People Helping People

In this episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with past guest Omar Elhagmusa and bringing in new guest Paul Bryson. Omar was a past guest when I spoke with his non-profit lending company Illinois Facilities Fund (IFF). Paul is working for the Legal Aid Society (LAS) as a non-profit lawyer. We dive into the benefits of incorporating as a non-profit, and navigate a conversation of whether to start as an LLC or non-profit. Quite often we hear the benefits of starting an LLC, so these two guests together help fill out the story on the other side. Omar explained his work with the largest Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) in the Midwest. He gave more information on similar community finance institutions, such as micro lenders. Paul followed up with his perspective on the strong points and barriers of each side. Paul mainly expressed the initial goal is simply to determine capacity and what ways to move forward. Our conversation evolved into something like a brief consultation. We disc