SBA 504 Hotel Feasibility Study in Pennsylvania

Franchise-heavy, spread out, and second in the state

Lodging is the runner-up, 2 of 39, among the classes the state finances. From FY2017 to FY2026 the state recorded 80 such loans totalling $179.4 million, which ranks it 12 among states. What distinguishes the cell is the brand tilt, with 72.5% of loans flagged as franchised, and a spread of geography with no dominant county: Lancaster and Luzerne have 7 loans each, Monroe and Philadelphia 5, and Allegheny, Erie and Westmoreland 4. The median of $1.9 million is 0.93x of the nationwide 504 median for lodging, so Pennsylvania projects are close to the national scale, and the middle of the distribution spans $1.2 million to $3.2 million.

The sponsoring companies

Four certified development companies cover the listed book. Empire State Certified Development Corporation has 23 loans and $58.3 million. NEPA Alliance Business Finance Corporation has 17 and $32.7 million. Then come Regional Development Funding Corporation (13 loans, $25.8 million) and, with 16 loans and $29.9 million, the South Eastern Economic Development Company of Pennsylvania. That list traces SBA's record of sponsorship only, with no verdict on how a company judges a project.

Cancellations and a withheld rate

Closing risk is substantial in this cell. Between FY2017 and FY2024 at least 17.0% of approvals lapsed; add loans never disbursed and the ceiling climbs to 23.4%. For charge-offs, the number of early-funded hotel loans was too low to print a rate, so none appears. Its absence is not a clean record and must not be taken as a zero.

What a Pennsylvania hotel study has to test

A lodging study here has to be location specific. A leisure destination draws on visitors, an urban property on business and events, and a roadside property on passing traffic, so the study should name its demand sources and show monthly occupancy and rate through a full year. Competing rooms and any supply under construction need counting. With most loans franchised, brand fees, required improvements and reserves for replacing furnishings belong in the budget. The 504 loan is secured by real property, so an appraiser has to stand behind the site and improvements, and equity and permits should be ready early given how many approvals lapse. One caveat on classification: hotels and motels share a single industry bucket, so a limited-service plan cannot be separated from a full-service one in these figures.