SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · CALIFORNIA
Chem-Dry franchise in California: what the public record shows
Franchisees of Chem-Dry in California have taken 12 SBA loans since 1991 (average $100,192), and of the 12 loans whose story has ended, 41.7% were charged off — versus 29.2% for Chem-Dry nationally and 14.8% across all rateable franchise brands.
Loans in CA
12
Resolved
12
Local charge-off
41.7%
National charge-off
29.2%
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = CA. Charge-off rate = charged-off ÷ (charged-off + paid-in-full); open loans excluded. A local rate is published only when the resolved cohort clears our floor.
Businesses in this industry
10,164
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
25.8
national 26.7
Versus the country
-3%
thinner
Every business in Chem-Dry's industry operating in California — franchised and independent — from the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns (2023), against 2024 population estimates. Counter-intuitively, density is not a warning: across 198 brand-state cells in our loan data, the densest quartile charges off at 5.6% versus 18.1% in the thinnest. A crowded market is usually proven demand; an empty one is often empty for a reason.
Avg weekly wage, this industry
$762
California, BLS QCEW 2025
National average
$659
same industry, all states
Versus the country
+16%
costlier to staff
What Chem-Dry's industry actually pays workers in California, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (2025), employment-weighted across counties. This is a real cost signal independent of the FDD — a market can look demand-rich above and still carry a margin headwind here if local wages run hot for the sector.
| System | Loans in CA | Local charge-off | Units in CA |
|---|---|---|---|
| SERVPRO | 77 | 4.3% | 279 |
| Rainbow Restoration | 30 | 27.3% | — |
| MOLLY MAID | 26 | 0.0% | 72 |
| Bio-One | 16 | thin | — |
| PAUL DAVIS RESTORATION | 15 | thin | 11 |
| Fish Window Cleaning | 12 | thin | — |
| RESTORATION 1 | 10 | thin | 11 |
| One-Hour Martinizing | 9 | thin | — |
| JUNK KING | 8 | thin | 20 |
| WINDOW GENIE | 8 | thin | 3 |
| Maid Brigade | 7 | thin | 8 |
| SERVICEMASTER CLEAN | 7 | thin | 27 |
Same sector, same state, same public records — how Chem-Dry compares to the systems a buyer in California would actually be choosing between. Local rates under 10 resolved loans are marked thin, not hidden.
A broker is paid by the franchisor to place you. I'm paid by you — and the job is pressure-testing Chem-Dry's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.