SBA 7(a) Self Storage Feasibility Study in Georgia

Georgia storage: fifth nationally, with a spotless early record

Georgia ranks fifth among states for self-storage loans in the 7(a) program, though the class sits 18 of 39 within Georgia. Across FY2017 to FY2026 the cell took in 71 loans and $94.2 million. With a $900,000 median at 0.92x of the national reading and the middle of the book between $525,500 and $1.6 million, the size points to land and building purchases rather than small equipment loans. Franchise brands are absent at 0.00%. What sets Georgia apart is spread: Chatham County leads with only 5 loans, Bartow, Cobb, Gilmer, Hall and Houston follow with 4, and Carroll, Douglas and Fulton have 3, so storage lending is scattered across many small markets, not centred on Atlanta.

Holders

The lender table is short: Live Oak Banking Company at 18 loans and $26.6 million, Bank Five Nine at 10 and $18.1 million, then The Huntington National Bank at 6 and $11.7 million. Beyond those names the book is too dispersed to list, and the table claims nothing about anyone's methods. The yearly series starts high, at 11 loans and $19.8 million in FY2017 and 12 loans and $16.1 million in FY2018, falls to 4 loans and $4.6 million in FY2023, and stands at 7 loans and $8.2 million in FY2026.

Floors

Cancellation reached at least 13.8% of approvals through FY2024 and 15.5% once undisbursed loans are added, a heavy toll for a real-estate class, and it may reflect sites that never closed. Across the 38 loans funded early, the charge-off floor is 0.00% so far, and the same 0.00% inside five years. Loans still open could change that.

Coding note

Vehicle storage for RVs and boats has no industry code of its own and may be filed under self storage or under other warehousing; a Georgia project in that niche should explain how it fits.

A Georgia self-storage study has to measure supply per household around the site, because new facilities fill slowly where older ones already stand. It should list competitors and their rents, show projects in the pipeline, and give achievable rates for climate-controlled and drive-up units. Lease-up is the moment of risk, so coverage must hold through months of partial occupancy, with concessions and marketing costs included. Land cost, site work and construction price per rentable square foot should be reconciled with the loan size. Properties in secondary markets such as the ones that dominate this record need a convincing demand case, not an Atlanta comparison. The appraisal will compare sales of stabilised facilities, so the study's stabilised occupancy should agree. No approval is promised.