Small Business Support

Do you want to start or improve your business?
We can help.

NEOEDD supports small businesses with workshops, loans, and other resources to maximize their success. 

Technical Support

NEOEDD staff support businesses by providing one-on-one counseling, classes, referrals, information on steps to starting your business

One-on-one counseling includes consulting with staff on pain points in your business, how to start or transition your business, marketing, management, how to access capital for your business, referrals to other resources or just someone to talk to. It can also include referrals to experts who can provide bookkeeping advice, accounting or legal consultations, website support, graphic design or social media marketing.

Request TA/Counseling Services or Sign Up For a Class or Workshop
Business Workshop Descriptions

NEOEDD Financing Programs

NEOEDD offers direct business loans and assistance to access KIVA loans. We also offer matched savings for business financing through our Individual Development Account program

NEOEDD offers direct business loans and assistance to access KIVA loans. We also offer matched savings for business financing through our Individual Development Account program.

Learn More About IDA

NEOEDD and our sister organization, Northeast Oregon Business Development, have helped dozens of businesses in Baker, Union, and Wallowa counties launch or expand their businesses with its loan programs.

Growing your business can require additional funding. We provide real estate, equipment and working capital loans. You want to be smart about taking on debt and growing your business. We can help. Structuring a competitive fixed-rate loan with payback terms that work for your company is important. NEOEDD has provided financing for many popular businesses and employers over the years. We look at your entire business and off-business assets to make a loan work. We help businesses get to where they want to go. We fill gaps in financing that remain after accessing traditional financing. We provide an alternative to starting your business on a credit card. 

If you are interested in financing your business through NEOEDD, we encourage you to complete our preapplication form and contact NEOEDD loan officer, Mike Ogan, [email protected] or 541-519-7699 to learn more about our loan programs.

The Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) provides long-term, fixed-rate financing for land, buildings, equipment and machinery, and permanent working capital.

  • Maximum loan is 50% of eligible project costs—preferred level of participation is 33%; this means that you will need financing from other sources—yourself, a bank, another loan program, etc.
  • Not recommended for construction projects, as Davis-Bacon wage rates are required.

 INTERMEDIARY RELENDING PROGRAM

The Intermediary Relending Program (IRP) provides long-term, fixed-rate financing for land, buildings, equipment and machinery, and permanent working capital.

  • Maximum loan is 75% of eligible project costs—this means that you will need financing from other sources—yourself, a bank, another loan program, etc.
  • Can be used for permanent construction financing.

GENERAL LOAN INFORMATION

  • Individual loans may not exceed $250,000.
  • Interest rate depends on risk and other factors.
  • Refinance of existing debt is discouraged.
  • A minimum of one job must be created for every $25,000 of investment.
  • The loan may not supplant private bank financing.
  • Loans must be fully secured.
  • Loans will normally be subordinated to other project financing.
  • 10% owner equity or investment will be required.
  • Application fee is $100. The borrower is responsible for loan-closing costs, including appraisals, title insurance and a closing fee.

 

INFORMATION REQUIRED FROM APPLICANTS

  • Brief description of the business and its operations and services. Highlight your market, your customers, and major competitors.
  • Description of the project to be developed, including the assets to be purchased and their costs.
  • Number of full-time  and/or part-time jobs that will be created as a result of this project.
  • Description of any affiliated corporation, partnerships, or businesses in which a principal with 10% or more interest in the parent company also has a 10% or more interest in the affiliated company.
  • Three years of financial statements for the current business or corporation you are operating.

This would include both a balance sheet and a profit-and-loss statement for each of these years (does not apply to business start-ups).

  • Cash-flow projections for the business and an explanation of how this project affects the projections in terms of new sales and profits.
  • Personal financial statements and federal tax returns for those principals who own 10% or more of the company.
  • Interim financial statements for the most current period (should be no older than 30 days).

NEOEDD/NOBD is an Equal Opportunity Lender, Provider, and Employer.

