Worked Example: SBA 7(a) Assisted Living Feasibility Study in Utah
A worked example of the feasibility study a lender would read for an assisted living project in Utah, financed with an SBA 7(a) loan.
What SBA's own loan files show about lending in the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT Metro Area, every asset class together, and what a feasibility study for a project there has to test.
$2.86 billion over 4,663 loans is the Salt Lake City-Murray total, FY2017 through FY2026. Its loan-count rank is 30 of 928; Salt Lake City-Murray is one of those areas. Half the Salt Lake City-Murray loans are $285,000 or smaller. Salt Lake City-Murray sees its middle half between $95,750 and $720,000. Against the national median, Salt Lake City-Murray comes to 1.37x. Salt Lake City-Murray splits into 3,775 loans under 7(a) and 888 under 504. 9.8% of the loans in Salt Lake City-Murray carry a franchise brand. Salt Lake City-Murray dollars add to $2.86 billion.
In Salt Lake City-Murray, the tracked classes lead with full-service restaurant (158), limited-service restaurant (117), and dental office (114). Fourth in Salt Lake City-Murray is automotive mechanical repair, with 97 loans. 3,558 Salt Lake City-Murray loans sit in no tracked class. Most Salt Lake City-Murray credit is general business lending. By county, Salt Lake City-Murray loans concentrate in Salt Lake County, UT (4,476) and Tooele County, UT (187).
In Salt Lake City-Murray, a holder can differ from the maker. Among Salt Lake City-Murray 7(a) holders: Mountain America FCU with 466 loans ($189.8 million) and U.S. Bank, National Association with 299 loans ($80.3 million). Salt Lake City-Murray 504 holders include 695 loans at Mountain West Small Business Finance ($682.6 million) and 161 loans at Intermountain Business Lending, Inc. ($141.0 million). For a Salt Lake City-Murray borrower, these rows give background only. No Salt Lake City-Murray row states a holder's terms.
Salt Lake City-Murray shows 9.5% cancelled after approval, FY2017 to FY2024, a floor. The Salt Lake City-Murray ceiling is 10.1%, counting undisbursed loans as cancelled. Salt Lake City-Murray charge-offs: 4.4% among 2,034 loans disbursed FY2017 to FY2021, a floor. The Salt Lake City-Murray five-year figure is 2.5%. Treat Salt Lake City-Murray rates as floors. Later events lift them, Salt Lake City-Murray included. Salt Lake City-Murray loans are placed by county name. For Salt Lake City-Murray, the July 2023 list governs. Unmatched counties drop out of Salt Lake City-Murray. The Salt Lake City-Murray total includes loans outside the classes.
By year, FY2025 was busiest for Salt Lake City-Murray, at 593 loans and $375.8 million, and FY2020 quietest, at 369 loans and $237.2 million. The first year, FY2017, shows 486 loans and $224.8 million for Salt Lake City-Murray. The latest year, FY2026, shows 491 loans and $344.0 million for Salt Lake City-Murray. A Salt Lake City-Murray study weighs local demand against Salt Lake County, UT competitors, not national patterns. The Salt Lake City-Murray budget is priced against a $285,000 median. Salt Lake City-Murray sits at 1.37x nationally; site, build and equipment all count. A Salt Lake City-Murray study runs coverage on a slow ramp. Salt Lake City-Murray history of cancellations argues for it. Last, the Salt Lake City-Murray appraisal rests on local sales and income. Value must meet the Salt Lake City-Murray project cost. Absorption near Salt Lake County, UT is tested for Salt Lake City-Murray on a slow case. The Salt Lake City-Murray study states its limits beside Salt Lake County, UT findings.
| Loans approved, FY2017 to FY2026 | 4,663 |
|---|---|
| Gross dollars approved | $2.86 billion |
| Median loan | $285,000 |
| Middle half of loans, from | $95,750 |
| Middle half of loans, to | $720,000 |
| SBA 7(a) loans | 3,775 |
| SBA 504 loans | 888 |
| Franchise share of loans | 9.8% |
| Rank among metro and micro areas by loans | 30 of 928 |
| Median loan against the national median | 1.37x |
| Cancelled after approval, FY2017 to FY2024 approvals (a floor) | 9.5% |
|---|---|
| The same, counting loans still undisbursed as cancelled (a ceiling) | 10.1% |
| Charged off to date, FY2017 to FY2021 disbursed loans (a floor) | 4.4% |
| Charged off within five years of approval | 2.5% |
| Loans in that cohort | 2,034 |
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 Salt Lake City-Murray, UT Metro Area, by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| FY2017 | 486 | $224.8 million |
| FY2018 | 496 | $246.1 million |
| FY2019 | 414 | $222.3 million |
| FY2020 | 369 | $237.2 million |
| FY2021 | 465 | $369.1 million |
| FY2022 | 388 | $274.8 million |
| FY2023 | 419 | $251.5 million |
| FY2024 | 542 | $311.6 million |
| FY2025 | 593 | $375.8 million |
| FY2026 | 491 | $344.0 million |
| Asset class | Loans |
|---|---|
| Not in any of the 39 asset classes | 3,558 |
| Full-service restaurant | 158 |
| Limited-service restaurant | 117 |
| Dental office | 114 |
| Automotive mechanical repair (car and truck) | 97 |
| Fitness center | 78 |
| Medical office (physicians) | 72 |
| Coffee shop and snack bar | 68 |
| Beauty salon | 65 |
| Child care center | 60 |
| Assisted living (without nursing care) | 33 |
| Car wash | 31 |
| Behavioral health and addiction treatment | 29 |
| Hotel and motel | 26 |
| Rehabilitation and therapy clinic | 24 |
| Gas station and truck stop | 22 |
| Nonresidential lessor (flex, office and retail investor buildings) | 17 |
| Grocery store | 15 |
| Caterers (includes banquet halls with catering staff) | 12 |
| Self storage | 11 |
| Beverage manufacturing (breweries, wineries, distilleries) | 11 |
| Veterinary clinic | 10 |
| Warehouse and distribution | 5 |
| Manufactured housing community (lessors of other real estate) | 5 |
Classes with 5 or more loans; smaller ones are withheld, and more where a small one could be derived.
| Lender | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain West Small Business Finance | 695 | $682.6 million |
| Intermountain Business Lending, Inc. | 161 | $141.0 million |
| B:Side Capital | 20 | $25.0 million |
| Lender | Loans | Dollars |
|---|---|---|
| Zions Bancorporation, National Association | 491 | $97.1 million |
| Mountain America FCU | 466 | $189.8 million |
| U.S. Bank, National Association | 299 | $80.3 million |
| America First Federal Credit Union | 187 | $143.7 million |
| Celtic Bank Corporation | 157 | $78.0 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.
| County | Loans |
|---|---|
| Salt Lake County, UT | 4,476 |
| Tooele County, UT | 187 |
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-41620.
A worked example of the feasibility study a lender would read for an assisted living project in Utah, financed with an SBA 7(a) loan.
Loan Analytics prepares the feasibility study a lender reads before it commits: for a commercial project in the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT 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.
Start with the data.
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