Data Center Feasibility Study in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Metro Area
What SBA's own loan files show about data center lending in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Metro Area, and what a feasibility study for a project there has to test.
Chicago is third in the country for data center loans
The record ranks 3 of 169 across metro and micro areas for data center loans. Inside the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area, though, the class stands only 20 of 39. Chicago's files hold 42 loans totaling $17.1 million over the decade. The median is $187,500, 0.91x the national figure, with quartile edges at $46,250 and $387,500. The location quotient is 1.41x.
What the data center code includes
One code covers data processing and hosting firms as well, and a colocation building looks identical to a hosting business in the data. The 42 loans split 37 and 5 between 7(a) and 504, and franchise share is 0.00%. Cook County carries 23 of the 42 loans, so the record is largely a Cook County record, and the figures should be read as covering colocation and hosting together.
Holders, counties and years
Of the holders listed, JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association has 7 loans ($3.9 million), The Huntington National Bank 6 ($1.1 million), and Newtek Bank, National Association 6 ($685,000). They are SBA holder counts and describe no bank's lending. Cook County, IL carries 23 loans and DuPage County, IL 8. FY2017 printed 6 loans and $841,000, FY2021 shows 0 loans and $0, a printed zero unlike the withheld years; FY2024 and FY2025 each show 8 loans, with $2.9 million and $3.4 million; FY2026 shows 5 and $704,600. FY2018 to FY2020 and FY2022 and FY2023 are withheld.
Blank outcome figures
No cancellation rate or charge-off rate prints for Chicago data centers, and the gaps are not zeros. Cook County, DuPage County and the rest of the Chicago area's counties are tied to the metro through names in the 2023 list.
Chicago data centers: first questions
A study should begin with what is being built: a hosting business in leased space, a colocation suite, or a purpose-built facility. Power capacity, cooling, connectivity and redundancy decide both cost and revenue. Run coverage at $187,500 and near $387,500 and test the loss of the largest customer. The appraiser should separate real estate, electrical and cooling plant, and the operating business.
SBA data center loans in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Metro Area
| Loans approved, FY2017 to FY2026 | 42 |
|---|---|
| Gross dollars approved | $17.1 million |
| Median loan | $187,500 |
| Middle half of loans, from | $46,250 |
| Middle half of loans, to | $387,500 |
| SBA 7(a) loans | 37 |
| SBA 504 loans | 5 |
| Franchise share of loans | 0.00% |
| Rank among metro and micro areas for data center loans | 3 of 169 |
| Rank of data center among the classes in this area | 20 of 39 |
| Location quotient (share of loans against the national share) | 1.41x |
| Median loan against the national median for the class | 0.91x |
Cancellation and charge-off
| Cancelled after approval, FY2017 to FY2024 approvals (a floor) | not reported: fewer than 30 loans in the cohort |
|---|---|
| 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 data center loans approved in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Metro Area, by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| FY2017 | 6 | $841,000 |
| FY2018 | withheld | withheld |
| FY2019 | withheld | withheld |
| FY2020 | withheld | withheld |
| FY2021 | 0 | $0 |
| FY2022 | withheld | withheld |
| FY2023 | withheld | withheld |
| FY2024 | 8 | $2.9 million |
| FY2025 | 8 | $3.4 million |
| FY2026 | 5 | $704,600 |
Most active SBA lenders
| Lender | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association | 7 | $3.9 million |
| The Huntington National Bank | 6 | $1.1 million |
| Newtek Bank, National Association | 6 | $685,000 |
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 |
|---|---|
| Cook County, IL | 23 |
| DuPage County, IL | 8 |
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.
Colocation buildings cannot be separated from hosting services.
Shared code: 518210 also holds data processing and hosting businesses.
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 MA-16980-C31.
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