KIVA is a non-profit organization offering no-interest loans. With a KIVA loan, businesses can raise up to $15,000 at 0% interest from your supporters and others who are interested in supporting small businesses.  NEOEDD has partnered with Reinventing Rural to bring the KIVA fundraising process to rural Oregon. In order to apply for funding, you will need a business plan. After you complete either our Foundations business planning or CO.STARTERS CORE classes, NEOEDD staff will help you complete your KIVA application and online profile. As an added incentive, Umpqua Bank is matching every dollar of capital minority and woman-owned businesses raise through KIVA with an additional $3. That means you only have to raise $3,750 to get a $15,000 loan. You can find out more about KIVA here.

Having access to capital is imperative for any entrepreneur. There are a variety of ways that entrepreneurs raise money from friends and family gifts/loans to traditional bank loans to alternatives like crowdfunding. Some of these are described below.

Other Ways to Raise Money?

Having access to capital is imperative for any entrepreneur. There are a variety of ways that entrepreneurs raise money from friends and family gifts/loans to traditional bank loans to alternatives like crowdfunding. 

Click the example to find out more.

Community Capital
Equity Investment
Donation-Based Crowdfunding
Personal Loan
Product Pre-Sale
Grants

Small Business Resources

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Economic Resiliency Guides for Businesses
Workshops
Business Workshops
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Resources & Partners

NEWS

Funding Options for your Small Business – Behind the Scenes of a Lender

learn more

Wallowa County Senior Housing Ad-hoc Group Interest Form

learn more

NEOEDD Board Meeting March 21, 2024

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Expanding Accessible Spaces in Eastern Oregon Program

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GROWING BUSINESS :: STRENGTHENING COMMUNITIES

609

Entrepreneurs and Businesses Served

31

Workshops for Entrepreneurs

$1,854,461

Covid-Relief Dollars Invested in Businesses

541-426-3598
101 NE 1st St, Suite 100
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Technical Assistance Request

Do you want to start a new business, access capital, or improve your business image, social media marketing, website, bookkeeping or business plan? We can help.

Technical assistance includes consulting with staff on pain points in your business, how to start or transition your business, marketing, management or how to access capital for your business, referrals to other resources or just someone to talk to. It can include classes and workshops if we find people need the same type of assistance that can be provided in a group setting. If you have completed a draft business plan (we can help with that), we can also include referrals to experts who can provide bookkeeping advice, accounting or legal consultations, website support, graphic design or social media marketing.

This service is brought to you by Ignite Center for Entrepreneurship, the City of La Grande Economic Development Department and the Northeast Oregon Economic Development District.

Funding provided by Business Oregon.

The registration form includes questions to collect demographic data. We are committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and view data as an essential tool to help track our progress in serving the region’s communities and to help our staff improve our programs and services. Personal information is held in confidence and will only be used after it is aggregated. Information on income levels helps us determine if grant funding can be used to help cover the cost of offering the workshops. If you identify as low-moderate income, we will contact you to request income documentation. If you have any questions about the registration process, please contact [email protected] 

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE REQUEST

Mailing Address
Which of the available classes would you like to register for?
Follow link to NAICS Search – https://www.census.gov/naics/
NEOEDD receives grants to serve low-moderate income individuals. Is your household income is less than the amounts in this schedule:

Community Capital

“Community capital” is one way to express the idea that a town or county can, and should, support its own economy to the greatest extent possible. You don’t have to be a millionaire to invest in your neighbors.

Typical angel investors look for businesses that can grow quickly and then be sold. Small-town “angels” deal with smaller amounts of money and are interested in the long-term success of a business that will sustain a community.

A little goes a long way. Even $100—when combined with other investors’ $100—can help an entrepreneur start or improve a business, and the investor might receive a modest financial return, in addition to intangible returns such as nurturing a thriving entrepreneurial spirit, helping a friend, or giving young adults a reason to return to the region after college.

Oregonians may invest in Oregon-based businesses through the Community Public Offering or CPO.

These rules:

  • Enable securities crowdfunding (not donation-based crowdfunding).
  • Allow all types of securities and terms, from debt to equity.
  • Allow public advertising.
  • Exempt offering materials from being be registered, vetted, or reviewed.
  • Require offering documents to include information from your business plan, reason for raise, team, risks/benefits, terms, etc.

