SBA Financing in College Station

At least 51 percent, if it's an existing building. SBA rules require the business to occupy a majority of an existing building it finances. Ground-up construction is a different, stricter test: at least 60 percent of the new space must be occupied by your business, and no more than 20 percent may be permanently leased to other tenants, with the remainder covered by an absorption plan. That 60-percent-and-lease-the-rest shorthand you may have heard skips the 20 percent leasable cap, and it's the detail that trips up a game-day restaurant or retail buildout planning to lease part of a new building to a second tenant.

Plan on 15 percent down, not the 10 percent you may have heard quoted for SBA 504. The ordinary borrower contribution on a 504 loan is 10 percent, but it steps up to 15 percent if the business has been operating less than two years or the property is single-purpose, and to 20 percent if both apply. A recent franchise buyout in a location that hasn't hit its two-year mark, which is common near a campus with this much annual turnover in student-facing retail, typically lands in that 15 percent tier. Talk to your lender early so the contribution requirement doesn't surprise you at the term sheet.

No, and any guide that still says so is out of date. Fees were reinstated for fiscal year 2026, covering loans approved October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026: the 7(a) upfront guarantee fee runs 2 to 3.5 percent or more depending on loan size, and the 504 program carries a 0.50 percent upfront fee plus a 0.209 percent annual fee. Small manufacturers get a partial break (7(a) upfront waived on loans of $950,000 or less, 504 fees waived), which could matter to a BioCorridor supplier, but a general retail or office buyout near campus should budget for these fees as part of the closing costs.

Yes, and it's lower than some marketing suggests: $5 million standard, with a $5.5 million ceiling reserved for small manufacturers and qualifying energy projects. A professional practice or office buyer in College Station or Bryan, outside those two carve-outs, underwrites to the $5 million cap on the 504 portion of the deal. That's a federal regulation, not a lender preference, so it applies the same whether the property sits in Brazos County or anywhere else.

Hospitality first, by a wide margin, then health care, trades and professional practices. Of the 155 SBA 7(a) loans approved on Brazos County projects from FY2020 through June 30, 2026 (FY2026 is a partial year), 29 went to accommodation and food services, which is 18.7 percent of the loans but $33.1 million of the $104.4 million approved, 31.7 percent of the dollars. Hotels and motels are also the most common single use on the 504 side. That tracks the labor data: Brazos County had 570 accommodation and food services establishments employing 17,631 people in the fourth quarter of 2025, about 20.5 percent of private employment. Behind hospitality the 7(a) mix runs other services including repair (19 loans), health care and social assistance (19), construction (15) and professional and technical services (14). If that's your business and you're ready to own the building instead of rent it, an SBA loan is usually the lowest-cost long-term money available for the purchase.

Yes, and mostly they are national SBA specialists rather than the bank on University Drive. From FY2020 through June 30, 2026, a partial year, Brazos County projects drew 155 7(a) approvals totalling $104.4 million, an average of about $674,000, plus 32 SBA 504 approvals totalling $54.0 million. SBA reports those 7(a) loans as supporting 2,085 jobs. By loan count the busiest 7(a) lenders were The Huntington National Bank (15), Live Oak Banking Company (12, and the largest by dollars at $14.9 million), Northeast Bank (10), Wells Fargo (7) and First Bank of the Lake (6). Borrowers split 99 College Station to 53 Bryan. The average 7(a) term over the last three fiscal years ran 131 months, about 11 years, which is a working capital and equipment profile more than a real estate one.

Your Certified Development Company will almost certainly be out of market, most often Capital CDC in Austin. No CDC is headquartered in Brazos County. Of the 77 SBA 504 loans made on county projects since FY2010, Capital Certified Development Corporation in Austin wrote 38 of them and $57.0 million, including 14 of the 22 approved since FY2022, followed by North Texas Certified Development Corporation in Plano (21) and Community Certified Development Corporation in Houston (8). The third-party bank side is more local: Prosperity Bank, American Momentum Bank and VeraBank all appear repeatedly. For no-cost, confidential help getting a file ready, the Brazos Valley Small Business Development Center at 1733 Briarcrest Dr., Suite 103, Bryan, TX 77802, (979) 260-5222, serves Brazos, Burleson, Milam and Robertson counties. The SBA district office over this territory is the Houston District Office, 8701 S. Gessner Dr., Suite 1200, Houston, TX 77074, (713) 773-6500.

We start at $350,000 and run to $5M and up. That floor is not a stretch for this county: the 155 SBA 7(a) approvals on Brazos County projects from FY2020 through June 30, 2026 averaged about $674,000. Financing runs up to 90%, on terms up to 25 years at market SBA rates. A small buildout that prices under the floor is usually better served by another program, so send us the numbers before you sign the purchase contract. Subject to underwriting.

No. SBA money is for owner-occupied commercial real estate, meaning your business operates in the building. A pure investment property, a student rental, or a complex you intend to lease out does not qualify, however good the deal looks. Those go to DSCR, CRE bridge, or a portfolio loan instead. If you do operate in the building, 7(a) and 504 are usually the lowest-cost long-term money for the purchase, with financing up to 90% and terms up to 25 years. Subject to underwriting.