SBA 7(a) Charter School Feasibility Study in Georgia

Georgia is fifth for school loans under 7(a)

The school class in Georgia, which counts charter schools, ranks 5 among states by loan count under 7(a), though it is only 22 of 39 in Georgia's own mix. The 30 loans total $36.3 million, with a midpoint of $579,250, 1.24x the 7(a) school midpoint nationally, with quartiles at $281,250 and $1.3 million. Franchised loans are 13.3%, a notable share for schools.

Holder and map

The Huntington National Bank holds 5 loans worth $7.4 million, the only lender in the table, as SBA now lists it. Fulton County has 6 loans, DeKalb 5, Gwinnett 4, Cobb 3, and Chatham and Chattooga 2 each, putting most lending in metropolitan Atlanta. FY2024 brought 8 loans and $10.3 million, and FY2025 6 loans and $10.4 million, the strongest years by far.

What the class includes and leaves out

SBA has no way to isolate charter schools: one code spans them and private schools. Because most charter operators are nonprofit and SBA does not lend to nonprofits, Georgia's loans here belong to for-profit operators and privately owned schools, a narrower group than the state's charter sector. Neither unfunded approvals nor charge-offs are published for this cell, because the cohorts were under SBA's minimum.

What a Georgia school study has to test

Enrollment is the revenue, so the study begins with children: how many live within reach of the site, how many seats stand open at neighboring public, charter and private schools, and a waitlist or deposit pattern from comparable schools. Tuition and any state funding for the model should be sourced. Grade span and capacity decide staffing, so show the teacher and aide count by grade and the payroll that results. A midpoint above half a million suggests building purchases and renovations, so itemise the code upgrades for school occupancy, the fire system, and the playground and parking. Test coverage at partial enrollment in the first years, and with a loss of a grade's worth of students. The appraisal of a school is special-purpose; the study should say what another user would pay for the building.