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Tired of working for someone else? Thinking of hanging out your shingle as a contractor? Or perhaps you have an idea for an underserved market.

Below you'll find links to resources (some are free!) to help send you in the right direction.


WHAT MAKES SANTA CLARITA A GREAT PLACE TO OWN A BUSINESS?

It's a Great Place to Live!
The City of Santa Clarita continually receives awards for being one of the best places to live in the nation. Recently it was rated as one of the top five safest places to live.

If it's a great place to live, it's a great place to work!

Most Business-Friendly City
The City of Santa Clarita was named one of the most business-friendly cities in Los Angeles by the Los Angeles Economic Development Commission (LAEDC) for 2016.

Santa Clarita Boasts High Hotel Occupancy Rate
Santa Clarita is unquestionably a popular tourist and business traveler destination as evidenced by recently released hotel occupancy rates. In October 2016, Santa Clarita's hotel occupancy rate was 87.8 percent, per STR and TRENDS Reports.

GOVERNMENT LINKS

Business.usa.gov
The official business link to the U.S. Government.

Business Owner's Toolkit
Total know-how for small business. It's an online guide from everything to starting your own business to hiring, managing, and retaining the people who work for you.

California Business Portal
When starting a new business, there are many important decisions to make and many rules and procedures that must be addressed. While there is no single source for all filing requirements, the steps on this site have been developed to assist you in starting your business.

City of Santa Clarita
You'll find the steps you need to follow when beginning a business in the City. (Many of the steps apply to the unincorporated areas as well.) Also, a list of phone numbers are provided to send you in the right direction.

Ficticious Name/DBA in Los Angeles County
You'll hear it from a hundred sources: "File a DBA." This link will explain how to do it.

Grants.gov
Grants.gov is your source to FIND and APPLY for Federal government grants.

Los Angeles County Office of Small Business
Los Angeles County Office of Small Business (OSB) is a source of information on procurement opportunities, certification, financing, and technical assistance. OSB also serves as the County Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC), funded by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to help small businesses get contracts with prime defense contractors.

Small Business Administration
The SBA helps Americans start, build and grow businesses. You'll find links to just about everything you might need: Financial Assistance, Counseling & Assistance, Contract Opportunities, Disaster Assistance, Laws/Regulations, and online Training.


COMMUNITY RESOURCES

COLLEGE OF THE CANYONS

Small Business Development Center
Whether you are an early stage entrepreneur or an established business, the COC staff can provide you with business counseling in business plan development, basic accounting and bookkeeping, marketing and sales, and technology. They can also provide you with assistance in accessing capital, state and federal government contracting, understanding Quickbooks, the latest employer rules, and much more--either free or at a greatly reduced rate !

How do they do this? They are funded by College of the Canyons, the U.S. Small Business Administration, and the California Economic and Workforce Development Program.


LEGAL INFORMATION

FindLaw.com
Whether you want to look up some general info on how to start a business, the difference between Sub S and and an LLC, or employee issues such as the current minimum wage and employee rights, you'll find it all here. The site is supported by lawyers' advertising.



Updated February 23, 2017