(ARRA) complement and expand
efforts by the NJEDA to support
manufacturing in the state. Nationally,
the ARRA also enables the U.S. Small
Business Administration to expand its
support of small businesses by eliminating fees and increasing guarantees,
as David Dickson reports.
For local community development
financial institutions (CDFIs), the
credit crunch has had both positive
and negative effects, as you will see in
Keith Rolland’s story about the challenges for CDFIs as they experience
changes in loan demand, lending policies, and loan performance. The seven
CDFIs interviewed have seen an increased number of loan requests from
borrowers with better credit profiles,
but some also report increasing loan
loss reserves for existing customers.
Meanwhile, we have heard separately
that other CDFIs have reported that
investors have pulled back and are not
investing in the CDFIs at the level they
may have in previous years.
We also have articles from Delaware,
the rural northern and central parts
of Pennsylvania, and Small Business
Development Centers in this Federal
Reserve District.
Please take the time to read these articles. These are tough times, but there
are solutions.

Recovery Act Gives SBA Tools to Boost Small Businesses
By David C. Dickson, District Director, Philadelphia District Office, U.S. Small Business Administration
The Obama administration has
taken steps to alleviate the small
business credit crunch by offering
new incentives to small business
borrowers and lenders through the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and by actions of
the Department of the Treasury.
With tax incentives and steps to
encourage lending, the ARRA recognizes that assisting small businesses
is an important step toward getting
our economy moving again. The
bill’s primary goals for the U.S. Small
Business Administration (SBA) are
jump-starting job creation, restarting
lending, and promoting investment
in small businesses.
The ARRA provides entrepreneurs
and lenders with financial relief
during the current economic crisis
that will help encourage borrowing
and lending to all small businesses,
including start-ups.
For small businesses, the act temporarily eliminates SBA-guaranteed
7(a) and 504 loan fees and offers tax
credits. For lenders, it temporarily
eliminates 504 loan fees. The fee
eliminations are retroactive to
February 17. The SBA is developing
a mechanism for refunding fees paid
on loans since then.
The act also supports guarantees of
up to 90 percent on most types of 7(a)
loans to qualified small businesses.
The temporary loan fee eliminations
and 90 percent guarantee provisions
will apply to approximately $8.7
billion in 7(a) loans and $3.6 billion in
504 loans. The SBA estimates that this
will cover lending in both programs
through the calendar year of 2009.

In addition, the Treasury Department
will commit up to $15 billion in funds
from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to help unfreeze small
business lending. This will particularly benefit community banks, credit
unions, and other small lenders.
The Treasury will purchase existing
and new SBA-backed loans made
by banks, freeing up more capital so
these banks can restart their lending
to local small businesses.
The act provides the SBA with $730
million, including $375 million
to cover the costs of temporarily
eliminating loan fees and raising
guarantee limits on some loans, $255
million for a new loan program to
help viable small businesses with
immediate economic hardship make
payments on existing loans, and
additional funding for SBA-backed
microlenders.
The ARRA also authorizes the SBA
to use its 504 program to refinance
existing loans for fixed assets as
part of a business expansion project; to use its guarantee authority
to establish a secondary market
for bank loans made under the 504
loan program; and to make loans to
broker-dealers who buy SBA-backed
loans from lenders and pool them for
sale to investors.
Also under the act, small businesses
that need surety bonds to compete
for construction and service contracts can qualify for SBA-backed
surety bonds of up to $5 million,
more than double the previous
maximum of $2 million.
Another element of the ARRA that is
already in place is the SBA’s micro-

loan program. These nonprofit, community-based lenders make loans of
up to $35,000 to small businesses and
start-ups. Because this program is
already operating, a borrower can go
to a microlender today and apply for
a loan.* The act funds $50 million in
new loans by these lenders, plus $24
million to help pay for the technical
assistance and training they provide
to loan applicants.
We have already seen significant
interest in a new program, America’s Recovery Capital (ARC) Loan
Program, by both lenders and small
businesses. Once in place, this
temporary new program will offer
deferred-payment loans of up to
$35,000 to viable small businesses
that need help making payments
on an existing, qualifying loan for
up to six months. These loans will
be 100 percent guaranteed by the
SBA. Repayment would not have
to begin until 12 months after the
loan is fully disbursed, giving small
businesses time to refocus their
business plans in order to succeed
in the long run.
The ARRA helps SBA-licensed
investment companies by raising the
level of SBA funding they can receive
to make venture capital investments
in small businesses. It also raises the
percentage of their investments that
must be made in smaller businesses
from 20 percent to 25 percent.
For further details, visit www.sba.gov.
David C. Dickson can be reached at
david.dickson@sba.gov. In New Jersey,
contact James A. Kocsi at james.kocsi@
sba.gov. In Delaware, contact Jayne E.
Armstrong at jayne.armstrong@sba.gov.

* For a list of SBA microloan providers, go to www.sba.gov/services/financialassistance/sbaloantopics/microloans/index.html.

3

New State and Federal Resources Help New Jersey Businesses
Face Challenges of National Recession
By Caren S. Franzini, Chief Executive Officer, New Jersey Economic Development Authority
New Jersey businesses now have
additional resources to help them
face the financial challenges of the
national recession.
Two state programs established under Gov. Jon S. Corzine’s Economic
Assistance and Recovery Plan have
made $170 million in new funding
available to encourage capital investment and job creation and retention.
The governor’s comprehensive plan
to stimulate New Jersey’s economy,
create jobs, combat hunger, provide
home energy assistance, and take
steps to prevent home foreclosures
was announced in October.

