# Tuesday, October 6, 2026

© 2026 Morning Update · Small Business Mornings · Tue, 06 Oct 2026 12:03:33 GMT · 3:44

https://morningupdate.org/small-business-mornings/episodes/small-business-morning-briefing-tuesday-october-6-2026-2026-10-06/

Maya: Good morning, and welcome to Small Business Mornings. It is Tuesday, October sixth, twenty twenty-six. I'm Maya.

Devon: And I'm Devon. This is the briefing for freelancers, independents, and small business owners, and October is starting with a stack of new federal rules you'll want to know about.

Announcer: Support for this Morning Update is generously provided by Titanium Invoice, a founding sponsor of the Morning Update network. titaniuminvoice.com.

Maya: First up, the S B A's new rulebook just took effect. As of October first, the agency's updated lending procedures, S O P fifty ten eight point one, apply to new seven a and five oh four loan applications. And if you're buying a business with S B A financing, the biggest change is equity. A buyer now has to put at least ten percent of the project cost into the deal in cash, and that ten percent can no longer be reduced or waived.

Devon: And where that money comes from matters too. Unborrowed cash and qualifying grants count in full, but seller notes on standby and outside minority investors can cover at most half of the required ten percent. So on a two million dollar purchase, at least one hundred thousand of the two hundred thousand dollar down payment has to come from the unlimited list.

Maya: Two more acquisition changes worth knowing. Sellers can now stay on in a consulting role for up to two years, double the old twelve-month limit, which smooths the handoff. But small acquisitions of three hundred fifty thousand dollars or less can no longer use the faster small-loan process, and deals of three million dollars or more now need an independent quality of earnings report from a certified accountant, which adds both cost and time.

Devon: Story two is the good news on fees. The S B A's fee schedule for fiscal year twenty twenty-seven, also effective October first, wipes the upfront guaranty fee to zero on seven a loans of seven hundred thousand dollars or less made to manufacturers, food supply chain businesses, and businesses in rural areas. Standard five oh four borrowers get relief too, with the annual service fee dropping to just over two tenths of a percent.

Maya: Translation: if you're expanding a facility or buying long-term real estate in one of those sectors, the borrowing math just got friendlier through September of next year. Worth a call to your lender this week.

Devon: Third story, for the freelancers. New data from Indeed shows posted pay in A I exposed occupations has jumped forty-six percent since twenty twenty-one, even as A I was cited in more than one hundred sixteen thousand announced U S layoffs through August of this year. The same jobs that pay more are also being automated, which sounds like bad news until you look closer.

Maya: The flip side is that companies cutting in-house roles still need the work done, and that work tends to come back as project engagements at higher rates. The premium goes to freelancers who bring judgment and accountability to A I assisted work, not just tool operation.

Devon: Which brings us to the getting-paid takeaway of the day. If you haven't repriced since twenty twenty-one, you've quietly taken a real pay cut. Pull the posted salaries for the staff equivalent of what you deliver, convert the midpoint to an hourly figure, load it for self-employment tax and unpaid admin time, and compare that number to your current rate. And if part of your work is reviewing or directing A I output, name that explicitly in your proposals, because that's the slice clients are demonstrably paying more for.

Maya: One more practical note: the reporting threshold for ten ninety-nine M I S C and N E C forms doubled to two thousand dollars for twenty twenty-six. It's still taxable income, so report it, but the form count goes down for smaller client relationships.

Devon: That's the show for this Tuesday. Get out there, reprice with confidence, and we'll be back tomorrow morning.

Maya: Have a great one, everyone.