SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · IOWA
Hardware Hank franchise in Iowa: what the public record shows
Franchisees of Hardware Hank in Iowa have taken 14 SBA loans since 1991 (average $208,664), and of the 11 loans whose story has ended, 0.0% were charged off — versus 5.4% for Hardware Hank nationally and 14.8% across all rateable franchise brands.
Loans in IA
14
Resolved
11
Local charge-off
0.0%
National charge-off
5.4%
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = IA. 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
1,128
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
34.8
national 39.6
Versus the country
-12%
thinner
Every business in Hardware Hank's industry operating in Iowa — 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
$1,079
Iowa, BLS QCEW 2025
National average
$1,252
same industry, all states
Versus the country
-14%
cheaper to staff
What Hardware Hank's industry actually pays workers in Iowa, 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 IA | Local charge-off | Units in IA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coast-to-Coast Store | 19 | 16.7% | — |
| Ace Hardware | 15 | 10.0% | — |
| Snap-On | 12 | 18.2% | — |
| True Value Hardware | 12 | 41.7% | — |
| Budget Blinds | 11 | thin | — |
| Roto Rooter | 7 | thin | — |
Same sector, same state, same public records — how Hardware Hank compares to the systems a buyer in Iowa 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 Hardware Hank's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.