Columbus: quick-service restaurant

SBA records 208 quick-service restaurant loans for Columbus, with $76.9 million approved from FY2017 to FY2026. Columbus holds spot 23 of 779 among metro areas on 208 loans; in Columbus, the class holds 2 of 39. Columbus: the 0.85x quotient shows a lighter concentration. With 208 loans behind it, $200,000 in Columbus sits near its parents; ranks and the 0.85x quotient decide.

$200,000 in Columbus, well below the national median (0.64x), is its median; Columbus's middle half spans $50,000 to $467,025. Program choice in Columbus: 199 used 7(a), 9 used 504. 51.0% of the 208 loans went to franchisees.

Columbus's 7(a) table, 87 loans held by The Huntington National Bank, $28.1 million; 19 held by German American Bank, $6.0 million; 16 held by Telhio Credit Union Inc, $4.3 million; 7 held by Fifth Third Bank, $2.2 million; 6 held by The Park National Bank, $6.8 million. Columbus leaves holders under 5 loans unnamed. Columbus counties, of 208 loans: Franklin County, OH 129; Delaware County, OH 36; Licking County, OH 11; Fairfield County, OH 10; Union County, OH 8; Pickaway County, OH 7.

Outcome floors in Columbus and approvals

13.0% or more of Columbus approvals were cancelled by FY2024. Columbus's undisbursed-loan ceiling is withheld. Columbus charge-off floor: withheld, not zero. Columbus: the cohort is too small. Columbus open loans may raise floors. Columbus, moving from 22 loans and $14.7 million in FY2017, ended on 25 loans and $17.3 million in FY2026; the peak was 25 loans and $17.3 million in FY2026, the trough 14 in FY2020. Loans by year in Columbus: FY2017 22, FY2018 23, FY2019 21, FY2020 14, FY2021 18, FY2022 19, FY2023 24, FY2024 21, FY2025 21, FY2026 25. Dollars per year: FY2017 $14.7 million, FY2018 $6.4 million, FY2019 $5.6 million, FY2020 $2.7 million, FY2021 $3.9 million, FY2022 $3.1 million, FY2023 $10.1 million, FY2024 $8.0 million, FY2025 $5.2 million, FY2026 $17.3 million.

Columbus: what a feasibility study must prove

Across 208 loans, drive through volume in Columbus carries $200,000. Columbus: facing slow starts, debt service holds with $76.9 million approved. For 208 loans in Columbus, kitchen costs outside $50,000 to $467,025 need cases. For 208 approvals in Columbus, appraisers split business from building. Columbus approvals ran from 14 in FY2020 to 25 in FY2026; for Columbus, plan for slow starts. Columbus's quotient, 0.85x: count rivals by drive time.

Columbus counts 208 loans by project county. Columbus borders follow the July 2023 delineation. Columbus omits counties it cannot place. 208 loans are a rough guide to Columbus, not a census.

SBA limited-service restaurant loans in the Columbus, OH Metro Area

Loans approved, FY2017 to FY2026	208
Gross dollars approved	$76.9 million
Median loan	$200,000
Middle half of loans, from	$50,000
Middle half of loans, to	$467,025
SBA 7(a) loans	199
SBA 504 loans	9
Franchise share of loans	51.0%
Rank among metro and micro areas for limited-service restaurant loans	23 of 779
Rank of limited-service restaurant among the classes in this area	2 of 39
Location quotient (share of loans against the national share)	0.85x
Median loan against the national median for the class	0.64x

Cancellation and charge-off

Cancelled after approval, FY2017 to FY2024 approvals (a floor)	13.0%
The same, counting loans still undisbursed as cancelled (a ceiling)	withheld
Charged off to date, FY2017 to FY2021 disbursed loans (a floor)	withheld

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 limited-service restaurant loans approved in the Columbus, OH Metro Area, by fiscal year

Fiscal year	Loans	Dollars
FY2017	22	$14.7 million
FY2018	23	$6.4 million
FY2019	21	$5.6 million
FY2020	14	$2.7 million
FY2021	18	$3.9 million
FY2022	19	$3.1 million
FY2023	24	$10.1 million
FY2024	21	$8.0 million
FY2025	21	$5.2 million
FY2026	25	$17.3 million

Most active SBA lenders

SBA 7(a): lenders by loans approved (the current holder of each loan, as SBA reports it)
Lender	Loans	Dollars
The Huntington National Bank	87	$28.1 million
German American Bank	19	$6.0 million
Telhio Credit Union Inc	16	$4.3 million
Fifth Third Bank	7	$2.2 million
The Park National Bank	6	$6.8 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.

Where the loans are, by county

County	Loans
Franklin County, OH	129
Delaware County, OH	36
Licking County, OH	11
Fairfield County, OH	10
Union County, OH	8
Pickaway County, OH	7

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.

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 MA-18140-C35.

Related feasibility study pages

Loan Analytics prepares the feasibility study a lender reads before it commits: for a limited-service restaurant project in the Columbus, OH 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.

Daniel Smith, MAI

Quick Service Restaurant Feasibility Study in the Columbus, OH Metro Area