Row of small business store fronts, including a florist & gift shop

Brief

Small Business Credit Survey: 2021 Third District Insights

Priya Krishna

Economic Growth and Mobility Project Intern

June 2021

How did small businesses in the three states of the Third District (Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania) fare in 2019 and 2020? This brief breaks down key data from the Fed’s Small Business Credit Survey: 2021 Report on Employer Firms.

Note: This brief has been updated since its initial release to reflect a change in the Small Business Credit Survey 2020 weighting scheme, which now more accurately reflects methods used in prior vintages of the data set. For more information, please reference the data appendix for the SBCS 2021 Report on Employer Firms at www.fedsmallbusiness.org/survey.

The Small Business Credit Survey is a national sample of small businesses, or firms with fewer than 500 employees, aimed at providing insight into firms' financing and debt needs and experiences. Analysis of this data set is issued through a series of reports.

This brief summarizes small business conditions in the Third District between 2019 and 2020 using Small Business Credit Survey: 2021 Report on Employer Firms. Three key topics are explored.

Employer firm performance and challenges
Information about emergency funding
Expected challenges in the next 12 months

Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted an increase in safety protocols such as curfews, social distancing measures, and even lockdowns of business and residential activity that have constrained economic activity.

Similar analysis was conducted for New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

View the Full Brief

2021 Small Business Credit Survey: Report on Firms Owned by People of Color

This report uses SBCS data to highlight how firms of color were more likely to experience financial and operational challenges stemming from the pandemic. These challenges are salient because business ownership is integral to wealth building and employment in communities of color.

Credit & Capital

Report

Small Business Credit Survey: 2021 Report on Employer Firms

Small businesses continue to face significant challenges amid the COVID-19 pandemic, including weak demand, heightened expenses, and limited credit availability. Nearly one-third of firms say they’re unlikely to survive without additional government aid until sales recover.

Credit & Capital

Brief

Small Business Credit Survey: 2021 Insights from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the Third District

A series of briefs illustrate how small businesses in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the Third District overall (including Delaware) fared in 2019 and 2020. The briefs are based on data from the Fed’s Small Business Credit Survey: 2021 Report on Employer Firms.