Feasibility Study Data for the Pocatello, ID Metro Area

Hotels first, and a lot of 504

Pocatello is Bannock County, ID alone, with 258 loans and $120.7 million from FY2017 to FY2026, ranking 267 of 928. Hotel and motel heads the tracked list at 14 loans, with coffee shop and snack bar at 10 and full-service restaurant at 9; rehabilitation and therapy clinic shows 7, and medical office and gas station and truck stop 6 apiece. Another 172 loans sit outside every tracked class. Of all the loans, 202 are 7(a) and 56 are 504, a meaningful real estate-financing share.

Three institutions appear on the 504 side: Eastern Idaho Development Corporation with 24 loans worth $10.3 million, East-Central Idaho Development Company with 13 worth $8.4 million and Capital Matrix, Inc. with 10 worth $9.7 million. A borrower considering a 504 structure can see that the field is regional and fairly spread, which differs from areas where one institution holds nearly everything. Bannock County holds all 258 loans, and having a 504 table beside the 7(a) table gives a borrower two separate lender lists to compare.

Size and 7(a) holders

Median borrowing of $182,850 amounts to 0.88x the country's, and the middle stretch of loans runs $50,000 to $510,375. Franchise brands account for 11.6% of loans. SBA's holder records show Zions Bancorporation, National Association with 54 7(a) loans worth $7.6 million, Idaho Central CU with 25 worth $12.9 million, Glacier Bank with 18, Mountain America FCU with 17 worth $2.8 million and D. L. Evans Bank with 12 worth $887,600. They describe where loans sit, and not the practices of any lender.

Cancellation after approval is 7.6% or more of FY2017 to FY2024 approvals. Pocatello shows no ceiling and no charge-off rate in SBA's release, which skips cohorts this small, and silence on losses is not evidence that there are none. Approvals ranged from 14 loans in FY2018 to 39 in FY2017 and 38 in FY2025.

Questions for a Pocatello study

With no published loss rate, the burden on the study grows. It should test local demand in Bannock County, review the existing lodging and food supply, run coverage with conservative assumptions about ramp-up, and support the appraised value. If a 504 structure is planned, the study can describe its real estate component clearly. County placement follows the 2023 delineation. Use it as background only; it promises nobody an approval.