A low cancellation floor, and a spike

Bemidji is a micropolitan area, all in Beltrami County, with 300 SBA approvals for FY2017 to FY2026 and $76.1 million gross, rank 239 of 928; 256 are 7(a) and 44 are 504. Bemidji puts its median at $100,000. Bemidji is 0.48x the national figure. For Bemidji, half of loans run $39,500 to $266,375. Two figures set Bemidji apart from the national picture: the median, and the cancellation floor, 5.1%, which is low. Brands hold 8.0% of the count.

By asset type, automotive mechanical repair is first with 12 loans, with gas station and truck stop right behind at 11, fitness center at 9, full-service restaurant at 8 and RV park and campground at 6; 228 loans fall outside those classes. Annual count is erratic. It began at only 13 loans and $2.2 million in FY2017, jumped to 64 loans and $9.6 million in FY2020, the peak, and ended at 12 loans and $6.6 million in FY2026, the low. A Bemidji study should ask whether any particular year, such as FY2020, is a fair guide to demand, or a one-off.

Who holds the Bemidji loans

Security Bank USA holds 168 loans and $22.5 million under 7(a), far in front of Ultima Bank Minnesota at 58 loans and $10.1 million. Midwest Business Finance Corporation holds 26 loans and $22.4 million on 504. Bemidji lists rest on SBA's holder records. Bemidji names hold or held these loans. Bemidji counts are volume, and Bemidji counts promise no lender requirement.

Bemidji floors, withheld rates, and the study

In Bemidji, cancellations ran at least 5.1%. That covers Bemidji approvals FY2017 to FY2024. Bemidji's ceiling is withheld, as Bemidji lacks loans to support one. Bemidji reports no charge-off rate. Too few Bemidji loans back one; Bemidji is not a zero. Bemidji floors rise if open Bemidji loans go bad. Bemidji counts by county. Bemidji's members follow the July 2023 delineation. Bemidji matches counties by name, Bemidji drops those that fail to place, and Bemidji keeps approvals outside named classes. Bemidji campground and RV park projects bring seasonal revenue, so a study must model the months of operation and winter carrying cost; a gas station needs fuel margin against shop sales. Bemidji studies come from Loan Analytics. Bemidji studies are signed by Daniel Smith, MAI.

SBA loans in the Bemidji, MN Micro Area

Loans approved, FY2017 to FY2026	300
Gross dollars approved	$76.1 million
Median loan	$100,000
Middle half of loans, from	$39,500
Middle half of loans, to	$266,375
SBA 7(a) loans	256
SBA 504 loans	44
Franchise share of loans	8.0%
Rank among metro and micro areas by loans	239 of 928
Median loan against the national median	0.48x

Cancellation and charge-off

Cancelled after approval, FY2017 to FY2024 approvals (a floor)	5.1%
The same, counting loans still undisbursed as cancelled (a ceiling)	withheld
Charged off to date, FY2017 to FY2021 disbursed loans (a floor)	withheld

Both rates are floors. SBA withholds the status of open loans, so a loan counts as charged off only once SBA reports it; a rate needs at least 30 loans in its cohort and is otherwise not reported.

SBA loans approved in the Bemidji, MN Micro Area, by fiscal year

Fiscal year	Loans	Dollars
FY2017	13	$2.2 million
FY2018	25	$7.8 million
FY2019	54	$14.6 million
FY2020	64	$9.6 million
FY2021	50	$11.4 million
FY2022	30	$8.3 million
FY2023	18	$3.5 million
FY2024	20	$5.2 million
FY2025	14	$7.0 million
FY2026	12	$6.6 million

Loans by asset class

Asset class	Loans
Not in any of the 39 asset classes	228
Automotive mechanical repair (car and truck)	12
Gas station and truck stop	11
Fitness center	9
Full-service restaurant	8
RV park and campground	6
Assisted living (without nursing care)	6

Classes with 5 or more loans; smaller ones are withheld, and more where a small one could be derived.

Most active SBA lenders

SBA 504: lenders by loans approved (the current holder of each loan, as SBA reports it)
Lender	Loans	Dollars
Midwest Business Finance Corporation	26	$22.4 million

SBA 7(a): lenders by loans approved (the current holder of each loan, as SBA reports it)
Lender	Loans	Dollars
Security Bank USA	168	$22.5 million
Ultima Bank Minnesota	58	$10.1 million
Affinity Plus FCU	5	$767,000

Lenders with 5 or more loans here; a lender with fewer is not listed, and loans SBA or a receiver holds are counted but never listed as a lender.

Where the loans are, by county

County	Loans
Beltrami County, MN	300

Counties with 5 or more loans; smaller ones are not listed.

Metro is the CBSA (metropolitan or micropolitan statistical area) of the loan's project county, July 2023 delineation (OMB Bulletin 23-01). The county is matched by name (manifests/ld2/county-cbsa-map.csv); a loan whose county cannot be placed in a 2023 CBSA is left out of every metro.

All assets: every 7(a) and 504 approval in the metro, including those outside the 39 asset classes.

A value marked withheld rests on fewer than 5 loans, or is withheld so that such a figure cannot be derived from other published figures.

Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, 7(a) and 504 loan-level FOIA files (data.sba.gov), as of 2026-09-30; areas from the U.S. Census Bureau CBSA delineation, July 2023 (OMB Bulletin 23-01); Loan Analytics metro cell MT-13420.

Related feasibility study pages

Loan Analytics prepares the feasibility study a lender reads before it commits: for a commercial project in the Bemidji, MN Micro Area, financed under SBA 7(a), SBA 504, USDA Business and Industry or a conventional bank loan. Tell us the project and the lender's deadline, and we reply with scope, timeline and fee.

Daniel Smith, MAI

Feasibility Study Data for the Bemidji, MN Micro Area