As many NeighborWorks affiliates work to strengthen their balance sheets and secure greater capital flexibility, demand for enterprise capital is growing. At the Strength Matters Conference in October our Chief Loan Officer Stephen Peelor led a panel discussion that has generated some buzz. With Ben Greenberg of Housing Partnership Network (and an NC alum!), Steve explained the range of options for enterprise financing, how lenders underwrite and structure enterprise loans, and how borrowers often need to adapt their business operations to corporate, rather than project, loans. Steve also illustrated how the Strategic Growth Fund, a collaboration between NC, The Kresge Foundation, and NeighborWorks America, provided low-cost loans to NWO’s launching innovative and potentially-profitable new businesses. We’ve posted his presentation memo outlining the issues of enterprise capital details on the Strategic Growth Fund and its first seven borrowers here.
The Kresge Foundation, NeighborWorks America, and NC developed the NeighborWorks Strategic Growth Fund (SGF) to help position NWOs for sustainable operations and financial strength by supporting expanding, innovative, and new revenue-generating lines of business. The demand for this kind of financing was evident in the 33 proposals submitted for $42.5 million, six times the amount of funds available in the project’s pilot phase.
Our greatest value proposition is our flexibility. We are here to help you find solutions that address your specific needs, and that includes crafting tailored solutions to your enterprise-level financing challenges. The SGF is just another way we can help our organizations, for the long run.
