SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Small businesses have a second chance to secure federal loans through the CARES Act, signed by the president in March.
The Paycheck Protection Program, according to lenders, allows small businesses to ask for up to two times the amount of their monthly payroll.
The Small Business Administration says if the business uses at least 75% of the loan for payroll, keeps all their current employees, and uses the rest on rent, utilities, or interest on mortgages, up to the entire loan can be forgiven.
"If we don't have to pay it back I will definitely thank the United States government that's for sure," Owner of El Pollo Grill Victor Lopez said.
"Everyday you wake up and you're like this is a dream, this is real crazy," Lopes said, thinking about the pandemic.
He applied for the first round of loans and secured $10k for each of his three locations. He hopes to bring in more cash with the second round so he can continue serving the community.
"It's really important that they try to apply now because last time around the funds ran out and people didn't get the loan," Paul Kendall, President of Trust Capital said.
Kendall said the company has changed gears from helping clients finance equipment to helping small businesses secure the money they need during the pandemic.
Kendall said the biggest mistake he sees on this application is applying for more than the SBA limit.
He advised small businesses should applythrough as many lenders he or she can find, to have better odds in getting the coveted PPP loan.
If the business spends the money outside of the SBA parameters, they have six months of deferred payment and a 1% interest rate.
"My employees are number one so they get paid first no matter what, they get paid before I do," Lopez said that money will go to his employees, food for the restaurant and rent. "That's going to help, if this takes a year, that will definitely help."
The Small Business Administration starts accepting applications again Monday.