SBA 504 Physical Therapy Clinic Feasibility Study in Texas

Texas therapy clinics under 504: third in the nation

On a count of 504 rehabilitation and therapy clinic loans, Texas holds a rank of 3 among states, though the class takes only slot 14 of 39 among Texas's own classes. SBA recorded 35 approvals worth $31.0 million. The median of $650,000 is 1.53x the nationwide 504 figure, with the central loans from $441,000 to $936,500. Franchising is 2.9%. No distinctness basis is recorded.

Development companies and the Metroplex

Capital Certified Development Corporation is shown with 8 loans and $4.6 million, Greater East Texas Certified Development Company at 7 loans and $9.4 million, then LiftFund, Inc. at 7 loans and $8.3 million, according to the holders SBA now records. Tarrant County has 10 loans, Collin 6, Harris 4 and Bexar 3. Approvals peaked at 10 loans and $10.1 million in FY2022, fell to a single loan of $378,000 in FY2023 and returned to 5 loans and $6.1 million in FY2025.

The cell lacks a cancellation rate and a charge-off rate; too few loans exist behind them, and an empty slot is no claim of zero. A lender should therefore weigh the Texas therapy class across both programs, or the national 504 class, for evidence on how such loans end.

What the study should test in Texas

A 504 loan finances a fixed asset, so a Texas clinic using it is probably buying or building the premises rather than leasing. The study should start with the real estate: purchase or construction cost, how much of the building the clinic needs, and whether any space can be leased to others. Then test the practice: referral sources, therapist capacity, visits per therapist and payer mix, with reimbursement per visit taken from payer assumptions. Because the borrower becomes landlord and operator, the model needs to carry the two lenders' payments added up, and to include a slow-building caseload. Texas holds very different markets, so demand evidence must be local, with a lender able to see why this site draws patients. An appraiser will value the building as an outpatient facility and the practice on its own terms, and the study should not blur them and describe alternative medical use.

At a median of $650,000, a Texas clinic using 504 is probably buying a small building or financing a build-out of owned space. The study should compare that cost with leasing, show the owner's occupancy cost on a per-visit basis, and explain how the real estate adds security that a lease would not.