Car Wash Feasibility Study in North Carolina

Loan size and rank in North Carolina

North Carolina car wash borrowers take out larger tickets than the national car wash median. The cell counts 66 SBA approvals across FY2017 to FY2026 with $114.3 million behind them. The median of $1.2 million comes to 1.26x the nationwide car wash median, while the middle half runs from $670,500 up to $3.0 million. By loan count North Carolina sits 14 of 53 among states for car washes, while within North Carolina the class ranks 16 of 39 asset classes, and a location quotient of 0.83x puts car washes a little under their national weight. Nothing in the cell is singled out as distinctive, so it reads as a plain reference for the class in the state.

The lenders behind the numbers

The 504 program financed 15 loans while 7(a) financed 51. Business Expansion Funding Corporation holds 12 of the 504 loans, with $16.5 million. On the 7(a) side the loans are held by Celtic Bank Corporation with 5 loans worth $12.9 million, TowneBank with 5 for $6.1 million, and the Wells Fargo bank listed with 5 for only $866,000. Franchise loans make up 3.0% of the cell. Mecklenburg County leads with 11 loans, New Hanover has 8, and Onslow and Wake have 4 each.

A peak year and a thin year

The yearly record is uneven. FY2020 produced 16 loans and $34.7 million, the peak of the whole period, and FY2019 had just 2 loans and $4.6 million before it. FY2024 brought 2 loans yet $9.9 million. FY2026, a complete fiscal year, closed with 3 loans and $5.8 million. Cancellation after approval has a floor of 10.3% for FY2017 to FY2024 approvals and the same ceiling. Among the 36 loans disbursed from FY2017 to FY2021 approvals, no charge-off has been recorded to date (0.00%), and none inside five years of approval (0.00%); both are floors, since some loans are still open.

What the study should prove

A tunnel wash depends on throughput, so a North Carolina study has to estimate cars per day from traffic counts, visibility and access, then convert them into revenue through the split between single washes and monthly memberships. Water, chemicals, utilities and labor should be costed from the equipment supplier's specifications, and local rules on water reclamation, drainage and discharge need to be confirmed before land is bought. With a median near $1.2 million, many projects will include real estate, so the cost of land and site work deserves its own line. Coverage should be tested on a ramp-up that opens well under full volume and on a weak month. The appraisal will treat the site as special purpose, so a conservative equity contribution protects the lender.

A coding limit

Car washes, truck washes and mobile washes all share one code, so this record cannot isolate the fixed tunnel model.