The U.S. Small Business Administration backed $882.6 million in 1,748 small business loans in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 through its two largest loan programs. That’s up from $656.9 million and 1,706 loans in fiscal year 2010.

Much of the increase was due to higher-than-usual loan volume in December as borrowers rushed to take advantage of loan enhancements under the Small Business Jobs Act, which was set to expire that month. The enhancements — waived fees and higher guarantees and loan amounts — were extended.

“SBA-backed lending continued the upward trend we saw last year,” said Herbert Austin, director of the SBA’s Dallas-Fort Worth district office, which covers 72 counties. The previous regional record was $782 million in 3,324 loans in fiscal year 2007.

The number of loans still lags pre-recession levels. North Texas is No. 5 nationally in dollars loaned and No. 8 in number of loans.

The average loan from Austin’s office is $505,000. His district includes 655,000 small firms (500 or fewer workers), with nearly two-thirds owned by women and minorities.

Austin said he’d like to see more loans at smaller dollar amounts, which would also fill a gap in the market.

“In a market where you have so many women-owned and minority-owned businesses, we’re not making enough smaller loans,” he said. “The women-owned and minority-owned businesses often need $50,000 to $150,000. We need lenders to serve the person who needs $5 million and the person who needs $200,000.”

To help fill the gap, the SBA earlier this year launched two programs to spur lenders to make loans of less than $250,000 in underserved areas. Under those programs, the SBA’s D-FW office added two new lenders — Accion and Business Community Lenders of Texas — this year.

Wells Fargo Bank recaptured its rank as the No. 1 SBA lender for North Texas: It loaned $70.2 million in 168 loans in fiscal 2011, up from $42.8 million and 127 loans in the previous year. Compass Bank was No. 2, with $62.5 million in 237 loans.

“We reached out in a three-tier approach: educating existing customers, internal business banking partners and referral networks,” said Dwight Hilton, district sales manager for Wells Fargo SBA lending in North Texas. “In 2010 and 2011, we’ve seen increased stability.”

Most of Wells Fargo’s SBA loans in North Texas in the past year were for buying a building instead of paying rent, business acquisition and business expansion, he said.

Nationally, Wells Fargo became the first SBA lender to extend $1 billion in a fiscal year.

The Obama administration has identified small businesses as key to U.S. job creation. Small businesses have generated 64 percent of all net new jobs nationally in the past 15 years, according to the SBA.