The Main Street Program

Some businesses that are looking
to expand, or just survive, in the
current economic climate have found
it more difficult to obtain adequate
credit from their banks. One new
initiative, the Main Street Business

Assistance Program, offers state
support to encourage bank lending
to small and mid-size businesses
and nonprofit organizations in New
Jersey through loan participation

The Main Street program has two components: a loan
participation and guarantee product for bank financing
and a line of credit guarantee offered for the first time
through the EDA’s 14 preferred lender-partners.
and credit enhancement. The program is designed specifically to help
banks provide funding to creditworthy companies so they can weather
the economic downturn, continue
their growth, and remain competitive in New Jersey.
Developed in partnership with the
state’s banking community and the

McKella 280 Inc., a Pennsauken-based business providing graphic design, digital imaging,
printing, and fulfillment services, closed a $1.2 million line of credit with Susquehanna Bank
that includes a $250,000 guarantee provided through the EDA’s Main Street Business Assistance Program. McKella also closed a $2 million loan with Susquehanna Bank that includes
$500,000 from the EDA and a $375,000 guarantee of the bank’s portion of the loan under the
EDA’s Statewide Loan Pool for Business program. The company provides 98 jobs.
4

New Jersey departments of Banking and Insurance and Treasury,
the Main Street program has been
funded by a $50 million state appropriation and is being administered

by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA). The
investment will potentially leverage
more than $200 million in bank
funding for businesses and nonprofit organizations in New Jersey.
The Main Street program has two
components: a loan participation and
guarantee product for bank financing, and a line of credit guarantee
offered for the first time through the
EDA’s 14 preferred lender-partners.
For term loans secured by fixed
assets like buildings and equipment,
the EDA will provide a maximum
participation of 25 percent up to
$1 million in a bank loan and a
maximum bank loan guarantee of 50
percent up to $2 million. For working
capital loans, the EDA will provide
up to 25 percent of a bank loan, not
to exceed $750,000, and a maximum
guarantee of 50 percent up to $1.5
million. The interest rate on EDA loan
participations is fixed at 5 percent for
a maximum of five years. Borrowers
also can use the Main Street program
to refinance higher-interest debt. The
line of credit guarantee, which can be

Courtesy of the Courier-Post Newspaper

used for fixed assets or working capital, is set at a maximum of 50 percent
of the bank amount up to $250,000.
The aggregate EDA exposure cannot
exceed $2 million, or 50 percent, of
the total transaction.
A specialty food market and catering
service in Mount Laurel was the first
business to finalize funding under
the program earlier this year. Abbruzzi and Giunta’s Italian Market
and Catering closed a $1,546,000 loan
with Cornerstone Bank that includes
$211,000 from the EDA. The loan
will be used to consolidate existing
financing and expand the market’s
catering business.

InvestNJ

More than 1,000 applications have
been submitted for another new
EDA-managed program called
InvestNJ. This $120 million statefunded program offers a $3,000 grant
to New Jersey businesses for each
new job created and retained for

Mark Giunta, co-owner of Abbruzzi and Giunta’s Italian Market in Mount Laurel, N.J., is expanding the market with a loan from Cornerstone Bank that includes a participation from the
NJEDA’s Main Street program.

one year, not to exceed $500,000 per
grantee. It also authorizes the payment of grants equal to 7 percent of a
business’s qualifying capital investment of at least $5,000 made prior to
January 1, 2011, with a maximum of
$1 million per grantee.
Applications received show that
companies plan to create nearly
24,000 new jobs and make capital investments totaling close to
$100 million in their projects.

Courtesy of the Courier-Post Newspaper

Because the allocation for this
grant program has been exhausted, new applicants are currently being placed on a waiting
list and will be considered on a
first-come, first-served basis if
earlier applicants do not meet
program qualifications.

Federal Economic Stimulus
Complements State Plan

Dave Wiggins is completing the purchase of A-1
Millwork, a manufacturer of doors, staircases, and
premium moldings in Waterford, N.J., with a direct
loan from the EDA. The 35-year-old company has
13 employees.

The recently enacted federal
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is an excellent complement to Governor
Corzine’s state plan. One of its
components expands uses for
tax-exempt bond financing,
which can help generate business growth and community
investment in New Jersey.

For many years, the EDA has been
the conduit bond issuer for federally
authorized tax-exempt bond financing available to manufacturers and
other qualified borrowers. Many
tax-exempt bonds are purchased
directly by banks and other financial
institutions. Since 2006, for example,
the EDA has provided nearly $180
million to 50 manufacturers, supporting the creation of 1,200 new
jobs and over $260 million in total
capital investment.
This new two-year federal initiative
expands the definition of manufacturing to include the creation or
production of intangible property,
such as a patent, copyright, formula,
process, design, pattern, format, or
other similar item, thus opening
this low-cost, long-term financing
to companies within the technology
and pharmaceutical industries. Prior
to the act, only facilities involved
in the manufacturing of tangible
property were eligible.
To learn more about these initiatives,
visit www.njeda.com or call 1-866-5347789.

5

Established Businesses Seek Help from SBDCs
By Keith L. Rolland, Community Development Advisor
During the past year small business development centers (SBDCs)
have seen a significant increase in
demand for their services from wellestablished businesses looking for
ways to survive the recession.
SBDCs are university- or collegebased regional centers that provide
one-on-one counseling by consultants and students as well as
seminars to new and established
businesses.
Christian Conroy, state director of
Pennsylvania’s 18 SBDCs, said that
many of the centers’ services have
shifted to helping established businesses find new markets in order to
increase sales, develop new sources
of financing, reduce energy and raw
material costs, and improve business
practices. “Many business owners
have a lot of anxiety about the future

and are very hesitant to take on new
debt,” Conroy said.
However, he said there is new interest in starting businesses on the part
of laid-off executives who “have a lot
of experience, networks, and assets.”

He noted that SBDC budgets are being cut by state agencies
at the same time as the
demand for their services
Business owners are asking
has increased. SBDCs are
funded by the U.S. Small
the SBDCs for assistance
Business Administrain bidding on government
tion, state agencies, and
businesses, including
contracts that are identified
financial institutions.

in
the federal stimulus legislation.

