Seattle Small Business Capital Access Program
Seattle Small Business Capital Access Program
Seattle OED
ABOUT THE GRANT
The Seattle Small Business Capital Access Program (CAP) pays down up to $30,000 (or 20% of the loan principal, whichever is less) on qualifying small business loans for Seattle-based businesses. Administered by the Seattle Office of Economic Development (OED), the program is designed to lower the cost of borrowing for small businesses, particularly those that have historically lacked equitable access to financial services.
CAP is not a standalone grant application and businesses do not apply directly. Instead, eligibility is evaluated by a participating community lender at the time of loan approval, and qualifying borrowers receive the principal paydown automatically as part of their financing. Because of this, the most important step for interested business owners is knowing to work with one of CAP's participating community lenders when seeking a small business loan; loans from non-participating lenders are not eligible. Participating lenders include Business Impact NW, Rainier Valley Community Development Fund, Seattle Credit Union, MoFi, Grow America Community Impact Loan Fund, Pursuit, Evergreen Business Capital and Community Finance, and Denkyem Co-Op. Paydowns are issued in two installments — one after the borrower makes 12 on-time monthly payments, and a second after 24 on-time monthly payments — and are applied directly to the loan account rather than disbursed to the borrower, effectively reducing the principal owed. To be eligible, businesses must be for-profit, independently owned, located within Seattle city limits, in operation for at least 12 months, have an active City of Seattle Business License, employ no more than 50 full-time equivalent employees, generate annual gross revenue of $2 million or less, and be current on loan payments at the time of the paydown award.
Tracking grants is our job
Sign up for The Grant Brief to get our latest grants every Tuesday. One email, zero fluff.
NOTES
This program is a bit of an edge case as it's not really a standalone "grant." However, there is free money available, and some businesses might not know to even apply for a loan in the first place if they weren't aware of this program. So we wanted to include it, even if it is a little borderline as far as "grants" go.
Not the right grant for you?
Other Grants
Athens, AL Opportunity Council Districts Program
City of Athens, AL
The Opportunity Council Districts Program, an incentive-based initiative focused on encouraging growth in retail-stagnant areas within City Council Districts 3 and 5. The program will provide funding for property improvements to help businesses expand and attract new investment in Athenas, Alabama. Eligible small businesses can apply for incentive awards of up to $20,000 for one-time, permanent upgrades. The funding is split evenly, with $100,000 allocated to each district.
Milwaukee Building Bridges Grant
Milwaukee County
The Building Bridges Small Business Program is designed to help Milwaukee entrepreneurs navigate resources and organizations to fuel commercial corridor revitalization. Elligible businesses can receive up to $10,000 in grants to start or expand brick-and-mortar commercial corridor businesses. Applications are administered through partner agencies across Milwaukee.
MD Urban Agriculture Grant
MARBIDCO
This grant is designed to meet the needs of MAryland urban farmers by providing an incentive for beginning urban farmers to seek commercial lender financing for the development of their urban agricultural enterprises, including the purchase of a farm property in an eligible urban area. MARBIDCO has partnered with Horizon Farm Credit to establish and manage this fund.
Texas ASCEND Grant
Texas Workforce Commission
The Advancing Skills, Capabilities, and Expertise for New Development (ASCEND) grant will reimburse Texas employers for training that addresses demand for rapidly evolving skills and local workforce conditions. Each grantee may receive up to $500,000 or a maximum reimbursement of $4,000 per trainee. Funds can be used for work-based learning programs, on-the-job training, apprenticeships, and classroom or virtual instruction.
Hair Stylist and Barber Grant
Furzy Marketing
Furzy Marketing provides free SEO services for hair stylists. We can leverage our experience and strategies to drive organic traffic and signing leads to you. Are you a hair salon or barber shop owner, stylist, braider, or barber looking to enhance your online visibility? Furzy's grant program is your ticket to attracting more clients with expert SEO services at no cost.