Each year, the United States government is required to give away free money to citizens and residents of the United States. More than $50 billion dollars is given away every year to individuals and businesses in the form of free grants. This free money can be used for almost any purpose – including to start a business, improve an existing business, buy equipment or supplies, get out of debt, and just about anything else you desire. The following programs for applying for grants for businesses are ones that we have found to be particularly useful. See the detailed reviews below.
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| Operation Payback |
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| Grants 360 |
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| Grant Money USA |
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The government has special programs set aside for small businesses and business start-ups that are designed to assist in business development, revitalization and administration by providing funding for businesses through government grants, loans and other sources of funding.
Reminder – although the products and information these sites provide is free, you will typically have to pay the cost of shipping which is normally about $2 – $3.
How Will The Current Economy Affect My Chances to Get a Government Grant or Scholarship?
One benefit of the current economic crisis is that there is a lot of government money available. A huge chunk of this money has been reserved for government grants and loans to help assist business start-ups as well as existing businesses. The Current Administration has made it their goal to provide money for small businesses (beyond the SBA), and other forms of government funding through grants and loans, particularly for business owners, and assorted grants for just about everything else. The goal is to bring this country out of recession in 2009, and the government intends to do so by increasing the amount of money available for existing small businesses and especially to start a business.
Am I Eligible to Receive Government Grants?
Provided you live in the United States and are a citizen or resident you are eligible to receive a free government grant. The government is legally required to give away a portion of the tax money it collects each year, in the form of government grants. We are here to educate the public about Government Grants because only a percentage of available grants and loans for small businesses are even applied for! This is great news for you and the process to apply takes only a few minutes. It’s free money – Why not claim it?
Do These Government Grant Programs Cost Money?
Typically, grant companies will charge anywhere between $35 and $150 as “administrative costs” to make up for the time and resources it takes them to find and provide programs to apply for grants. However, due to our status as a consumer review group, we have been able to get them to supply us with a limited number of free trials of the exact same software for our readers. You only need to pay a small shipping fee (normally about $2 – $3) to receive the grant application packages. The programs we review are a must-have if you want to apply for a government grant because they make the entire process easy, fast, and sometimes even provide a means for you to apply for certain grants within just minutes. Be aware that some companies will continue to bill you until you cancel a service. Get grants from $50,000 – $1,500,000 or more, free, that you never have to pay back whether you have an existing business yet, or not.
The government is basically trying to give money away to entrepreneurs in order to jump start our economy by providing the means for small business owners and business start-ups to pay off bills, or whatever else you need.
Our #1 choice – Operation Payback is truly the cream of the crop. This organization has been around forever, and for good reason. We gave them 5 stars just for their grant info, before we realized just how great their customer service is. This program comes with grant writing software and templates (you just fill in a few fields such as your name & address of where you want your check to come to) and it prints out a ready made grant application. Plus, grants database is updated daily, so you’ll always have access to the latest info.
Our #2 Recommendation – Grants 360 was a very close 2nd place. This company has been around for a long time too, and this package includes 100% of all available federal, state and local government grants, all free to apply. They include 100’s of grants in an easy-to-view and sort method. Their customer support is excellent, and the program always updates itself with new free government grants. We highly recommend this program.
Grant Money USA is specifically designed to take advantage of the available grants in certain fields – so it is not as exhaustive as the others, but the package was very good, and their customer service was helpful. There are some very good grants available in this package, but it primarily caters to women and minorities, or low income individuals. We recommend the first two above this one, as they are a bit more comprehensive. However, if this is more relevant to your situation, then certainly give this one a shot.
In closing, we’d advise to do your homework if you plan to go elsewhere to make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into. Hopefully, the work we’ve done reviewing what’s available will save you from the potential pitfalls that have ensnared others.
