SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · CALIFORNIA
SERVPRO franchise in California: what the public record shows
Franchisees of SERVPRO in California have taken 77 SBA loans since 1991 (average $523,119), and of the 47 loans whose story has ended, 4.3% were charged off — versus 6.4% for SERVPRO nationally and 14.8% across all rateable franchise brands. Its latest FDD Item 20 state table reports 279 franchised outlets in California (fiscal 2025) — about 0.71 per 100k residents.
Loans in CA
77
Resolved
47
Local charge-off
4.3%
National charge-off
6.4%
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 SERVPRO'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 SERVPRO'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.
| Fiscal year | Franchised | Company-owned |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 6 | 0 |
| 2015 | 6 | 0 |
| 2016 | 7 | 0 |
| 2023 | 269 | 0 |
| 2024 | 274 | 0 |
| 2025 | 279 | 0 |
| System | Loans in CA | Local charge-off | Units in CA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rainbow Restoration | 30 | 27.3% | — |
| MOLLY MAID | 26 | 0.0% | 72 |
| Bio-One | 16 | thin | — |
| PAUL DAVIS RESTORATION | 15 | thin | 11 |
| Chem-Dry | 12 | 41.7% | — |
| 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 SERVPRO 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 SERVPRO's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.