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Industry · SBA lending record
SBA loans for full-service restaurants
87,747 SBA 7(a) loans since 2010. What they were for, how big, how long, and how often they went wrong.
Loans made
87,747
2010 onward
Typical loan
$203k
median approved
Typical term
10 yr
Default rate
3.2%
all industries 2.1%
Against other industries
defaulted within 7 yearsDefault rate is not a judgement on the industry. It tells you how a lender will price your risk, and how much cushion you should build in.
When borrowers got into trouble
share of failures by yearTrouble rarely arrives in year one. It arrives when the opening cash is gone — which is an argument for borrowing more working capital, not less.
What this means for your application
A typical loan here runs $203k over 10 years. If you are asking for far more than that, expect harder questions and a longer file. If far less, check which lenders will even take it — many won't go below $150,000.
Find lenders by minimum loan → Check the numbers work →
Source SBA 7(a) FOIA, NAICS 722
Released 2026-06-30
Loans 87,747