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Franchise · SBA lending record

Mr. Handyman: how its 37 SBA loans actually performed

Residential Remodelers · 127 units financed with SBA 7(a) loans since 2010 · 30 lenders have funded this brand.

Defaults run above the SBA-wide average

4 of 37 seasoned SBA loans charged off — 10.8%, against 5.7% across all SBA 7(a) loans.

Units financed
127
SBA 7(a), 2010 onward
Old enough to judge
37
loans at least 7 years old
Defaulted
charged off within 7 years
10.8%
all 7(a) avg 5.7%
Typical loan
$150k
$104k–$319k
See the 4 charged-off loans behind this number — every one, straight from the federal recordShow list ↓Hide list ↑
BusinessLocationCharged offSBA loss
AGAHI ENTERPRISES, LLC dba Mr. Handyman of East Cuyahoga and West GeaugaUniversity Heights, OH2022$131,157
Lesso Enterprise LLCWickliffe, OH2021$115,445
Mr. Handyman of Garner and Fuquay-VarinaGarner, NC2019$96,504
CDR TECHNOLOGIES, INC.Plano, TX2015$51,184

Each row above is an SBA 7(a) loan tied to this brand, charged off (defaulted) within seven years of approval — a few businesses appear more than once. Names, cities and loss amounts are exactly as they appear in the SBA’s FOIA release of 2026-06-30; street addresses are omitted by choice. Count them: there are 4 loans.

How this brand compares

share of owners who defaulted within seven years
Mr. Handyman
10.8%
Typical franchise brand
3.0%
All SBA 7(a) loans
5.7%

Franchise disclosure documents are not required to tell you how many owners failed. This is computed from the federal record of every SBA loan made to this brand, so it is the outcome, not the pitch.

Source SBA 7(a) FOIA, franchise field Released 2026-06-30 Sample 37 loans at least 7 years old Method counted by loan — one loan is one owner — grouped by year approved

When owners got into trouble

share of failures by year
Year 2
9%
Year 3
27%
Year 4
9%
Year 5
46%
Year 6+
9%

Failures usually cluster once the opening cash is spent and the first rent increase lands. Plan working capital for that window, not for month one.

Who still lends on it

last two fiscal years
LenderUnits funded
United Midwest Savings Bank National Association14
The Huntington National Bank2
BayFirst National Bank1
Northeast Bank1
First Bank & Trust1

Fewer active lenders means less competition on your rate, and a harder time if the first bank declines.

Each year's owners, as they aged

cumulative % of loan dollars charged off

Not enough history yet to build a triangle.

Each row is one year's crop of new owners. Read across to watch them age; read down a column to compare different years at the same point in their life. Blank cells are simply too recent to know.

Brands worth comparing against this one

A default rate only means something next to its neighbours. These are the brands yours is being compared against.

Before you sign anything

This page tells you how past owners fared with SBA debt. It does not tell you whether this brand suits you, what the territory looks like, or how the franchisor behaves. Ask for Item 19, talk to at least five current franchisees and two who left, and run your own numbers.

Check whether the numbers work → What the SBA Franchise Directory is →

Common questions

What percentage of Mr. Handyman franchises default on their SBA loans?

Of the 37 Mr. Handyman SBA 7(a) loans old enough to judge, 410.8% — were charged off within seven years. That is well above the roughly 5.7% average across all SBA 7(a) loans.

Is Mr. Handyman a good franchise to buy with an SBA loan?

This page can only tell you how Mr. Handyman's SBA loans have performed, not whether it will work for you. A high default rate does not by itself mean a bad business — it usually means one that has been harder to finance profitably, which changes what a lender will offer you. Mr. Handyman's 10.8% is well above the ~5.7% norm. Weigh it against the franchise disclosure document and your own numbers before deciding.

How much have lenders lost on Mr. Handyman SBA loans?

Across the seasoned Mr. Handyman loans in the federal record, 4 were charged off, with about $394,290 in SBA losses in total. Every one of those businesses is listed by name on this page — see the 4 that defaulted.