The SOAR Fund provides low-interest loans of up to $100,000 to small businesses and non-profits across the South.
July 27, 2022 – The Solar and Energy Loan Fund (SELF) and the National Development Council (NDC) are partnering to provide working capital and technical assistance to small, minority, and women-owned businesses and non-profits. The Southern Opportunity and Resilience (SOAR) Fund was established to address historic lending inequities across the South. SOAR loans are available to eligible small businesses and non-profits with 50 or fewer employees located in the South. Disadvantaged firms are encouraged to apply.
SELF will leverage its existing contractor network and history of workforce development to ensure SOAR is widely accessible across SELF’s growing geographic footprint. Along with providing working capital, SOAR recipients can access free technical assistance, such as business planning and financial modeling.
Duanne Andrade, SELF Chief Strategic and Financial Officer, said: “SELF has always been an economic catalyst, bringing capital where it’s most needed, improving communities, and creating green jobs. We’re thrilled that this partnership with NDC will help us deliver much-needed affordable capital to help small and underrepresented businesses thrive in these trying times.”
“NDC is grateful for the partnership we have with SELF, through this partnership we are able to extend our mission into new markets and expand access to this flexible low interest financial resource,” said Ann Finnegan, President of NDC Small Business Lending, “We look forward to connecting with the SELF contractor network soon!”
Interested applicants should apply online at https://ndcloans.org and, if they qualify, NDC will assist the business owner through the application process and provide business support throughout the life of the loan.
For more information about the SOAR Fund visit: www.TheSoarFund.org
To join SELF’s contractor network and access capital for clients to finance home improvements projects with no dealer fees, go to solarenergyloanfund.org/self-contractor-benefits or contact info@solarenergyloanfund.org.
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About SELF
SELF is a non-profit, certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), also known as Florida’s Green Bank. SELF’s mission to rebuild and empower communities by providing access to affordable and equitable capital to homeowners, landlords, developers, contractors and small BIPOC businesses to help transition communities towards an inclusive clean energy economy.