SBA 7(a) Warehouse Feasibility Study in California

First nationally, twenty-fourth at home

California tops every other state in SBA 7(a) loans to warehouse and distribution businesses, ranking 1 among states, yet the class stands only 24 of 39 within California's own financed classes. The 83 approvals from FY2017 to FY2026 total $64.4 million. A median of $338,900 is 0.97x of the nationwide mark, close to parity, and the middle half of loans sits between $150,000 and $972,500. Franchising is minor at 4.8%. This cell is therefore a story of scale in the number of loans rather than in ticket size.

Where the loans are and who holds them

Los Angeles County has 33 loans, San Bernardino 12, Riverside 8 and Orange 7. U.S. Bank, National Association and Northeast Bank each hold 7 loans, though at $8.4 million and $1.7 million respectively. CalPrivate Bank holds 5 loans worth $8.1 million, Wells Fargo Bank National Association 5 worth $929,200, and CDC Small Business Finance Corp. 5 worth $706,500. These come from SBA's holder records and describe the book, not a lender's views.

Cancellation and the withheld rate

Approvals dated FY2017 to FY2024 lapsed at a floor of 13.7%, with a ceiling of 15.7%. No charge-off percentage appears here: the early cohort held too few loans to publish one, so it is neither stated nor treated as zero, and the credit record should be regarded as unmeasured.

Tests for a California warehouse

Analysis of a warehouse or distribution operator must show where the revenue comes from: storage fees, handling, transport, or a mix, and how long customer contracts run. Occupancy and pricing per square foot should be tested against nearby facilities, along with dock capacity, clear height and access to freight corridors and ports. A single large customer is a concentration risk the study should name. The costs of a build-out, racking and forklifts, plus insurance and the lease or mortgage, set the fixed base that debt service sits on. If the borrowing buys the building, its value as industrial property must be supported by appraisal. A downside case should assume the anchor customer leaves for several months.

Classification limit: only public warehousing is counted, while a company that stores its own goods in an owner-occupied warehouse is filed under its own industry and does not appear in this class.