SBA 7(a) Parking Garage Feasibility Study in California

First in the country, with a median above peers

In SBA 7(a) lending for parking facilities California leads all states (1), with 25 approvals from FY2017 to FY2026 totaling $21.5 million, although the class holds only 33 of 39 within California asset types. The median loan of $420,200 reaches 1.68x against parking borrowers elsewhere, the metric that sets the cell apart, while the middle of the book runs from $250,000 to $1.4 million. No franchise brands appear, at 0.00%.

One lender and two counties

Enterprise Bank & Trust is named for 10 loans valued at $6.1 million. Los Angeles County has 9 loans and Riverside County has 7, then Orange, San Diego and San Francisco with 2 each. Volume is uneven, from 6 loans and $4.3 million in FY2018 to none in FY2020, and 4 loans in FY2025 worth $619,700.

Scope and blanks

The code does not split truck lots from car lots, so a yard for tractors and a garage for commuters are counted together. Cancellation and charge-off are both unreported, because the early cohorts are small, and no inference about the class should be drawn from their absence. The useful facts are the high median, the lender named and the concentration in two counties.

What a California parking study has to test

Parking is a land business with few employees, so the study should concentrate on the location and the demand that fills the spaces. It should count stalls, set rates for monthly, daily and event use, and tie occupancy to nearby anchors such as hospitals, offices, airports or venues, with their expected activity. The contract structure matters: whether the owner operates the lot, uses a management company or leases to an operator changes revenue and risk. Land value is the largest component of collateral, so zoning, the possibility of redevelopment and the cost of surface improvements, paving, lighting and equipment, should be stated. Truck parking and car parking have different layouts and customers, and the study should say which applies. With a median of $420,200 higher than peers, a loan likely includes the real estate. Coverage should hold if demand falls, as remote work or construction nearby may change the pattern, and the appraisal should show what the land would be worth in an alternative use.