Worked Example: SBA 7(a) Gas Station Feasibility Study in Tennessee
A worked example of the feasibility study a lender would read for a gas station project in Tennessee, financed with an SBA 7(a) loan.
What SBA's own loan files show about lending in the Knoxville, TN Metro Area, every asset class together, and what a feasibility study for a project there has to test.
Knoxville stands 103 of 928 by loans, drawing 917 SBA approvals over FY2017 to FY2026, $555.6 million gross. In Knoxville, $279,000 is the median loan, 1.34x the national median. Half of Knoxville loans sit between $100,000 and $763,000, larger tickets than the national norm in Knoxville. Lenders working Knoxville see tickets from $100,000 to $763,000 most often. A Knoxville study should place its in Knoxville project inside that $100,000 to $763,000 range in Knoxville.
In Knoxville, SBA 7(a) carries 876 loans and SBA 504 carries 41. In Knoxville, franchise brands account for in Knoxville 23.8% of the loans. In Knoxville, leading classes: full-service restaurant with 41 in Knoxville, limited-service restaurant with 41 and coffee shop and snack bar with 26. Another 641 approvals fall in no named class, so Knoxville totals 917 loans, more than its classes combined. In Knoxville, the counties carrying most volume are Knox County, TN with 641, Blount County, TN with 123 and Loudon County, TN with 48 in Knoxville.
In Knoxville, lender lines come from SBA's reporting on loans a holder carries or carried, as current holder, so no underwriting can be read. Knoxville holders should be read that way in Knoxville. Heading the Knoxville SBA 7(a) list in Knoxville: U.S. Bank, National Association with 119 loans worth $17.4 million; Pinnacle Bank (TN) with 56 loans worth $74.0 million; The Huntington National Bank with 51 loans worth $13.9 million. The Knoxville SBA 504 side shows Brightbridge, Inc. with 35 loans worth $37.3 million. In Knoxville, the top holder leads the rest. A Knoxville borrower may still approach any lender in Knoxville.
Among Knoxville approvals of FY2017 to FY2024, 10.1% were cancelled after approval, a floor. A Knoxville ceiling, counting undisbursed loans as cancelled, is 11.8%. In Knoxville, 4.3% of the 346 loans disbursed in FY2017 in Knoxville to FY2021 are charged in Knoxville off to date in Knoxville, a floor in Knoxville; the five-year measure is withheld. Knoxville trend: the busiest year is FY2025, at 158 loans. Boundaries for Knoxville come from whichever county the project names to the July 2023 delineation, hence this loan, if its county is blank goes uncounted in any area. The 917 loans in Knoxville, TN include those in no named class in Knoxville.
The Knoxville test begins with demand. Show the draw of the exact address, not the metropolitan area in Knoxville, and let revenue survive a slow ramp in Knoxville. After demand, Knoxville cost. The norm of $279,000 is only a guide, yet rebuild the budget from quotes, also equipment and fees itemised for Knoxville. The Knoxville loan has to be serviceable. Run the ratio at the proposed amount plus a case with lower revenue, naming the cushion left in Knoxville. Appraisal closes the loop in Knoxville, so the study's in Knoxville rent and caps needs sources that survive review in Knoxville. Inside Knoxville, TN, submarkets differ widely. Its 917 loans average across them all, so a Knoxville study must name the Knoxville submarket it means. With Knoxville at 1.34x the national median in Knoxville, projects run large in Knoxville. The study must justify its project for Knoxville against $279,000.
| Loans approved, FY2017 to FY2026 | 917 |
|---|---|
| Gross dollars approved | $555.6 million |
| Median loan | $279,000 |
| Middle half of loans, from | $100,000 |
| Middle half of loans, to | $763,000 |
| SBA 7(a) loans | 876 |
| SBA 504 loans | 41 |
| Franchise share of loans | 23.8% |
| Rank among metro and micro areas by loans | 103 of 928 |
| Median loan against the national median | 1.34x |
| Cancelled after approval, FY2017 to FY2024 approvals (a floor) | 10.1% |
|---|---|
| The same, counting loans still undisbursed as cancelled (a ceiling) | 11.8% |
| Charged off to date, FY2017 to FY2021 disbursed loans (a floor) | 4.3% |
| Charged off within five years of approval | withheld |
| Loans in that cohort | 346 |
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 loans approved in the Knoxville, TN Metro Area, by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| FY2017 | 75 | $33.4 million |
| FY2018 | 85 | $42.1 million |
| FY2019 | 76 | $41.5 million |
| FY2020 | 63 | $30.0 million |
| FY2021 | 92 | $91.0 million |
| FY2022 | 85 | $55.0 million |
| FY2023 | 70 | $49.1 million |
| FY2024 | 97 | $47.1 million |
| FY2025 | 158 | $71.1 million |
| FY2026 | 116 | $95.1 million |
| Asset class | Loans |
|---|---|
| Not in any of the 39 asset classes | 641 |
| Full-service restaurant | 41 |
| Limited-service restaurant | 41 |
| Coffee shop and snack bar | 26 |
| Automotive mechanical repair (car and truck) | 24 |
| Hotel and motel | 23 |
| Fitness center | 15 |
| Beauty salon | 14 |
| Veterinary clinic | 13 |
| Child care center | 12 |
| Medical office (physicians) | 10 |
| Gas station and truck stop | 7 |
| Self storage | 7 |
| Dental office | 6 |
| Liquor store | 6 |
| Beverage manufacturing (breweries, wineries, distilleries) | 5 |
Classes with 5 or more loans; smaller ones are withheld, and more where a small one could be derived.
| Lender | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| Brightbridge, Inc. | 35 | $37.3 million |
| Lender | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Bank, National Association | 119 | $17.4 million |
| Pinnacle Bank (TN) | 56 | $74.0 million |
| The Huntington National Bank | 51 | $13.9 million |
| Northeast Bank (ME) | 37 | $6.6 million |
| Newtek Bank, National Association | 33 | $12.4 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.
| County | Loans |
|---|---|
| Knox County, TN | 641 |
| Blount County, TN | 123 |
| Loudon County, TN | 48 |
| Anderson County, TN | 45 |
| Roane County, TN | 25 |
| Campbell County, TN | 15 |
| Grainger County, TN | 7 |
| Morgan County, TN | 7 |
| Union County, TN | 6 |
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.
All assets: every 7(a) and 504 approval in the metro, including those outside the 39 asset classes.
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 MT-28940.
A worked example of the feasibility study a lender would read for a gas station project in Tennessee, financed with an SBA 7(a) loan.
Loan Analytics prepares the feasibility study a lender reads before it commits: for a commercial project in the Knoxville, TN Metro Area, financed under SBA 7(a), SBA 504, USDA Business and Industry or a conventional bank loan. Tell us the project and the lender's deadline, and we reply with scope, timeline and fee.
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