Brenda B. Hopper, state
director of New Jersey’s
11 regional SBDCs, said
the increase in clients ranges from 20
percent to 38 percent, depending on
the center.
Gary Rago, director of the Rutgers SBDC in Camden, N.J., said
the big difference in SBDC clients
has been an increase in well-run,
profitable, established businesses
that are now struggling in the
recession. “They’ve talked to
their suppliers, renegotiated with
lenders when possible, tried to
trim expenses, and are looking
for other strategies to survive
now that their revenues have
fallen,” he said.

Giles Wickham (shown in photo) and Marcia
Readinger, both from Selinsgrove, Pa., received assistance in developing a business plan and financial statement from the Bucknell University Small
Business Development Center for a new farm that
grows and sells organic produce to restaurants,
health food stores, and farmers’ markets.
6

Business owners are asking the
SBDCs for assistance in bidding
on government contracts that are
identified in the federal stimulus
legislation. Tymes said there’s been a
threefold increase in the number of
businesses seeking assistance from
the Delaware SBDCs’ Procurement
Technical Assistance Program.

Clinton Tymes, state director of
Delaware’s three SBDCs, said an
increased counseling demand
of about 20 percent is coming
largely from businesses that have
existed for 15 to 50 years, including builders, restaurants, service
businesses, and day care centers.

Two other business-support programs affiliated with the SBA, the
Service Corps of Retired Executives
(SCORE) and Women’s Business
Centers (WBCs), are also experiencing strong demand. Mark Maguire,
chairman of SCORE’s Philadelphia
chapter, said its 13 retired business
executives counsel an average of 15
to 20 people a week.
E-Magnify, a WBC at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, Pa., served
1004 clients in 2008, 30 percent more
than its targeted goal.
For information, contact Christian
Conroy at (215) 898-1219 or cconroy@
wharton.upenn.edu; Brenda B. Hopper
at bhopper@njsbdc.com; Gary Rago at
(856) 225-6668 or rago@camden.rutgers.
edu; Clinton Tymes at (302) 831-1555
or tymesc@udel.edu; Mark Maguire at
(267) 394-2782 or scorephila@yahoo.
com; Shelly Weaver at (724) 830-1001 or
weaver@setonhill.edu; e-magnify.com.

Credit Unions Pursue Small Business Loans
By Keith L. Rolland, Community Development Advisor
During the current recession, credit
unions are making inroads in small
business lending, while banks are
tightening underwriting criteria for
such loans.

it’s in their best interest to train their
staffs or hire experienced personnel,”
Snody said, “since the credit unions
are responsible for the lending decisions.”

extensive time and counseling are
often required to meet the financial
needs of small business owners, and
that spending the extra time is consistent with the credit unions’ mission
as not-for-profit cooperatives.

In another
model, credit
Credit unions can only lend to their
unions may
members, who are defined in their
develop expercharters.1 Credit unions have tratise in busiditionally had products targeted to
ness lending
consumers. So business lending is
from a credit
a new growth area, although some
union service
credit unions have been making
organization
business loans since their inception.
such as East
Coast BusiThe Credit Union National Associaness Lenders
tion (CUNA), a trade association,
(ECBL), which
said that nearly 2,200 credit unions
provides finan(27 percent of the nation’s 8,000
cial analysis
credit unions) reported outstanding
The owners of this restaurant in Ewing,
and
underbusiness loans at the end of 2008.
N.J., received an equipment loan from
writing, loan
Snody provides trainOutstanding balances in business
the Credit Union of New Jersey, which
is one of four member-investors in East
documentaing to credit unions that
loans from credit unions totaled $33
Coast Business Lenders.
tion, servicing
want to enter business
billion at the end of 2008.2
and monitorlending and is developing, and education and training.
ing working relationships with the
CUNA economist Michael Schenk
ECBL was capitalized in 2006 by the
U.S. Small Business Administration,
said that larger credit unions are
Philadelphia Federal
small business development centers,
Credit Union (FCU),
and Commonwealth of PennsylvaBusiness owners who are credit union
the Credit Union of
nia officials. Prior to joining PCUA
New Jersey in Ewing,
in 2002, she worked in commercial
members have increasingly been seeking
N.J., First Financial
lending for 11 years as a credit and
financing from these institutions.
FCU in Wall, N.J., and
loan review officer and as a loan
the New Jersey Credit
operations manager for Community
Union League. It works
Banks, N.A. (now part of Susquemore likely to make business loans;
with other credit unions on a fee-forhanna Bank).
over half (53 percent) of the 3,500
service basis.
credit unions with more than $20
Credit unions that want to begin
million in assets reported outstandKathie A. Stone, ECBL’s CEO and a
lending to businesses may either deing business loans at the end of 2008.
25-year veteran of small business and
velop specialized staff or outsource
Only 7 percent of the nation’s 4,500
community lending at financial instiunderwriting, servicing, and other
smaller credit unions reported outtutions in the Delaware Valley, said
functions. “We tell credit unions that
standing business loans at year-end.
Molly Snody, director
of business advisory
services for the Pennsylvania Credit Union
Association (PCUA), said
the small business market
“has been largely underserved” during bank
consolidation in recent
years. This year, business
owners who are credit
union members have
increasingly been seeking financing from these
institutions, she said.

...continued on page 15
1

An exception is loan syndication.

At the end of 2008, 85 Pennsylvania credit unions had $438 million in outstanding business loans, 29 New Jersey credit unions had $212 million in
business loans, and three Delaware credit unions had $1.8 million in outstanding business loans. The average size of business loans in 2008 was $212,752
nationally, $212,068 in New Jersey, $151,508 in Delaware, and $146,761 in Pennsylvania. These data are from CUNA.

