Veterinary Clinic Feasibility Study in the Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO Metro Area

Denver's veterinary lending: concentrated and large

Veterinary clinics in the Denver-Aurora-Centennial area drew 60 loans worth $90.2 million over FY2017 to FY2026. The metro stands 7 of 485 for veterinary loans, the location quotient is 1.20x, and yet the class ranks only 13 of 39 locally, so clinics are a specialty inside a broad market. Ticket size is the surprise here: a median of $1.1 million, 1.74x the national median for the class. Together, rank, location quotient and ticket describe a market where veterinary lending is better developed and bigger than nationwide.

Lenders and counties

The central half of loan amounts runs from $565,750 to $2.1 million. Counted by program, 51 loans used 7(a) and 9 used 504, and none is flagged as a franchise (0.00%). The 7(a) table names Live Oak Banking Company against 18 loans worth $33.3 million, a lead of some size on the printed list; United Community Bank (SC) holds 6 worth $10.2 million and, with 5 worth $8.3 million, Wells Fargo Bank National Association. These are SBA's records of where the loans sit, and imply no judgment. Jefferson County has 21 loans, while Arapahoe, Denver and Douglas Counties have 10 each.

Years that can be printed: 8 loans in FY2017 ($7.6 million), 8 in FY2021 ($15.8 million) and 5 in FY2022 ($8.6 million). FY2018 through FY2020 and FY2023 through FY2026 are withheld, so the page says nothing about them and certainly not that they were empty. Cancellations took no less than 10.0% of what was approved from FY2017 to FY2024; treating undisbursed loans as cancelled leaves it untouched at 10.0%. The charge-off rate is withheld. Metro placement follows each loan's county on the 2023 area list.

Proving out a Denver-area clinic

A veterinary plan in this metro has to test the clinic's catchment of pet-owning households, competing practices and emergency or specialty services, and the provider's ability to hold clients through a transition if the loan buys a practice. It must price the building, equipment and imaging against a typical request near $1.1 million, and prove that cash flow covers the debt even if the first year of revenue disappoints. Because large loans are common here, the appraisal will weigh real estate and goodwill carefully, and the study should supply the evidence for both. Nothing printed here forecasts a result.