Charter School Feasibility Study in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX Metro Area

Dallas-Fort Worth: first nationally for school loans

From FY2017 to FY2026, 57 school loans, $89.0 million in total, were approved in Dallas-Fort Worth. Nationally, Dallas-Fort Worth sits 1 of 154 for school loans; within Dallas-Fort Worth, the class is 17 of 39. At 2.51x, the location quotient puts school far above its national share of lending in Dallas-Fort Worth. The class here includes charter schools, and the area stands first nationally. Project counties: Collin County, TX with 20, Denton County, TX with 12, Dallas County, TX with 10, and Tarrant County, TX with 9.

A Dallas-Fort Worth loan at the midpoint is $1.3 million, and the middle half spans $725,000 to $2.3 million. Dallas-Fort Worth reads 1.92x of the national school median, so tickets here run bigger. Large tickets are expected when buildings, land and fit-out are in the project. Counting programs, Dallas-Fort Worth has 41 7(a) loans and 16 504 loans. Franchise brands may mean tutoring or early-learning concepts. 26.3% of the loans in Dallas-Fort Worth belong to franchised units.

Development companies and one bank

Under 7(a), SBA lists $9.5 million across 7 loans at MidFirst Bank. In the 504 program, the holders are $9.9 million across 5 loans at Capital Certified Development Corporation and $9.1 million across 5 loans at Greater East Texas Certified Development Company. In Dallas-Fort Worth, each line shows what SBA lists, without claiming what lenders require.

Dallas-Fort Worth shows no cancellation floor or ceiling, so gaps are not clean. The yearly record includes FY2018 (9 loans, $15.4 million), FY2019 (5 loans, $10.6 million), FY2023 (9 loans, $14.0 million), and FY2024 (11 loans, $12.2 million). Other years are suppressed in Dallas-Fort Worth, and none is zero. Charter schools share their code with private schools and cannot be isolated; because most charters are nonprofits outside SBA's reach, the loans shown are a narrow slice of schooling. Dallas-Fort Worth totals follow the July 2023 delineation, so unmatched loans are excluded.

Questions for a Dallas-Fort Worth school study

Enrollment is the first test: seats must be sized against the approved cap, waiting lists and the district and charter seats that compete for the same families. Per-pupil funding follows a state calendar, and payroll, special education and facility cost squeeze what is left for rent or debt service, so coverage should be run below planned enrollment and against a funding cut. A school building has few alternative users, which narrows collateral, so the appraisal should address ownership, lease and charter term. Renewal risk is a repayment risk, and a study should name it.