Fitness Center Feasibility Study in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metro Area
What SBA's own loan files show about fitness center lending in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metro Area, and what a feasibility study for a project there has to test.
Sizing up 140 Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia loans
Over FY2017 to FY2026, Charlotte businesses in fitness center took 140 approvals worth $79.0 million. Sizes center near $350,000, and half of them fall between $172,900 and $691,300. Beside the class nationally, Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia's median is 1.35x of the national median, above it.
Charlotte against the nation at 1.56x
7(a) outweighs the other program in Charlotte, NC, 135 7(a) loans to 5 504 loans. 68.6% of Charlotte loans went to franchised units. Fitness center is 3 of 39 among classes inside Charlotte and Charlotte is 21 of 608 among areas for it. 1.56x is the Charlotte, NC quotient: the class is taking a bigger share of Charlotte lending than nationally. By county, Mecklenburg County, NC leads with 90 loans, then Union County, NC with 11 and York County, SC with 11. Charlotte spans two states, NC and SC, both inside the area.
Charlotte, NC lenders, years and the $79.0 million record
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia approvals were highest in FY2023 (23 loans, $10.4 million) and lowest in FY2024 (7 loans, $3.5 million). Charlotte 7(a) holdings are headed by 29 loans and $9.1 million at The Huntington National Bank; 12 loans and $2.9 million at Wells Fargo Bank National Association; 7 loans and $5.7 million at Pinnacle Bank (TN). The Huntington National Bank shows 29 loans only because SBA names it holder for Charlotte, NC; the $9.1 million says nothing about lending standards. Charlotte, NC 504 entries: Business Expansion Funding Corporation, 5 loans, $6.6 million. The Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia cancellation floor is 9.3%, while Loan Analytics keeps the ceiling off the page, and a blank is not zero. At least 13.0% of the 54 disbursed Charlotte loans are charged off, while Loan Analytics withholds the within-five-years rate.
What a fitness center study in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia has to prove
A Charlotte study starts with peak-hour crowding, the pull of nearby households and the memberships a trade area can sustain; the 140-loan record cannot sit in for them. Cost comes next: a Charlotte budget must carry floor buildout, locker and shower areas and a long lease, each priced against Charlotte quotes. Coverage in Charlotte is tested at $350,000, $172,900 and $691,300 alike, because the file spans that range. Charlotte, NC appraisers will value the lease term, fitness equipment and membership goodwill one at a time, so the Charlotte study should do the same. The $79.0 million Charlotte file measures what was approved; it forecasts nothing and promises no Charlotte borrower approval.
Limits behind 140 Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia loans
Placement of 140 Charlotte, NC loans runs on the project county. Matching Mecklenburg County, NC and its neighbors to Charlotte uses names under the July 2023 delineation. Charlotte cancellation covers FY2017 to FY2024 approvals for Charlotte; charge-offs cover FY2017 to FY2021 disbursements.
SBA fitness center loans in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metro Area
| Loans approved, FY2017 to FY2026 | 140 |
|---|---|
| Gross dollars approved | $79.0 million |
| Median loan | $350,000 |
| Middle half of loans, from | $172,900 |
| Middle half of loans, to | $691,300 |
| SBA 7(a) loans | 135 |
| SBA 504 loans | 5 |
| Franchise share of loans | 68.6% |
| Rank among metro and micro areas for fitness center loans | 21 of 608 |
| Rank of fitness center among the classes in this area | 3 of 39 |
| Location quotient (share of loans against the national share) | 1.56x |
| Median loan against the national median for the class | 1.35x |
Cancellation and charge-off
| Cancelled after approval, FY2017 to FY2024 approvals (a floor) | 9.3% |
|---|---|
| The same, counting loans still undisbursed as cancelled (a ceiling) | withheld |
| Charged off to date, FY2017 to FY2021 disbursed loans (a floor) | 13.0% |
| Charged off within five years of approval | withheld |
| Loans in that cohort | 54 |
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 fitness center loans approved in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metro Area, by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| FY2017 | 14 | $8.6 million |
| FY2018 | 16 | $14.8 million |
| FY2019 | 8 | $4.3 million |
| FY2020 | 13 | $4.7 million |
| FY2021 | 9 | $5.6 million |
| FY2022 | 18 | $7.9 million |
| FY2023 | 23 | $10.4 million |
| FY2024 | 7 | $3.5 million |
| FY2025 | 18 | $12.7 million |
| FY2026 | 14 | $6.5 million |
Most active SBA lenders
| Lender | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| Business Expansion Funding Corporation | 5 | $6.6 million |
| Lender | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| The Huntington National Bank | 29 | $9.1 million |
| Wells Fargo Bank National Association | 12 | $2.9 million |
| Pinnacle Bank (TN) | 7 | $5.7 million |
| Stearns Bank National Association | 7 | $1.7 million |
| United Community Bank (SC) | 5 | $6.6 million |
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 |
|---|---|
| Mecklenburg County, NC | 90 |
| Union County, NC | 11 |
| York County, SC | 11 |
| Iredell County, NC | 8 |
| Lancaster County, SC | 7 |
| Gaston County, NC | 5 |
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.
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-16740-C33.
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