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

Small loans, a shallow lender table

Mississippi auto repair loans under SBA 7(a) are small even by the standards of the class: the median of $106,250 is 0.59x of the national 7(a) median for repair shops, and the central half runs from a very low $16,550 to $287,050. Across FY2017 to FY2026 the state shows 42 approvals worth $8.1 million in all. Mississippi ranks 41 among states by count, which is low, but repair shops sit 7 of 39 among Mississippi's own asset types.

Who lends and where

One name alone fills the lender table: Trustmark Bank, at 7 loans worth $892,600 in all. By county, Hinds has 6 loans, Copiah has 5, and Covington, Lee and Smith follow with 3. Franchises account for 11.9% of loans. Annual counts peaked at 7 in FY2018, and FY2026 produced the largest dollar total of the series, $2.0 million, on only 5 loans.

What the code includes

Truck repair shops are indexed with car repair, so both appear in this cell. Other automotive lines, such as collision work, glass and quick lube, are filed separately and left out of this count.

Floors

Cancellation stands at 15.6% for the earlier vintages and at the same level as a ceiling. A charge-off rate cannot be printed for Mississippi repair shops, as too few of the early loans funded, and the rate is withheld rather than reported as nothing. A lender can therefore judge this cell only by volume, size and cancellation.

What the Mississippi study should answer

Most of these loans are small enough to fund equipment, working capital or the purchase of a modest shop, so the study should decide which. It should count vehicles in the trade area, competing garages and dealer service departments, and show the labor hours a technician can bill. Mechanic availability is the limit on revenue. If the shop buys a building, the appraisal of a special-use structure with bays and lifts may be narrow, and the study should say what other users could occupy it. Debt service must be covered after the owner's own pay, and the plan should show how the shop would carry on if the lead technician left.