For some reason when most people think of government grants to start a business, the the first and only source they think of is the federal government. For some reason people tend to look to the federal grant programs as being the most lucrative.

The fact is that grants are regularly given out by all three governing entities. That's federal, state and local. Also you may be surprised at how lucrative a grant you can get from your city, even if it's already strapped for cash.

In fact distressed cities have been known to hand out lucrative land grants to entrepreneurs in the hopes of seeing their economies get a boost. Not only can your business create jobs but it will also generate tax revenue for the city.

Also there's nothing to stop you from getting government assistance from all three levels of government. Federal state and local. In fact it's quite common and the one nice thing about grants from a city is that if they don't already exist, you can petition the city to create one.

You can petition them through the city council to change zoning variances for you as well. However; there is one important thing to keep in mind if you plan to go this route. That is that your plan better be "real good" and benefit the city well.

Or if you don't have a business plan how about this. Would you believe that both state and federal governments have lists of business types drawn up that they're ready and waiting to hand out government grants to start a business for. Also in many cases they will even provide you with the training you need to run a business, if don't already know how.