Stearns Bank National Association: SBA business acquisition lending record

What this tells a borrower

• Deal size it funds. Half of its acquisition loans fell between $150,000 and $520,000. If your deal sits well outside that band, this lender may be less practiced at it.
• Geographic reach. Florida is the largest state (13% of loans). Loans appear in at least 15 states, which points to a national lender.
• Industry concentration. Limited-Service Restaurants is 17% of its acquisition loans. The mix is spread across several industries.
• Overall 7(a) volume. 947 SBA 7(a) loans of any purpose since FY2020, totaling $415M. 97% of its acquisition loans were processed under the Preferred Lenders Program.
• Franchise share. 45% of its acquisition loans involved a franchise brand, against 18% for all lenders.
• Seasoned performance. Of its loans from FY2018 to FY2021: 7.4% charged off, 109% higher than the 3.5% national average.

How Stearns Bank National Association compares

The median for Stearns Bank National Association acquisition loans is $300,000, well below the $645,250 median for all SBA-financed acquisitions nationally.

The middle half runs $150,000 to $520,000, against $283,000 to $1,465,000 nationally; the median term is 10 years, the same as the national median; the average initial rate is 8.00%, above the 7.76% national average.

Seasoned loans were charged off at 7.4%, well above the 3.5% rate for all acquisition loans.

Loan size distribution

Most Stearns Bank National Association acquisition loans (91%) were under $1M, and the largest single band is Under $350K at 58%, against 30% of all acquisition loans.

Bands are fixed dollar ranges chosen for comparison. They are not SBA program limits.

State concentration

Florida made 13% of its loans and the top three states together made 36%. It made three or more loans in 35 of the 46 states where it lends. Its largest industry, Limited-Service Restaurants, is 17% of its acquisition loans.

Recent activity

In FY2025 and FY2026 combined, 19 Stearns Bank National Association acquisition loans were approved. That is 21% fewer than the 24 approved in FY2023 and FY2024. The median was $350,000, above the $300,000 median across all years.

Stearns Bank National Association acquisition loans by year

How often do these acquisition loans fail?

Of the 434 Stearns Bank National Association acquisition loans approved from FY2018 to FY2021 (the seasoned cohort, every loan at least about five years old), 32 have been charged off by the SBA, a rate of 7.4% by loan count and 3.7% by dollars. 302 have already been paid in full.

For comparison, the charge-off rate across all SBA 7(a) acquisition loans in the same cohort is 3.5%, so Stearns Bank National Association is 109% higher than the acquisition-loan average. Non-acquisition 7(a) loans (every other stated purpose) approved FY2018 to FY2021 charged off at 6.2%.

"Charged off" is the SBA's final loss action on a defaulted loan after collection efforts. It lags default by a year or more, which is why only older cohorts are measured. It is not the same as a delinquency rate, and loans still outstanding can still fail. See charge-off in the glossary.

Franchise brands financed

Related

• Florida acquisitions
• California acquisitions
• Texas acquisitions
• Limited-Service Restaurants
• Couriers and Express Delivery Services
• Beauty Salons
• All lenders

Figures are aggregates of public SBA data. This page is not provided or endorsed by Stearns Bank National Association.