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About Community First, Inc.
Community First, Inc., is a local organization that harnesses the financial power of Wall Street to strengthen our neighborhood businesses. By offering U.S. Small Business Administration guaranteed loans, we help D.C. entrepreneurs finance the purchase of their buildings and equipment. These loans are most popular because they are low downpayment, low interest rate. Our loans are available to businesses anywhere in the city. Virtually any type of business is eligible for our assistance. Our major partners for this program are area banks and the U.S. Small Business Administration. We also receive a high level of community support in the way of private contributions, foundation grants, and very importantly, donated professional assistance.
Attention Small Business Owners!
We help healthy businesses purchase real estate or equipment for their operations. Projects range from $120,000 to upwards of $4 million. By participating in our program, you will receive two loans, one from a bank and a "second trust" loan from us. The benefit to you is a low down-payment on your project (which can include renovation costs) and a long-term, fixed, below-market interest rate. The downside? Essentially, you have to complete two loan closings instead of one and there are costs associated with that. For the average loan, this adds about 2% to the amount you borrow. Most business owners find the benefits of the program far outweigh the costs, but we will be happy to help you do the analysis.
Attention Bankers!
Do you have a borrower who just can't quite make it through credit committee? Our goal is to help improve the District of Columbia's economic picture, and our second trust position can help you make a loan that otherwise would go unmet (or to a competitor). Our front-end operations are designed for speed, meaning that we do our loan analsysis in parallel with yours so we can go to credit committee simultaneously. SBA will issue its guarantee on a schedule that allows you to meet aggressive closing deadlines. Finally, keep in mind that your instituion will also receive Community Reinvestment Act credit when they work with us.
Community First, Inc., was founded in 1993 with the mission to improve access to financial capital for the District's distressed neighborhoods. One of our recent successes was the spin-off of Washington's first development bank, City First Bank, which opened its doors to customers this June. You can visit the bank at 2400 14th Street, Suite B, Washington DC 20009, or call (202) 332-5002. We wish them well (as we do all our lending partners)!
To apply for a loan, just read the information on this Web site or pick up the phone and give us a call. We will be glad to speak with you about your needs. If you don't fit our program, we will refer you to a bank or other SBA lender who can help.
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Community First, Inc.
PO Box 57121 One Dupont Cir., NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20037-7121
Ph: (202) 265-4569
Fax: (202) 265-4598
timothy@communityfirst.org
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Real Estate Purchase and Renovation