2

7

Small Businesses’ Access to Credit
The current economic morass is
having a profound impact on all
sectors of our economy. Some
policy prescriptions for assisting
the economic recovery have already
been implemented, while others are
under review. Whereas early efforts
were concentrated primarily on the
problems plaguing the financial
system and “Wall Street,” attention
is also being focused on the difficulties experienced on “Main Street.”
One group that will be counted
on to aid in the recovery is small
businesses. Small business owners
and entrepreneurs are credited with
a significant portion of the net job
creation that occurs in the U.S. However, their ability to provide jobs
and help spur an economic recovery
will be affected by their ability to
obtain loans. The tightening of credit
markets is thought to impede the efforts of small businesses. A report by
William J. Dennis Jr. addresses this
concern.1 What follows is a summary
of his report.

decrease in demand for credit is understandable, because it is likely that
fewer opportunities for productive
investments exist and poorer sales
tend to weaken balance sheets – both
of which affect the decision to seek
additional capital. But the author
also notes that the declining value
of real estate has had an unappreciated effect on small business owners.
Many of these owners have real
estate investments, and the loss in
value adversely affects their balance
sheets, which in turn makes borrowing more tenuous.

Background

Data and Methodology

The author points out that an unfortunate series of events – the collapse
of several high-profile financial entities, a precipitous drop in real estate
values, and the onset of a severe
recession – has resulted in depressed
demand for credit by small business owners. During a recession, a
1

However, according to the author,
small business owners are not as
“concerned about causes and complications as they are about impacts.”
Thus, he observes that the “impact of
a weak economy, falling real estate
values, and tighter credit markets
leaves them deeply concerned, to
a point where many believe the
survival of their enterprises are
threatened.”

The author’s report is based on survey data collected for the National
Federation of Independent Business
Research Foundation by the Gallup
Organization. A sample of 751 small
employers from the files of Dun
and Bradstreet were interviewed
between October 22, 2008, and

Marvin M. Smith, Ph.D.,
Community Development Research Advisor

November 17, 2008.2 Since a majority (60 percent) of businesses in the
U.S. employ from one to four people,
a sampling strategy was used to
ensure that an adequate number
of businesses with more than 10
employees were interviewed.

The Nation’s Finance Problem

A slight majority (53 percent) of the
small employers interviewed believe
that the nation’s financial difficulties
substantially affect their businesses.
The degree of the effect varies, with
34 percent considering it significant,
while 19 percent consider the impact
to be a little less severe, regarding it
as considerable. “Another 33 percent
judge the impact as milder, while 13
percent do not think they have been
affected.”

William J. Dennis, Jr., “Access to Credit,” National Federation of Independent Business’ National Small Business Poll, 8:7 (2008).

2
In this report, a “small employer” is defined as “a business owner employing no fewer than one individual in addition to the owner(s) and no more
than 249.”

8

On a more disconcerting note, the
survey revealed that 26 percent of
the small employers who said they
were adversely affected by the nation’s financial problems consider
the impact “a threat to their firm’s
survival, with another 16 percent assessing conditions as severe enough
to depress prospects for the foreseeable future.” The author hastens to
point out that the 26 percent figure
might be misleading, since about 10
percent of small employers go out of
business in a given year regardless
of broader economic circumstances.
But he also notes that there remains
a sizable difference between 26 percent and 10 percent, which reflects
the extent of the concern with the
current economic fallout. Moreover,
this concern is widespread and not
confined to firms of any specific
demographic group.

Impact on Small Businesses

The small employers revealed that
the economic situation has affected
their businesses in several ways.
Forty-five percent cited slowing or
lost sales as the primary problem.
Other impacts include the unpredictability of business conditions (23
percent), falling real estate values
(9 percent), the inability to obtain
credit (9 percent), followed by the
cost and terms of credit (5 percent).
Yet 4 percent indicated no difficulties
stemming from the current economic circumstances. When survey
participants were asked to predict
the most serious long-term outcome
of current conditions, the most
frequent response was a long period
of slow or no growth.3

Borrowing Sources

The author points out that “small
business owners have somewhat
over one trillion dollars outstanding
in debt from financial institutions.”
The owners report various sources
for their borrowing.
Vendor Financing. The survey shows
that, since September 1, 2008, very
few small employers (6 percent) used
a vendor to finance a business vehicle
or equipment, even though this was
the most accessible form of credit
examined; 22 percent who tried were
unsuccessful. The author suggests
that the “limited demand results
from the shortage of business investment opportunities that are typical
during an economic downturn.”
Loans from Financial Institutions. The
author reports that fewer than half
(44 percent) of the small employers
have one or more business loans
from financial institutions – not including lending from lines of credit
or credit cards. But only 5 percent
had their lender demand changes in
the loan terms. However, of the 13
percent of owners who sought a loan
in the period since September 1, 52
percent were rejected.
Lines of Credit. Although lines of
credit are an important source of
financing, only 9 percent of small
businesses had applied for a new
line since September 1, 2008. But
employers did report changes to
existing credit lines. The most common changes were an interest rate
increase (27 percent) and a reduction
in the line amount (18 percent).4

Access to Credit

The author observed that roughly
half of the small employers who
applied for the preceding types
of credit were successful. He used
regression analysis to identify key
factors associated with obtaining
(or not) the credit small employers desire. The five most prevalent
variables and their association
(“more likely” or “less likely”) with
the businesses acquiring additional
credit are:
•
•
•

•

•

Growth in sales over the last two
years (more likely)
The more “upside-down” properties held (less likely)5
The fewer number of mortgages
used to finance the business
(more likely)
Firms with a positive self-evaluation of comparative business
performance (more likely)
The more years of operation
(more likely)

Closing Comments

The author points out that the overriding problem for small business is
the poor economy compounded by
the fall in real estate values. The latter is significant, since 96 percent of
small employers own their personal
residence, and the data show that the
major credit issue is the “direct and
indirect use of personal residences to
procure business assets and its consequences when business conditions
deteriorate and real estate values
fall.” The author suggests that any
prospective loans to small business
should be heavily subsidized to help
those most in need.

A majority (59 percent) of the small employers reported their opposition to the federal bail-out bill. However, “the survey did not determine if their
response is preference for an alternative strategy, belief the shock of substantial portions of the financial system failing would have a salutary effect, or
just plain venting.”

