2016 Small Business Credit Survey: Report on Rural Employer Firms
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
First published December 2017
The physical location of rural small employer firms in less densely populated areas presents an economic, demographic and cultural context that is distinct from the one in which urban small employer firms operate. This Report on Rural Employer Firms compares the business and financing conditions of small employer firms located in rural areas to those located in urban areas. This report is part of a series of reports that use data from the 2016 Small Business Credit Survey (SBCS), a national data-collection effort by the twelve Federal Reserve Banks. All differences between urban and rural small employer firms highlighted in this report are statistically significant based on credibility intervals.
Like the nation’s population, most small businesses are located in urban areas. Seventeen percent of employer firms are located in rural areas of the country.