California Is Home to the Best Small Business City in America

Date: May 16, 2016 Last Edit: May 19, 2016

Two Golden State cities claim top-10 spots.

In a rare bit of good news for California small business owners, a new report announced this month that the state is home to the best small business city in America.

That distinction belongs to San Jose, according to Biz2Credit, an online funding marketplace. The survey looked at variables such as annual small business revenue, business owners’ personal credit scores, cash flow, and other factors, including GDP.

“There is so much money being made in San Jose and the rest of the Silicon Valley. Even non-tech companies are benefitting because they provide goods and services to technology companies,” explained Biz2Credit CEO Rohit Arora, one of the nation’s leading experts in small business finance, who oversaw the research. “The overall growth in the region’s industries including construction, logistics, restaurants and hospitality, which owe their success to the booming tech sector.”

Elsewhere in California, according to the report, Riverside-San Bernardino lost the top spot this year, dropping to No. 6. 

“In the last year, water shortages and struggles in agriculture have impacted the local economy in and around Riverside. Meanwhile, EB-5 funding from China — an immigrant investor program established by Congress to stimulate the U.S. economy — has slowed. Under EB-5, a foreign national could invest up to $1 million in a new commercial enterprise. Many small businesses got funded through Chinese investors,” Arora said. “Revenue in Riverside is still relatively high, however. The area is still doing quite well.”

Echoing the concerns of many NFIB/California members, Arora said that “the eventual imposition of a $15 minimum wage also will be a burden for many small business owners, particularly ones that operate on lower margins.”

Related Content: Small Business News | California | Economy

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