SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · GEORGIA
Surface Experts franchise in Georgia: what the public record shows
Franchisees of Surface Experts in Georgia have taken 5 SBA loans in the FY1991–present FOIA files (average $160,000). Fewer than 30 of them were approved through FY2020 and have resolved, so no local loss ratio is published. Surface Experts has too few seasoned resolved loans nationally for a national ratio. Its latest FDD Item 20 state table reports 2 franchised outlets in Georgia (fiscal 2019) — about 0.02 per 100k residents.
Loans in GA
5
Charged off (all years)
—
Loss ratio in GA
—
Loss ratio nationally
—
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = GA. Loss ratio = charge-offs among loans approved through FY2020 ÷ the charge-offs expected if each had defaulted at the national rate for franchise loans approved the same year; 1.0× is the same. Only charged-off and paid-in-full loans count. A ratio is shown at 30+ such loans; “not clear” marks a ratio chance alone could produce. The all-years count mixes every era and is evidence, not a rate to compare. Borrowers are matched to the brand by name and SBA franchise code; some matches may be wrong or missing.
Businesses in this industry
3,067
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
27.4
national 39.6
Versus the country
-31%
thinner
Every business in Surface Experts's industry operating in Georgia — franchised and independent — from the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns (2023), against 2024 population estimates. Counter-intuitively, density is not a warning: across the brand-state cells in the loan data, denser markets have historically charged off less often than the thinnest (see the research page). A crowded market is usually proven demand; an empty one is often empty for a reason.
Avg weekly wage, this industry
$1,374
Georgia, BLS QCEW 2025
National average
$1,252
same industry, all states
Versus the country
+10%
costlier to staff
What Surface Experts's industry actually pays workers in Georgia, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (2025), employment-weighted across counties. This cost signal is 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 0 | — |
| 2018 | 0 | — |
| 2019 | 2 | — |
| System | Loans in GA | Charged off (all years) | Loss ratio in GA | Units in GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FCI | 15 | 2 of 7 | — | 15 |
| Budget Blinds | 12 | 0 of 4 | — | — |
| CERTA PROPAINTERS | 12 | 0 of 8 | — | 15 |
| The Grounds Guys | 12 | 1 of 2 | — | — |
| Two Men and a Truck | 10 | 1 of 7 | — | — |
| ACE HANDYMAN SERVICES | 9 | 0 of 3 | — | 22 |
| MIGHTY DOG ROOFING | 9 | 0 of 3 | — | — |
| MR. APPLIANCE | 9 | 2 of 4 | — | 16 |
| Mr. Electric | 9 | 0 of 3 | — | — |
| Mr. Handyman | 9 | 0 of 2 | — | — |
| BENJAMIN FRANKLIN PLUMBING | 7 | 0 of 1 | — | 7 |
| ProLift Garage Doors | 5 | — | — | 2 |
Other systems in Surface Experts's sector whose franchisees borrowed in Georgia. A loss ratio appears only where at least 30 loans approved through FY2020 have resolved; “—” means too few.
A broker is usually paid by the franchisor to place you. I'm paid only by you, never by a franchisor you're considering — and the job is pressure-testing Surface Experts’ numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.