Car Wash Feasibility Study in Kansas

A national-share class funded with smaller loans

Kansas car wash lending tracks the national mix closely, with a location quotient of 1.05x, but the loans themselves are small: the median of $572,500 is only 0.62x what the class borrows at the median nationally. Kansas is 33 of 53 by loan count, and car washes stand 16 of 39 inside the state. Counting FY2017 through FY2026 as ten full fiscal years, SBA approved 28 loans for $21.7 million. The ticket size is the notable fact in this cell, since a state at the national share of car wash loans is financing them at well under the national scale.

Structure and counties

Loans in the central half fall between $153,750 and $1.2 million. SBA 7(a) accounts for 20 loans and SBA 504 for 8. Franchising plays no part: the share is 0.00% of loans. The lender table for this cell names no single lender, so no holder can be singled out. Johnson County has 8 loans, Geary and Sedgwick have 3 each, and Crawford, Lyon and Wyandotte 2 each. The yearly count peaked at 6 in FY2020 and fell to none in FY2023, before returning to 3 in each of FY2025 and FY2026.

Coding limit and loss rates

Truck washes and mobile washes are filed under the same code as ordinary car washes, so Kansas loans to a tunnel, a truck bay or a van-based operator cannot be told apart. Cancellation and charge-off rates are withheld, because the cohort has fewer than 30 loans and Loan Analytics' own presentation rule is not to publish a rate on so few; no withheld value is reported as zero.

Tests for a Kansas wash

A Kansas wash should be tested for traffic counts on the road in front of the site, the density of vehicles within a short drive, and the competing washes already there, because volume drives the revenue. It should test the wash type, the equipment cost, and the cost of water and sewer connections, as well as the utility rates. Seasonal revenue should be modelled month by month, with allowance for freezing days that may close self-serve bays and tunnel entrances. With loans running well under the national median, the study should check whether the planned build fits a ticket of that size or needs more equity. Show payment coverage on a cautious wash count; the appraisal will rest on what the site can actually earn.