Physical Therapy Clinic Feasibility Study in Georgia

Georgia therapy clinics borrow more

Georgia's rehabilitation and therapy clinics stand out for the size of what they borrow. Their median SBA approval is $237,500, which is 1.58x the national median for therapy clinics, and the gap is wide enough to count as distinctive both against therapy clinics nationally and against Georgia's median across every class. In share, Georgia matches the nation exactly, with a location quotient of 1.00x; it ranks 9 of 54 among states, with 105 approvals worth $44.9 million over FY2017 to FY2026, and therapy clinics rank 17 of 39 among the state's classes.

A late surge in approvals

Most of the activity is recent. Approvals were as low as 3 in FY2018, a year worth only $190,000, and 3 again in FY2022, then rose to 16 in FY2024, 28 worth $17.1 million in FY2025 and 16 worth $9.6 million in FY2026. SBA 7(a) carried 96 loans and SBA 504 carried 9. Live Oak Banking Company holds 10 loans worth $7.5 million; Wells Fargo Bank National Association holds 7, Northeast Bank 6, and The Huntington National Bank and Readycap Lending, LLC 5 each, worth $586,000 and $265,000. Half of Georgia's clinic approvals fall between $90,000 and $500,000. Franchised clinics account for 7.6% of loans. Gwinnett County leads with 18 approvals, Fulton has 13 and DeKalb 11.

Early outcomes

Both outcome floors run below therapy clinics nationally. At least 6.6% of Georgia clinic approvals from FY2017 to FY2024 were cancelled, 8.2% at the ceiling. Charge-offs reach 3.1% of the 32 clinic loans funded during FY2017 to FY2021, and the five-year measure shows 0.00%. A cohort of 32 is barely above the 30-loan threshold below which we withhold a rate, and it predates the recent surge, so it says little about the newer, larger loans.

Larger and newer loans are exactly what a Georgia therapy clinic study must stress-test. Demand rests on referral sources, chiefly physicians, orthopaedic groups and hospitals within the clinic's draw, and on the competing clinics, including hospital and chain outpatient sites. The payer mix matters, because reimbursement from public and private insurers sets realistic revenue per visit, and the study should model visits per therapist per day honestly. The budget includes fit-out, treatment tables and modalities, and enough cash to bridge the wait for insurers to pay. Debt service coverage should be tested with therapist recruiting and wages at market and with a slower ramp than the founders expect. Where no building is involved, the appraisal is of business value, and the study's income has to carry it.

Lender names reflect the current holder SBA lists for each Georgia loan, and the outcome rates remain floors while those loans are open.