3

The impact of the changes was mixed: “Thirty-two (32) percent of small employers experiencing them report the changes had no impact, while 24
percent suggest they were more irritating than harmful.” Only 11 percent of those affected indicate they were very harmful.

4

5

An “upside-down” property is one where the size of the mortgage is greater than the market value.

9

LDDs Offer a Window on Rural Pennsylvania
Two of seven local development
districts (LDDs) in Pennsylvania
offer some insight into the financing
needs of businesses in the state’s
rural regions. LDDs, which were
formed by the Appalachian Regional
Commission over 40 years ago,
implement economic development
initiatives and form responses to
regional issues.
The two districts are the Susquehanna Economic Development
Association-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG), which serves
11 counties in central Pennsylvania,
and the Northwest Pennsylvania
Regional Planning and Development Commission, which serves an
eight-county region. They operate
revolving loan funds capitalized by

federal, state, and regional programs
for small businesses and economic
development.

and its delinquency rate is 4 percent.
Coyne said credit quality in applications and loans has not declined.

Both LDDs say that in 2008 the
number of applications and loans
was below normal for the small
business sector, although the volume
was substantial in the agricultural
sector. Both districts are seeing an
increase in companies looking for
working capital loans, refinancing,
and smaller projects of $10,000 to
$135,000.

Coyne said the commission’s biggest
challenge was limited capital for its
revolving loan fund and observed:
“The banks have a renewed interest
in economic development programs
in which they assist in financing a
project. If a company is taking on the
risk of an expansion in this economy,
the banks seem more willing to
finance a portion of the project and
rely on our revolving loan fund to
augment the financing as long as we
take a subordinate lien position.

James L. McClure, director of finance
for SEDA-COG, said that in March
2009 he began to see increased interest from businesses in loans. He said
that LDDs have programs devoted
to traditional requests for asset
financing and limited working
capital needs, but “we have
little to offer for line of credit
financing, debt refinancing,
and overnight operating capital
needs. This is especially difficult to address when our funds
require bank matching funds
and the banks are refraining
from lending in these areas.”
SEDA-COG closed 26 loans
totaling $4,036,051 since January 2008. Its delinquency rate
was 4.2 percent in March 2009.
McClure said that “credit
quality seems to be diminished
mostly by the lack of sales and
profits in 2008.”

The Northwest Pennsylvania Regional Planning
and Development Commission made a loan to
supplement Mary Fyock’s funds and enable her to
open Bronco’s Barbeque in Titusville, Pa. A former
business owner, she started the restaurant with a
western motif after returning from the western U.S.
10

Meanwhile, Daryl Coyne, manager of the Northwest Commission’s loan programs, reports
substantial application demand
and an increase in referrals
from banks. The commission closed 49 loans totaling
$5,832,876 since January 2008,

“Our typical loan in the past was a
manufacturer interested in purchasing equipment or financing real
estate. Now we are getting requests
for working capital financing. Some
are legitimate requests for working
capital for an expansion, but some
are asking for funds to meet payroll
– or just to keep the business afloat.”
Coyne said the commission had five
requests for interest-only payments
in February and March because
the borrowers’ backlogged orders
were cancelled and their revenues
declined drastically. “We ask our
borrowers to make the same request
to their bank so that we can mirror
the bank’s approach to the situation.
If the bank approves the request, we
are more likely to approve it.”
For information, contact James L.
McClure at jmcclure@seda-cog.org;
www.seda-cog.org; and Daryl Coyne
at darylc@nwcommission.org; www.
nwcommission.org. For information on
LDDs, go to www.paldd.org.

State of Delaware and Banks Assist Businesses
The State of Delaware and Delaware’s financial institutions have
joined together in a two-year initiative to assist the state’s small businesses. The program, which became
operational on May 1, 2009, is called
Small Business LIFT (Limited Investment for Financial Traction).
Gary Smith, director of capital
resources for the Delaware Economic
Development Office, said that Delaware has 10,776 small businesses
that employ approximately 117,000
individuals. “These businesses,” he
explained, “are the backbone of Delaware’s economy, and their vitality is
critical to turning around Delaware’s
economy in this recession. The
program provides breathing room
for participating businesses to allow
them to weather the recession and
come out of it in a stronger financial
position. It provides working capital
support and improves their cash
flow.”

The program, which applies to existing small business loans of $250,000
and under, is expected to assist 350
businesses, Smith said. The state will
provide them with no-interest loans
for a term of seven years, with the
first two years requiring no payments. The proceeds of the small
business loan will be used to pay
the interest portion of the borrower’s
bank loan. The State of Delaware
loan will require the small business
owner to provide a personal guarantee.
The State of Delaware will make the
no-interest loans if the bank lenders
agree to modify the loan during the
two-year period so as to defer principal payments and avoid charging
interest of more than prime plus 1.75
percent, Smith said.
Participating businesses must be
organized in Delaware, have been in
operation for at least three years, and

have three to 50 employees. Banks
organized in Delaware are eligible to
participate.
Eligible loans are primarily lines of
credit, but loans for equipment and
recently expired lines of credit also
qualify, Smith said. “The goal of the
program is that participating businesses will maintain employment,
but this is not a requirement,” he
said.
The state developed the program
after discussions with five banks and
the Small Business Administration,
which is determining if loans it has
guaranteed will qualify, Smith said.
The program, which ends on June
30, 2011, has $5 million in funding
from the State of Delaware.
For information, contact Gary Smith
at (302) 672-6817 or gary.smith@state.
de.us; http://dedo.delaware.gov/.

