Quick Service Restaurant Feasibility Study in the Ann Arbor, MI Metro Area

A franchise-heavy counter-service market

Franchised units make up 77.1% of the loans for limited-service restaurants in the Ann Arbor, MI Metro Area, and the brand tie deserves a borrower's first look. The class is second, 2 of 39, in the area's own list, and its 1.50x location quotient says it takes more of local lending than the national share would. The metro is placed 101 of 779 for the class. A $300,000 median loan comes to 0.96x the nationwide median, nearly level, so size does not set Ann Arbor apart. Across FY2017 to FY2026, 35 approvals add up to $15.1 million.

Distribution of loans and their years

Half of the loans fall between $136,850 and $527,000. Program counts under 7(a) and 504 stay hidden. Years printed: FY2017 (6 loans, $1.9 million), FY2019 with no approvals and $0, FY2021 with 5 loans and $3.3 million, FY2025 with 7 loans and $1.3 million, and FY2026 with 5 loans and $2.0 million. Because FY2026 is a complete year, its 5 loans are a full-year figure. Washtenaw County accounts for all 35.

Lender

SBA's data shows The Huntington National Bank holding 11 loans totaling $3.3 million. That counts what it holds or held, and it speaks neither to how the loans began nor to any credit policy.

What the missing rates mean

Ann Arbor shows no cancellation or charge-off rate. Loan Analytics withholds a rate whose early disbursement group is too small, and a rate left blank is not a rate of nothing.

What a feasibility study for a franchised unit must test

With franchising this common, the study has to start from the franchisor's own numbers: required build-out, royalty and marketing contributions, and the territory the agreement grants. It should then test whether this site, supports the unit volumes the system expects. Competing counters with similar brands can cannibalize one another, so the study should map them. Debt service coverage must be computed after royalties, and the lender will want to see a conservative case. Appraisal for such a unit leans on lease terms and equipment value, so show what a successor franchisee would pay.