Some Floridians seeking federal grants for home repairs after Hurricane Irma have had to face a tough decision whether to accept a low-interest Small Business Association loan instead.

  • Floridians who didn't qualify for FEMA grants forced to turn to SBA loans
  • Some, such as Marcia Marks, said she didn't have much of a choice
  • She's a landlord who inherited 2 homes, which were damaged by Irma

Marcia Marks inherited two homes from her mother, and Irma was her first experience recovering from a major hurricane as a landlord.

The eye of Hurricane Irma passed over Polk County, leaving behind thousands of damaged homes.

Marks said both her homes' roofs were damaged after Irma. With tenants living inside and a high insurance deductible for one of the homes, and no insurance for the other, she went to a went to a Federal Emergency Management Agency Disaster Recovery Center in Bartow to speak to a representative.

“I stayed over here Saturday for seven hours trying to get help, and finally at the end of the day, there was nothing they could do for me but give me a business loan,” Marks said.

So she returned to the center Thursday to speak to SBA officials. She said she wasn’t eager to sign up for a business loan, even if it did have an interest rate as low as 3.3 percent.

“I don’t (have money stacked away). I use that (rent money) to supply my home and pay my bills with," Marks said. "It’s not a luxury thing that I have, (where I) just get it and set it aside for a vacation and all this different stuff. I actually need that money,” she said, explaining how the rental money helps keep her family afloat.

The SBA also approves loans with an interest rate of 1.75 percent for homeowners and renters, as long as the home involved is their primary residence.

According to SBA spokesman Aquinas Mackey, as of Oct. 4, the administration had approved $16 million in home disaster loans, and the numbers are constantly increasing.

As of Oct. 3, the SBA has approved the following in home disaster loans. The top counties approved for home disasters loans in the Tampa Bay area were Polk, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties:

1.

Polk

$800,000

2.

Hillsborough

$800,000

3.

Pinellas

$135,000

4.

Manatee

$25,000

5.

Pasco

$90,000

6.

Hernando

$120,000

7.

Citrus

$0

8.

Orange

$560,000

9.

Osceola

$57,000

10.

Brevard

$360,000

11.

Broward

$980,000

12.

Miami-Dade

$1.8M

12.

Duval

$540,000

13.

Collier

$460,000

What's interesting is that Polk County has half the population of Hillsborough, yet the same amount of money was approved for loans; however the eye of Hurricane Irma passed over Polk County, leaving behind thousands of damaged homes. 

SBA officials said that applicants aren’t under any obligation to accept the loan if approved. They have six months to decide.

Marks said it was a tough decision, but she felt like she didn’t have much of a choice.

“I seek the Lord for everything. I don’t ... get stressed out about a whole lot of things. Wherever He leads, that’s where I go. That’s how I handle it. I just know at the end of the day, He is going to take care of it.”