Alex Osenenko wasn’t sure they’d go for it. He’d done the application, tweaked and refined his business plan, lined up his cosigners. But still—his vision of a social media marketing firm for property managers would take forward thinking and a big investment. Alex needed $50,000, more than Hebrew Free Loan had ever loaned for a high tech start-up idea.
He hoped that the preparation he’d received from Cindy Rogoway, the Associate Director, prior to his 30-minute presentation to the Business Loan Committee would help. Cindy had laid out the whole process for him. She set his expectations and he prepared as well as he could.
“You don’t get this kind of personal attention from Bank of America,” Alex said. “Hebrew Free Loan Association looks at the whole person – not just the numbers.” Yes, his business plan had to be buttoned up. His cosigners had to be approved. His credit history had to be clean. But unlike a bank, Hebrew Free Loan Association looked beyond the numbers. They looked to the future and saw opportunity. They saw Alex.
Alex got the call just a few days later. He’d been approved for $30,000 with another $20,000 down the line. The committee’s forward thinking changed everything for Alex. “If Hebrew Free Loan hadn’t come through, I would have had to take a high interest loan or maybe even sold my house.”
With the interest free loan he received, the future of his company, FourandHalf.com, is in Alex’s hands. “Without the support of Hebrew Free Loan Association, I would have had to put all my time, energy, and effort into raising funds. I wouldn’t be half as far as I am today.”
