The Board may enter into an agreement with an applicant to guarantee a loan or provide a subsidy for loan interest to the applicant only if the applicant demonstrates: that the loan to be guaranteed or the subsidy of loan interest will be used to acquire assistive technology; the ability to repay the loan; creditworthiness; and the inability to qualify for a loan from a lending institution without a loan guarantee or a subsidy of loan interest. The Board may elect to provide the borrower with an interest rate equivalent to the guaranteed rate by either guaranteeing the loan or subsidizing the interest rate if: a participating lending institution approves a loan without the requirement of a guarantee; and the interest rate is higher than the interest rate otherwise available for a guaranteed loan.