The Small Business Administration teams up with lenders to guarantee small business loans considered to be of higher risk than traditional business loans that come with more collateral.

The federal government assumes the risk for 75 percent of such loans, which at Greylock are typically between $100,000 and $150,000, according to Donald Kuczarski, senior vice president of business lending at Greylock, who said the entrepreneurial climate in the Berkshires has been galvanized over the years by the departure of larger employers such as General Electric Co.

Although the paperwork can be daunting for a federally guaranteed loan, both Legacy's and Greylock's track record have earned them "preferred lender" status. This means they can approve the loan locally, without awaiting SBA approvals.

"That allows us great flexibility and quicker turnaround in closing those deals," Kuczarski said.

Greylock lent a total of $3.13 million in the past fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30. The total represents 37 transactions, according to Greylock.

Among the clients were Christopher and Jean Chojnowski, owners of Rosewood Homestyle Assisted Living in Pittsfield, who expanded their businesses to include a home-care program last year.

When the business began growing faster than the invoices were being paid, they received a $50,000 loan from Greylock, Chojnowski said. They now have about 20 home-care clients, he said.

He said he is big fan of Greylock's support for his businesses.

Legacy Banks processed 26 SBA loans, with a total of $1.57 million, and nearly 40 percent of those — 10 — went to female-owned businesses, according to the bank. A total of $336,200 went to female borrowers.

Among Legacy's launches last year was South Beach Tan at Oasis Plaza II in North Adams, a start-up business of Jackie Betit of Adams.

She is a 25-year-old dental hygienist who, unlike many people her own age, thinks about her eventual retirement.

She was hoping that a small business would give her an edge years down the road, but when she needed $50,000 for new tanning equipment, she had no luck at first.

"I went to a couple of banks, and everyone just looked at me," said Betit, who thinks that her age could made bankers nervous. "I didn't even call Legacy at first, since it didn't look good."

Eventually, as with many other borrowers seeking business loans of all sorts, she was steered to the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center in Pittsfield, which provides free business planning to small-business owners and entrepreneurs.

Susan Mongue, the director there, led Betit through some planning, marketing and business strategy work, preparing her for her loan application at Legacy.

"It was very time-consuming, and there was a lot of paperwork," Betit said.

But her loan came through quickly at Legacy, and she now shuttles between her job as a dental hygienist and South Beach Tan.

She has five years to repay her loan, which costs $1,102 per month, she said.

"They say that, in the first five years, be happy if the business pays for itself and we're making a little bit extra," she said.

Joan Clevenger and her mother, Carolyn Clevenger, who opened Sante Skin Therapy and Spa on North Street in Pittsfield last year, also found the SBA program at Legacy with help from Mongue.

Their planning process took about a year, and they now have two small business loans totaling $125,000, they said.

Meanwhile, they will keep their other longtime jobs at Canyon Ranch spa in Lenox, where they work as aestheticians, until the North Street business can sustain them both.

For now, the business covers its costs and employs a dozen part-time people.

Kuczarski, at Greylock, said that, when borrowers who have first worked with Mongue have been marched through some rigors, that sets them up well for business ownership.

Mongue said that about 50 percent of her clients are women, a reflection of the growth in female-owned businesses here and elsewhere.

Rathbun-Briggs, at Legacy, recommended that women and men alike should meet with Mongue about starting a new business.

"If people go through the Small Business Development Center, their transactions are more bankable than if they don't," she said. "Susan will ask the hard questions and make sure people know their risks."