SBA 7(a) Dental Office Feasibility Study in Washington

Washington dentists: a high cancellation floor

Cancellation after approval is the distinctive metric in Washington's dental cell. Of the approvals made between FY2017 and FY2024, 18.1% or more were cancelled, and the share does not change when undisbursed loans are counted, so nearly one approval in five never became a loan. Loans that did close have held up: among the 91 funded loans of the early window, 1.1% are charged off so far, and none, 0.00%, failed within five years. Both are minimums, and the path to closing deserves real weight.

How big the loans are

Over the full window the count is 173 loans and $134.6 million. The median is $499,500, 1.01x the program's median for dental offices nationally, with the central half running from $150,000 up to $1.0 million. Washington ranks thirteenth among states on count, and dental offices hold eleventh place on its list of 39 classes. No dental loan went to a franchise, so these are independent practices, often acquisitions.

Counties and the years

King County has 67 loans, Snohomish 27 and Pierce 21, so Puget Sound holds most of the record. Benton has 9, Kitsap and Yakima 8 each, Spokane 6, Clark 5, and Franklin and Thurston 4 each. Approvals fell from 33 in FY2017 to 10 in FY2020 and 7 in FY2023, and recovered to 19 in FY2025 before falling to 10 in FY2026. The recent volume is therefore a fraction of the early volume.

Lenders

U.S. Bank, National Association has 21 loans and $6.1 million, with Live Oak Banking Company close behind at 20 loans and $37.3 million, Banner Bank 11 worth $1.2 million, with First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company at 10 loans ($14.2 million) and, last, JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, which has 9 loans and $1.8 million. Dollar totals differ widely from counts: Live Oak's loans are far larger than Banner's. The table shows portfolios and no practices.

What a Washington dental study has to test

Begin with the supply of dentists and hygienists around the site, then the insurance plan mix and how many patients pay out of pocket, because fee schedules differ. An acquisition needs the seller's production history, an estimate of the patients who will stay and a transition plan. Build-out costs for plumbing, imaging and sterilisation should be set against the $499,500 median, and anything toward $1.0 million explained. Staffing hygienists is a constraint, and wages should be tested. Since so many approvals lapsed, plan the route to closing early. Debt service should be met even if collections trail the seller's last year.