Fitness Center Feasibility Study in the Rochester, NY Metro Area

All 7(a), and small

Fitness lending in Rochester is made up entirely of 7(a) loans: 47 of 47, none under 504. Together they total $6.7 million, approved across FY2017 through FY2026. The midpoint of $65,000 is just 0.25x the national midpoint, where this cell parts furthest from the state and the class, and the typical loan runs from $25,000 to $160,000. Taken together those facts describe small studios and equipment packages, not owned buildings, since 504 is usually the route for real estate.

Rank and weight

Fitness centers are fifth of 39 among the area's classes, and the area is 52 of 608 nationally. A quotient of 0.81x puts the class a little below its national share. Franchises make up 29.8% of the loans. Monroe County has 40 of the loans.

Three banks on the list

Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company heads the table with 17 loans worth $1.5 million. The Huntington National Bank has 6 loans worth $1.8 million, a much larger average, and The Canandaigua National Bank and Trust Company 6 worth $608,100. The names come from the current holder in SBA's data.

Years and absent rates

Printed years: FY2017 with 7 loans and $507,300, FY2019 with 5 and $378,200, FY2020 with 10 and $1.5 million, FY2023 with 5 and $682,000, FY2025 with 6 and $1.1 million, and FY2026 with 6 and $845,000. The remaining years are withheld for thin counts. The cancellation rate and charge-off rate are both withheld; they are not zero and they are not estimated.

Testing a Rochester fitness project

A study must test membership demand in a market with long winters, when indoor exercise gains and outdoor alternatives shrink, and the supply of competing gyms, studios and municipal facilities. It should test the monthly price a typical member will pay, the churn that follows a promotional start, and the cost of equipment, which is the bulk of a small loan. Lease terms matter because the equipment is movable but the build-out is not. Show that the payment is covered while membership climbs slowly, and the appraisal will rest on the operating business and its equipment.