CDFIs Increase Business Lending
continued from page 1

are unable to fund their businesses
through financing on their homes.
Banks are referring customers to us
because they need additional outside
subordinate capital in the deal to
get their loan committee’s approval.
Otherwise they can’t make the loan
because the business is a start-up
or the loan is too small. Banks are
also referring businesses as part of
workout strategies.”
Community First Fund (CFF)
reported that the number and dollar
amount of its small business lending
increased 20 percent and 30 percent,
respectively, from July 1, 2008, to
December 31, 2008. CFF’s marketing

and business development
contributed to an increase
of loans in its pipeline, including many applications
for working capital.
Dan Betancourt, CFF’s
president and CEO, added:
“CFF is seeing an increase
in the number of referrals
from banks. Some referrals
are bank commitments that
were not fulfilled. The difference is that banks would
have financed many of these
transactions in the past.”
The Progress Fund (TPF)

Community First Fund made a working capital and equipment loan enabling Maria Martin to purchase a second
truck for her catering business. Martin prepares breakfast
and lunch meals that are delivered on weekdays by six
employees to businesses in Dauphin County, Pa.
11

reported an increase in inquiries
during the second half of 2008. David
Kahley, TPF’s president and CEO,
said, “It seemed that businesses were
shopping around, while at the same
time they seemed cautious about
taking on more debt in the current
economy.” TPF projected 20 percent
less loan activity in calendar year
2009 due to economic conditions, and
it was on track with that estimate as
of the first quarter of the year.
Among microlenders, Community
Capital Works (CCW) said its applications more than doubled, rising from
five in July-September 2008 to 11 in
January-March 2009. Leslie Benoliel,
executive director of the Philadelphia Development Partnership,
which established CCW, said: “More
applicants are coming to us with
better business savvy, more industry
experience, and higher credit scores
(for example, in the 600s and 700s).”
Also, the Economic Opportunities

Fund (EOF), launched by the Women’s Opportunities Resource Center
(WORC), has seen a substantial
increase in the number of inquiries
and loan applications, including
some from businesses that didn’t
seek its services in the past.
First State Community Loan Fund
(FSCLF) had an increase in applications and inquiries in 2008, which
it attributed to the tightening of the
credit markets and its own increased
marketing efforts. In 2008, it made 14
business loans totaling $1,226,467 –
the largest annual volume of business loans since the fund’s inception.
At Rising Tide Community Loan
Fund (RTCLF), launched by the
Community Action Committee of
the Lehigh Valley, inquiries rose 220
percent from October 2008 to March
2009 compared to the same period
a year earlier. The amount of the
average loan application rose from
$14,272 in 2007 to $22,285 in 2008,

and rose to $24,442 in 2009. Its approval rate rose 33 percent in 2008.
Christopher Hudock, RTCLF’s manager, said: “We are now seeing businesses that would have previously
qualified for bank loans as well as
a higher proportion of businesses
with a longer business history. These
new applicants generally have better
credit quality and more collateral to
offer than our traditional borrowers.” RTCLF has received many more
referrals from banks with which it
has established relationships.

Challenges

Diemer said that many business
owners have been referred to CBAC
by their bankers, but a substantial
number of the referrals are in such
poor financial condition and with a
poor prognosis for recovery that it
cannot help them. It is approaching
the SBA, USDA Rural Development,
and financial institutions for additional loan funds.

CDFI Loans Closed
Fiscal Yeara 2007

Fiscal Year 2008

Number

Dollar
Amount

Number

Dollar
Amount

Number

Dollar
Amount

Percent

Cooperative Business Assistance Corp.
(CBAC)

72

$2,284,500

62

$2,710,635

70

$3,290,535

3.12

Community First Fund (CFF)

79

$2,982,931

71

$2,971,514

57

$3,662,701

7.00

The Progress Fund (TPF)c

44

$4,576,609

33

$2,969,938

4

$623,750

2.53

Community Capital Works Inc. (CCW)

26

$103,600

26

$153,328

23

$88,500

3.07

Economic Opportunities Fund (EOF)

48

$172,900

39

$169,500

22

$102,500

10.85

First State Community Loan Fund (FSCLF)

8

$147,749

14

$1,226,467

2

$55,100

NA

Rising Tide Community Loan Fund (RTCLF)

9

$170,700

12

$260,697

12

$293,300

4.30

CDFI

Fiscal Year 2009
(partial year)

Delinquency
Rateb

Notes: All data are as of March 31, 2009.
NA – Data not available
a

CBAC, CFF, CCW, and RTCLF use a fiscal year of July 1–June 30. TPF and FSCLF use a calendar year. EOF uses a fiscal year of October 1–September 30.

b

Delinquency rate: Percentage of loan dollars delinquent by more than 90 days/gross dollar amount of loans outstanding.

c

The number of loans and dollar amount include off-balance-sheet loans underwritten by The Progress Fund for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

12

Diemer added: “Most of our small
business customers have seen a
downturn in demand for their products or services, but they’re small
and flexible enough to have avoided
overstaffing in the past and do not
have to cut employees. Also, these
companies do not have overcapacity
in real estate and equipment. However, as demand continues to drop,
some of our fabricating companies
will be in trouble. Staffing companies are now seeing a big lack of
interest in hiring.”
Betancourt said: “CFF’s biggest challenge is liquidity. Finding banking
investors has become more difficult.
We’ve started to look for investment
capital from a wider range of investors, such as churches, social investors, and national banks. In addition,
monitoring our delinquencies has
become a major priority. We’re trying to make sure we prevent delinquencies from becoming defaults.”
Kahley said TPF has adequate capital sources and excellent long-term
relationships with governmental
agencies, institutional investors, and
private foundations.

Benoliel said: “CCW’s main challenge
is having sufficient capital available
to meet the demand for new loans.”
It has a loan fund of $300,000 and
recently secured $250,000 in new
capital commitments.
Barbara Anne Gardenhire-Mills,
director of lending and training at
WORC, said: “The primary challenge
of the Economic Opportunities Fund
is keeping up with the demand for
new loans while also paying necessary attention to our existing loan
customers. We don’t have adequate
staff to do both.” She added that the
CDFI is finding it more difficult to
raise capital and operating dollars.
Vandell Hampton, executive director of FSCLF, said many businesses
approaching FSCLF “already have
bank financing in place and need
additional money for growth and
expansion, but their first lender is
unwilling to provide more financing.
It is very difficult for us to provide
additional funding because the first
lender typically has all the collateral
tied up.” He noted that “many banks
are moving away from the equity
equivalent model and are looking
for investments
providing greater
returns.”