Companies using this law:

  • Must be incorporated in Oregon and based within Oregon.
  • May raise up to $500,000 total, with a $250,000 maximum per raise.
  • Define the terms of the offering.
  • Must meet in person with a local Business Technical Service Provider to review business plan.
  • Are allowed 12 months to raise the funds; can extend another 12.

Investors:

  • Must be Oregon residents.
  • May invest up to $2,500 per deal, per person. Investors who have annual incomes exceeding $100,000 may invest up to $10,000 in any one CPO deal.

Equity Investment

This is similar to negotiating a loan from friends or family to launch a business.

 The main things to remember are:

  • In order to be legal, the investment must either occur between people who have a substantial, pre-existing relationship, or the investment must be made by an accredited investor.
  • The “offer” of the equity position must not be made in public unless the audience for the investment is limited to accredited investors.
  • The business will need to decide what kind of equity they are offering and the implications of having investors who own a portion of their business. The business must be structured appropriately to allow equity investments.

Donation-Based Crowdfunding

There are dozens of crowdfunding platforms—some of the most well-known are Kickstarter, Indiegogo, and Gofundme.

This fundraising tool is donation-based, meaning the “investors,” legally, may not expect anything in return for their donation. Most sponsors of a crowdfunding campaign do offer premiums in the form of gifts—generally t-shirts, products once the business is functioning, or other memorabilia, but these gifts are not required.

The most successful crowdfunding campaign in our region is the Jennings Hotel, which exceeded its 2015 goal by 33% to raise $107,070 for the restoration of a building in Joseph. A 2014 campaign, for the revival of the Lostine Tavern, raised nearly $28,000.

Personal Loan

This type of community capital is not new—borrowing money from friends or family to launch a business has been around as long as money itself.

The main things to remember with this sort of agreement:

  • In order to be legal, the agreement must occur between people who have a substantial, pre-existing relationship.
  • There should be a written contract that is signed by both parties. The contract should include the names and addresses of both parties, the amount loaned, the interest rate and accrual schedule, the amount of time the loan may be repaid (the “term”), whether there is collateral (a “secured” loan), and what may occur if the borrower defaults. There are a number of simple contracts on the internet which can be used as templates.
  • If you are someone interested in investing directly in your community, you may make efforts to establish relationships with local business-owners and, once you have a relationship, inquire about their capital needs.

Product Pre-Sale

This form of community capital focuses on pre-selling product in order to raise the capital to improve a business.

 Pre-sales generally should not be used for a start-up; the business ought to be up and running before the pre-sale initiative is launched. The owner may offer, for example, $100 worth of product or service for $90. The customer pays the owner $90, and can then redeem the $100 value over time.

The benefit to the owner is collecting capital up-front and repaying it through product “sales” or distribution at a later date. The business generally limits the amount of product distributed at any one time in order to preserve cash flow from sales as the presales are being delivered. The benefit to the customer is receiving bonus product.

A more-familiar term related to product pre-sale is the gift certificate. The main difference between a product pre-sale and a gift certificate is the limits that a business might put on the amount of product a customer could access within a specific time period. Another form of pre-sales is Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). CSAs provide a way for farmers to get capital at the beginning of the year to support agricultural production and customers get produce at harvest.

Grants

Generally speaking, grants (money that does not have to be repaid) do not exist in support of for-profit entities. There are a few exceptions.

There are a few U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) grants for producers. Find information about these grants on the USDA website, or visit the local Farm Service Agency (FSA) office, using the Farm Service Center locator.

Another opportunity is the City of La Grande’s grant programs for businesses located within the Urban Renewal District.

Business Oregon provides some federal grant funding for technological start-ups at their Small Business Innovative Research support program.

Project Submission Form: Baker, Union, and Wallowa Counties

Please use this form to submit projects for potential inclusion in the Northeast Oregon Economic Development District’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS). Once projects are included, you can use the CEDS to demonstrate that your project has been listed in a regional plan. Projects should have a positive impact on economic or community development.

To be included in the CEDS, projects must have a public or non-profit sponsor. Private projects should not be submitted and will not be included in the CEDS.

You may submit multiple projects by returning to this page. The space for providing answers will expand. Please rank the projects that you are submitting, with 1 being your first priority, 2 your second priority, and so on.

The NEOEDD board will consider new project additions at their quarterly meetings.