Feasibility Study Data for the Rochester, MN Metro Area
What SBA's own loan files show about lending in the Rochester, MN Metro Area, every asset class together, and what a feasibility study for a project there has to test.
A repair-led record in a medical city
Rochester, MN lists 360 loans and $186.4 million from FY2017 to FY2026, rank 203 of 928. Automotive mechanical repair leads the tracked classes with 18 loans, ahead of full-service restaurant with 17 and limited-service restaurant with 11; child care center has 10 and fitness center 9, with five classes tied beneath them: veterinary clinic, hotel and motel, beauty salon, and the coffee shop and snack bar class, at 5 each. A further 252 loans fall in no tracked class, and no health-care class appears among the named entries.
Olmsted County, MN holds 245 loans, Dodge County, MN and Fillmore County, MN 40 each and Wabasha County, MN 35. Programme mix is 267 under 7(a) and 93 under 504, and the 504 side concentrates in Southeastern Minnesota 504 Development Corporation, with 66 loans worth $47.3 million. Midwest Business Finance Corporation and Twin Cities-Metro Certified Development Company have 7 each, and Amplio Economic Development Corporation 6. The median loan is $262,000, 1.26x the national median, and loans from $84,250 to $634,350 form the central half.
Who SBA lists as holders
The institutions listed come from SBA's holder entries, which pin loans to banks and stay silent about what any bank will do. Alerus Financial, National Association holds 22 loans worth $19.3 million, and Wells Fargo Bank National Association 23 worth $13.1 million. Old National Bank holds 19, U.S. Bank, National Association 18 worth only $2.7 million, and Minnwest Bank 16 worth $14.5 million. Franchise brands account for 13.1% of loans.
Cancelled approvals reached at least 8.4% of those through FY2024; with undisbursed loans counted, the figure is 10.1%. Of 179 funded loans, 3.4% are charged off to date. The five-year rate for Rochester is held back by SBA; no number appears, and it is not nil. Volume fell to 29 loans in FY2019, rose to 53 in FY2021 and reached $35.6 million in FY2025.
What Rochester asks of a study
Because the leading classes are everyday service businesses, a study for something different, such as a care or lodging use, should explain why the market will support it without local precedent. It should test demand in Olmsted County rather than the four-county area, size cost against moderate loans, and run debt service at the floors above. An appraisal supporting value completes it. This page, built on the 2023 delineation, is context only.
SBA loans in the Rochester, MN Metro Area
| Loans approved, FY2017 to FY2026 | 360 |
|---|---|
| Gross dollars approved | $186.4 million |
| Median loan | $262,000 |
| Middle half of loans, from | $84,250 |
| Middle half of loans, to | $634,350 |
| SBA 7(a) loans | 267 |
| SBA 504 loans | 93 |
| Franchise share of loans | 13.1% |
| Rank among metro and micro areas by loans | 203 of 928 |
| Median loan against the national median | 1.26x |
Cancellation and charge-off
| Cancelled after approval, FY2017 to FY2024 approvals (a floor) | 8.4% |
|---|---|
| The same, counting loans still undisbursed as cancelled (a ceiling) | 10.1% |
| Charged off to date, FY2017 to FY2021 disbursed loans (a floor) | 3.4% |
| Charged off within five years of approval | withheld |
| Loans in that cohort | 179 |
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 Rochester, MN Metro Area, by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| FY2017 | 46 | $20.0 million |
| FY2018 | 36 | $14.3 million |
| FY2019 | 29 | $14.9 million |
| FY2020 | 30 | $9.9 million |
| FY2021 | 53 | $35.5 million |
| FY2022 | 37 | $17.6 million |
| FY2023 | 32 | $12.5 million |
| FY2024 | 34 | $11.9 million |
| FY2025 | 41 | $35.6 million |
| FY2026 | 22 | $14.2 million |
Loans by asset class
| Asset class | Loans |
|---|---|
| Not in any of the 39 asset classes | 252 |
| Automotive mechanical repair (car and truck) | 18 |
| Full-service restaurant | 17 |
| Limited-service restaurant | 11 |
| Child care center | 10 |
| Fitness center | 9 |
| Hotel and motel | 5 |
| Veterinary clinic | 5 |
| Beauty salon | 5 |
| Coffee shop and snack bar | 5 |
Classes with 5 or more loans; smaller ones are withheld, and more where a small one could be derived.
Most active SBA lenders
| Lender | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| Southeastern Minnesota 504 Development Corporation | 66 | $47.3 million |
| Twin Cities-Metro Certified Development Company | 7 | $3.8 million |
| Midwest Business Finance Corporation | 7 | $3.2 million |
| Amplio Economic Development Corporation | 6 | $4.1 million |
| Lender | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| Wells Fargo Bank National Association | 23 | $13.1 million |
| Alerus Financial, National Association | 22 | $19.3 million |
| Old National Bank | 19 | $11.3 million |
| U.S. Bank, National Association | 18 | $2.7 million |
| Minnwest Bank | 16 | $14.5 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 |
|---|---|
| Olmsted County, MN | 245 |
| Dodge County, MN | 40 |
| Fillmore County, MN | 40 |
| Wabasha County, MN | 35 |
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-40340.
Related feasibility study pages
- Minnesota feasibility study consultant
- Feasibility Study Data by Metro Area
- SBA feasibility study company
- Feasibility Study Data for the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Metro Area
- Feasibility Study Data for the St. Cloud, MN Metro Area
- Feasibility Study Data for the Duluth, MN-WI Metro Area
- Feasibility Study Data for the Brainerd, MN Micro Area
- Feasibility Study Data for the Mankato, MN Metro Area
- Feasibility Study Data for the Bemidji, MN Micro Area
- Feasibility Study Data for the Willmar, MN Micro Area
- Feasibility Study Data for the Hutchinson, MN Micro Area
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