SBA 7(a) Flex Space Feasibility Study in Colorado

Flex buildings behind a lessor code

Colorado flex space appears in SBA files under a broader label, nonresidential lessor, which also takes in office and retail investor buildings. Fifty-eight approvals dated FY2017 to FY2026 carry $69.2 million between them. The midpoint loan is $759,000, 1.27x the nation's 7(a) lessor midpoint, and the middle half runs from $352,500 to $1.5 million. Colorado ranks 5 among states by count, a strong placement, though the class is 16 of 39 in Colorado's own mix. Franchised loans are 5.2%.

Coding limits and the FY2024 note

SBA cannot pull flex apart from its office and retail landlords. A single industry code spans flex, office, retail and hall rental, so a flex building is tallied with its neighbors. This lessor lending nearly stops from FY2024, so recent years look thin for reasons of rule, not of demand. The year counts show it: 5 loans in FY2017 and only 2 in FY2024. A reader setting a current project beside these figures should keep that break in view.

Lenders, counties and outcomes

Enterprise Bank & Trust: 6 loans, $5.9 million. The Bancorp Bank National Association: 5 loans, $14.7 million, the largest tickets in the table. Live Oak Banking Company: 5 loans, $5.8 million. Each name is the holder SBA lists now. By county, Arapahoe has 8 loans, Denver and Jefferson 7 apiece, then Boulder, El Paso and Weld at 6. A floor of 12.3% of Colorado flex-type approvals through FY2024 was cancelled, and the ceiling is identical. Among 35 loans funded in the earliest five cohorts, losses charged off so far stand at 0.00%, a floor, and the five-year view also reads 0.00%.

What the study has to test

A Colorado flex study must prove a tenant market for a building that blends office, light industrial and showroom use. Document vacancy and rent for comparable flex buildings in the chosen county, the lease terms and credit of tenants in place or in prospect, and the finish cost different users want. For an owner-user, show that the occupant's own business can carry the payment; for an investor, the building has to stand on rent alone. Run coverage with a vacancy case, since one departure can leave a small building short. The appraisal rests on income and comparable sales, so reconcile the rent assumptions with both.