Florida business owners and nonprofits have until Apr. 27 to apply for a disaster relief loan through the U.S. Small Business Administration.
In February, the SBA extended the deadline following a request from the state allowing business owners more time to decide how to rebuild.
“We are here to assist with small, low-interest loans that’ll help individuals get back on their feet,” SBA public affairs specialist Joevan Palmer said.
Eligible borrowers can receive up to $2 million to offset physical or economic losses to their business caused by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Interest rates can be as low as 4 percent with terms up to 30 years. There’s also a 12-month grace period before repayments are due, according to a news release by the SBA.
Thousands of Floridians are already taking advantage of the federal disaster loans to recoup losses, rebuild storefronts and harden their businesses ahead of the 2025 hurricane season.
The latest data shows $820 million in disaster relief funding has been distributed to around 17,000 Florida businesses and nonprofits. Around $96 million of those relief dollars were in the form of Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs), which are dedicated for business owners who suffered economic losses but no physical damage from the hurricanes.
“The economic [loan] is pretty much to help you have those funds readily available so you can get caught up … [and] have some peace of mind knowing you’re [not] going to default on a loan … default on some taxes … default on any other bill that you may have that’s due,” he said.
For Bob Linde in St. Petersburg, an SBA disaster recovery loan helped his business stay afloat after the back-to-back impacts of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. He said he's currently borrowing about $100,000 at a 4 percent interest rate from the SBA.
He’s owned Acupuncture and Herbal Remedies and Traditions School of Herbal Studies for the past 20 years. While his business location suffered minimal physical damage, Linde estimates his company suffered about $120,000 in economic losses last hurricane season.
“Without a doubt, without that loan, it may have forced me to close or reduce my operations,” he said.
As a long-time business owner in Pinellas County, he said it’s the first time he’s needed disaster relief assistance to keep his doors open after a hurricane.
He said collecting the paperwork to apply for the federal disaster loan was tedious but “worth the little bit of frustration and the unfamiliar territory.”
“I’m not a numbers guy, I’m a healthcare guy. And so, that idea of: How do I put these numbers together, how do I do these predictive estimates … took took me a little while,” he said.
The money has allowed him to continue paying his ten employees despite disrupted operations and a loss in revenue in the months after the hurricanes. The small business loan has also helped him purchase a generator ahead of the coming hurricane season.
Business owners in the greater Tampa Bay region can find support applying for SBA disaster loans at their local Business Recover Centers (BRCs):
Hillsborough County BRC
Entrepreneurs Collaborative Center
2101 E Palm Ave Tampa, FL 33605
Hours: Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Pinellas County BRC
SPC Epicenter at St. Petersburg College
13805 58th Street N, Suite 1-200 Clearwater, FL 33760
Hours: Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m
Manatee County BRC
Rocky Bluff Library
6750 US-301 Ellenton, FL 34222
Hours: Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m
Gabriella Paul covers the stories of people living paycheck to paycheck in the greater Tampa Bay region for WUSF. She's also a Report for America corps member. Here’s how you can share your story with her.