Eric Keebler (right) makes electric violins and violas to the exacting standards of professional musicians. First State Community
Loan Fund approved a $50,000 new equipment loan that enables
Keebler and business partner Jason Lunn (left) to produce six
instruments a month instead of six a year.

Hudock said: “The
major challenge
currently faced
by the RTCLF
is keeping up
with increased
demand – both
in terms of staff
time and available
loan funds. More
loans are being
approved and
our available loan
funds are dwindling. Currently,
monthly payments
don’t come close

to meeting the funding demands
for new loans. We may now need to
borrow additional funds beyond the
$1 million in our current loan pool.”

Changes in Lending Policies

Diemer said that CBAC is taking a
harder look at businesses that depend on discretionary income such
as concierge services, limousines, pet
care, and restaurants.
Betancourt said: “CFF is now prioritizing its loans based not only on the
strength of the application but also
in terms of the impact that the small
business has in the community. We
are requiring a personal investment
in the business by borrowers and
are scrutinizing very carefully any
application for a start-up business.
For entrepreneurs looking to purchase the building in which their
business is located, we are requiring
an appraisal no older than five to six
months.”
Benoliel said: “At both the staff and
loan committee level, CCW is carefully scrutinizing loan applications
over $5,000 because of the difficulty
of starting or expanding a business in
the current economic environment.”
In the past six months, the EOF
implemented a minimum credit
score requirement of 550, based on
an analysis of loan performance in
relation to credit score ranges, and
started filing liens on collateral for
loans of $1,000 or more.
FSCLF increased its maximum loan
amount from $50,000 to $150,000 in
2008 but from time to time may lend
above its maximum thresholds. In
2008, FSCLF provided $300,000 in an
SBA 504 project for the purchase and
retrofitting of a manufacturing facility in Seaford, Delaware, that created
20 jobs. Hampton added that FSCLF
has tightened its credit requirements
and noted: “It’s become increasingly
13

CDFI Descriptions
Name

Headquarters

Started in

Focus

Service Area

Contact

Cooperative
Business
Assistance
Corporation
(CBAC)

Camden, N.J.

1987 by city
of Camden
and six
commercial
banks

Commercial loans, fixed asset loans, bank loan guarantees for manufacturing,
industrial, and other businesses, SBA microloans up
to $35,000, SBA 504 project
financing.

Camden,
Atlantic,
Cumberland,
Salem,
Gloucester,
and Cape
May counties,
N.J. Began
lending in
Philadelphia
in 2009.

Michael Diemer
(856) 966-8181
mdiemer@cbaclenders.com
www.cbaclenders.com/

Community
First Fund
(CFF)

Lancaster, Pa.

1992

Microloans up to $25,000;
business and community
development loans of $35,000
to $500,000; and affordable
housing loans.

13-county
south-central
Pennsylvania
region.

Dan Betancourt
(717) 393-2351
betancourt@commfirstfund.org
www.commfirstfund.org

The Progress
Fund
(TPF)

Greensburg, Pa.

1997

Loans to tourism-related
businesses and farmers for
the production of locally
grown food products; area
loan organization for Pennsylvania’s First Industries
loans for tourism-related and
agricultural projects; SBA 7(a)
lender. Helps create tourism
destinations.

39 counties in
southwestern
and northern
Pennsylvania,
West Virginia,
and part of
Ohio.

David Kahley
(412) 216-9160
dkahley@progressfund.org
www.progressfund.org

Community
Capital Works
Inc.
(CCW)

Philadelphia

1998 by
Philadelphia
Development
Partnership

Two microloan programs: a
peer step-lending program
in which loans of $500 to
$5,000 must be approved
unanimously by peer group
members; and a small business loan program providing
individual loans of $500 to
$25,000.

Philadelphia,
Bucks, Chester,
Delaware, and
Montgomery
counties, Pa.

Leslie Benoliel
(215) 545-3100, ext. 223
lbenoliel@pdp-inc.org
www.pdp-inc.org/

Economic
Opportunities
Fund
(EOF)

Philadelphia

1999 by
Women’s
Opportunities
Resource
Center

Credit builder loans of $500
to $1,000; direct loans of $500
to $2,500; credit lines of up to
$2,500; small business loans
of up to $10,000 (for existing
businesses only); and a near
equity loan product up to
$35,000.

Philadelphia,
Bucks, Chester,
Delaware, and
Montgomery
counties, Pa.

Barbara Anne Gardenhire-Mills
215-564-5500
bgardenhiremills@worc-pa.com
www.worc-pa.com/

First State
Community
Loan Fund
(FSCLF)

Wilmington,
Del.

1993

Delaware
Business growth loans from
$15,000 to $150,000, typically to businesses operating
for at least one year, and
microloans of $300 to $15,000
to start-ups and early stage
businesses. Community
development and affordable
housing loans up to $500,000.

Vandell Hampton Jr.
(302) 652-6774
vhampton@firststateloan.org
www.firststateloan.org/

Rising Tide
Community
Loan Fund
(RTCLF)

Bethlehem, Pa.

2001 by
Community
Action
Committee
of the Lehigh
Valley

Lehigh and
Microloans and classes in
starting businesses for own- Northampton
ers whose risk factors make it counties, Pa.
difficult to obtain funds from
traditional lenders. Serves
start-up and established
businesses.

Christopher Hudock
(484) 893-1039
chudock@caclv.org
www.therisingtide.org/

14

more difficult to make loans to startup and early-stage businesses.”
Hudock said that RTCLF has increased its maximum loan amount
from $25,000 to $35,000 in response
to increased demand for higher
levels of funding.

