RANKED · 444 BRANDS QUALIFY · SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT

Which franchises see SBA loans default the fastest?

Ranked by how quickly a defaulting franchisee's SBA loan goes bad — shortest first. Fast defaults point to broken unit economics or under-capitalized openings, not just a bad year.

BASELINE ACROSS ALL RATED BRANDS: 14.8% OF RESOLVED SBA LOANS CHARGED OFF

Top 50Median months to default

#	Brand	Median months to default	Record	SBA loans
1	Mary Kay Cosmetics	27 mo	24 defaults · 40.7% rate	72
2	EmbroidMe	30 mo	15 defaults · 48.4% rate	37
3	MONSTER TREE SERVICE	31 mo	6 defaults · 10.5% rate	97
4	Experimac	32 mo	49 defaults · 68.1% rate	82
5	Healthsource Chiropractic	32 mo	8 defaults · 10.1% rate	126
6	College Hunks Hauling Junk	32 mo	13 defaults · 30.2% rate	143
7	Candy Bouquet	34 mo	17 defaults · 30.4% rate	62
8	Submarina Sandwiches	35 mo	16 defaults · 35.6% rate	51
9	Maid Brigade	36 mo	6 defaults · 17.1% rate	52
10	Dogtopia	36 mo	5 defaults · 6.0% rate	178
11	FCI	36 mo	17 defaults · 23.6% rate	189
12	MR. APPLIANCE	36 mo	28 defaults · 41.8% rate	149
13	Premier Martial Arts Studio	37 mo	6 defaults · 14.6% rate	103
14	Money Mailer	37 mo	7 defaults · 14.6% rate	61
15	Powerhouse Gym	37 mo	6 defaults · 18.2% rate	59
16	Play N Trade	37 mo	31 defaults · 63.3% rate	56
17	Postal Annex Plus	38 mo	30 defaults · 25.2% rate	139
18	Paul W. Davis Systems	39 mo	5 defaults · 9.6% rate	59
19	CERTA PROPAINTERS	39 mo	29 defaults · 15.8% rate	268
20	Budget Blinds	39 mo	29 defaults · 13.6% rate	420
21	360 Painting	39 mo	14 defaults · 33.3% rate	109
22	Juice It Up	40 mo	21 defaults · 28.8% rate	108
23	Philly Soft Pretzel Factory	40 mo	21 defaults · 28.4% rate	83
24	All Tune and Lube	40 mo	121 defaults · 42.3% rate	369
25	Rainbow Restoration	41 mo	24 defaults · 30.8% rate	177
26	Dental Fix Rx	41 mo	28 defaults · 56.0% rate	54
27	GREAT CLIPS	41 mo	26 defaults · 5.0% rate	609
28	WINDOW GENIE	42 mo	37 defaults · 56.1% rate	126
29	Five Star Painting	42 mo	11 defaults · 33.3% rate	77
30	Gymboree	42 mo	18 defaults · 19.4% rate	114
31	Color Tile	42 mo	23 defaults · 34.8% rate	79
32	Moe'S Sw Grill	42 mo	17 defaults · 12.4% rate	160
33	Schooley Mitchell	42 mo	12 defaults · 37.5% rate	69
34	JANI-KING	43 mo	9 defaults · 15.5% rate	68
35	Hungry Howie'S	43 mo	15 defaults · 17.9% rate	121
36	Fox'S Pizza Den	43 mo	33 defaults · 24.3% rate	178
37	Steak-Out	43 mo	10 defaults · 32.3% rate	36
38	Obee'S Soup Salad Subs	43 mo	22 defaults · 56.4% rate	46
39	Liberty Tax Service	44 mo	27 defaults · 11.5% rate	292
40	Patrice & Associates	44 mo	14 defaults · 32.6% rate	99
41	Alta Mere Window Tinting & Auto	44 mo	22 defaults · 37.9% rate	65
42	RESTORATION 1	44 mo	6 defaults · 10.5% rate	117
43	Econo Lub N Tune	44 mo	25 defaults · 36.2% rate	80
44	Arcpoint	44 mo	5 defaults · 13.2% rate	68
45	SUPERCUTS	44 mo	7 defaults · 3.1% rate	287
46	HOMEWATCH CAREGIVERS	44 mo	8 defaults · 24.2% rate	78
47	Children'S Orchard (Retail Clothing)	44 mo	7 defaults · 15.6% rate	47
48	Farmers Insurance Agent Appointment Agreement	45 mo	6 defaults · 12.0% rate	125
49	24 Seven Vending	45 mo	22 defaults · 73.3% rate	39
50	Deka Lash	45 mo	7 defaults · 14.9% rate	83

Methodology & sourcing

For loans that charged off, we measure months from approval to the charge-off date and take the brand median, across the FY1991–present SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files. Brands need at least 30 resolved loans and at least a handful of charge-offs to produce a stable median. A short median-to-default is a red flag about how the model performs under real operating and debt-service pressure.

Universe: every franchise brand matched in the U.S. Small Business Administration's 7(a) and 504 loan FOIA files, fiscal 1991 to present (data.sba.gov). This is federal public-record data about loans to franchisees — independent of anything the franchisor discloses. Brand links lead to the full sourced profile where one exists. See the site methodology for name-matching and cohort rules.

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