SBA 7(a) Auto Repair Shop Feasibility Study in Kansas

Kansas repair shops borrow above the national median

Car and truck mechanical repair is fifth in the Kansas class ranking (5 of 39), yet Kansas sits just 31 among states by count of 7(a) loans to such shops. From FY2017 to FY2026 SBA approved 79 loans, together $33.9 million. Loan size is the clearest figure: a $299,200 median that comes to 1.66x the national median that SBA's 7(a) loans to this class show, with the middle of Kansas loans stretching from $65,150 to $527,500. Franchising is nearly absent at 1.3%, so these loans go almost entirely to independent garages and truck shops. A Kansas applicant is asking for more than the typical 7(a) repair-shop borrower nationwide, and the study has to say why.

The class boundary matters

One code spans mechanical work on cars and trucks alike, which makes a heavy-truck facility indistinguishable from a passenger-car garage here. Collision and paint shops, glass work, quick lubes and the catch-all remainder of auto repair sit outside the class, so a collision centre or lube franchise is not described by this page. A study should confirm that the project belongs here, and if it does not, it should be read against a different class.

Holders and counties

Leading by count is U.S. Bank, National Association (10 loans, $1.9 million), then Emprise Bank (7, $1.8 million), with INTRUST Bank National Association at 6 loans and $2.2 million, and 5 loans worth $1.6 million at Dream First Bank National Association. Those holder rows say nothing about any bank's policy. Johnson County has 21 loans, Sedgwick 10, and Finney and Shawnee 8 each, with Wyandotte at 6. Cancellations are 11.5% by both measures. Kansas shops in the early funded cohort number 34, and 2.9% of them are charged off today, a rate identical at five years; with some loans open, treat both as minimums. Annual dollars ran from $258,700 in FY2017 to $6.4 million in FY2024 and $4.4 million in FY2026.

Testing a Kansas repair shop

With loans above the national norm, the first test is the use of proceeds: equipment, a building, an acquisition, or working capital for a new location. Demand should be built from the vehicle population and traffic around the site, the number of competing shops and dealer service departments within a short drive, and the shop's mix of fleet and consumer work. Technician supply bears directly on revenue, so the staffing plan and wage assumptions deserve scrutiny. Equipment lists, quotes and the age of any lifts or alignment machines belong in the cost section. The payment should be covered with a margin when billable hours fall below plan. If the building is purchased, the appraisal must reflect a special-purpose garage, which has a narrower pool of later buyers than ordinary commercial space.