Loan Performance

Diemer said: “CBAC loans booked
for one year have no delinquency.
Our problems in delinquency stem
from older customers who, because
of personal problems or in some
cases a downturn in revenue, are
unable to pay their bills. Our current
delinquency has increased this fiscal
year, and we have increased our
provision for loan losses to up to 8
percent of the portfolio.”
Betancourt said that CFF’s defaults
were 1.4 percent as of June 30, 2008,
and estimated that they would be
2 percent to 3 percent for the July 1,
2008, to June 30, 2009 fiscal year.

He added: “We are unfortunately
seeing an increase in the number
of clients applying for bankruptcy
protection. While the number of
bankruptcies is still only a small
percentage of our total outstanding
loan portfolio of small businesses,
we saw nearly 10 last year.”
Kahley said that the overall portfolio
of TPF is doing well and explained:
“We’ve always avoided overleveraging ourselves. We’ve seen a small
up-tick in the number of distressed
borrowers. Nowadays, we have
two or three problem loans out of
165, instead of one or two as in past
years. We’ve made a handful of loan
modifications that seem to be helping those owners.”
Kahley highlighted the resilience of
the tourism-based sector that TPF
focuses on. “When the economy
slows,” Kahley said, “people still
want a vacation, so they decide to
stay closer to home and thereby

spend less. Overall, the tourism businesses we see are generating roughly
the same revenues as in past years.”
Benoliel said that CCW’s business
loans have generally performed well
but added: “We are seeing more of
our loan payments drift into the upto-60-day range (from 5.6 percent as
of December 31, 2008, to 18.8 percent
as of February 28, 2009).” Gardenhire-Mills said that the quality of the
EOF’s portfolio has deteriorated significantly over the past six months,
Hampton said that FSCLF’s writeoffs increased in 2008, and Hudock
reported that RTCLF’s delinquencies
have risen in recent months.
Note: Opportunity Finance Network,
the CDFI trade association, is publishing a quarterly CDFI market conditions
report. Go to www.opportunityfinance.
net/ and select knowledge sharing.

Credit Unions Pursue Small Business Loans

continued from page 7

The dollar amount of business loans
as a percentage of total credit union
loan dollars rose from 4.7 percent
in 2006 to 5.2 percent in 2007 and
climbed to 5.7 percent in 2008,
Schenk explained. He said CUNA
hears anecdotally that many new
borrowers are coming into credit
unions because they’ve been turned
down by banks. But he noted that
banking institutions held 98.94
percent of outstanding business loan
dollars at the end of 2008.
Credit unions in Pennsylvania and

New Jersey tend to make small business loans of $1 million or less and
loans to businesses that have gross
annual revenues of $1 million or less,
according to Snody, Stone, and Paul
Gentile, president and CEO of the
New Jersey Credit Union League.3

pects for other business and consumer services. She noted that a barrier
to expansion of credit union business
lending is the business community’s
limited awareness of the availability
of business loans and services from
credit unions.

Stone said that credit unions occasionally receive applications for
larger business loans due to a curtailment of loans by commercial banks,
and that those opportunities provide
credit unions with increased membership, business loans, and pros-

For information, contact Molly Snody
at (717) 234-3156, ext. 5209, or molly.
snody@pcua.coop; www.pcua.coop;
Kathie A. Stone at (609) 538-4061, ext.
2055 or kstone@cunj.org; www.eccuso.
com; and Michael Schenk at mschenk@
cuna.coop; www.cuna.org/.

3
According to the PCUA, the Pennsylvania credit unions with the largest business loan portfolios at the end of 2008 were Members 1st FCU, Mechanicsburg ($172.9 million); Citadel FCU, Thorndale ($45.2 million); and Philadelphia FCU ($32.9 million).

15
15

CASCADE
Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia
100 N. 6th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106-1574

PRESORTED STANDARD
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
Philadelphia, PA
PERMIT No. 529

Address SERVICE Requested

Calendar of Events
Low-Income Housing Tax Credits Seminar
June 23, 2009, Down Town Club, Philadelphia
Sponsored by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh, and the Federal
Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.
For information, contact Ann T. Killian at (412) 288-3483 or ann.killian@fhlb-pgh.com.
Urban Marketplace Conference
June 25, 2009, Union League, Philadelphia
Organized by the Urban Land Institute’s Philadelphia District Council, this day-long conference examines investment
opportunities and development strategies in urban and suburban markets.
For information, contact Erin Nardini at (215) 446-2988 or erin.nardini@uli.org; http://philadelphia.uli.org.
National Association of Housing Counselors and Agencies’ 15th Annual Training Conference
August 16-21, 2009, Philadelphia Marriott Downtown
For information, contact Sandra Moore at smoore@lafayettela.gov or (337) 291-8447; www.n-a-h-c-a.org/.
Fifteenth Annual New Jersey Governor’s Conference on Housing and Community Development
September 22-23, 2009, Atlantic City Convention Center.
For information, contact Carmen Santiago at csantiago@njhmfa.state.nj.us.
Institute for Financial Literacy’s Annual Conference on Financial Education
October 21-23, Hyatt Regency at Penn’s Landing
Conference provides financial educators with professional development and the opportunity to learn about current
trends and develop funding strategies.
For information, contact the Institute at (207) 221-3611 or conference@financiallit.org; www.acfeonline.org.
Housing Alliance of Pennsylvania’s Homes Within Reach Conference
December 9-11, 2009, Harrisburg, Pa.
SAVE THE DATE! Reinventing Older Communities
May 12-14, 2010, Hyatt Regency Philadelphia at Penn’s Landing
Fourth national biennial conference organized by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia and sponsors examines a
broad range of issues confronting older communities, including the impact of the subprime mortgage and credit crisis on
homeowners and communities. Valuable for both practitioners and policymakers.
For information, contact Keith Rolland at keith.rolland@phil.frb.org.

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