What it costs a borrower

The same loan needs 23% more income to clear the same test

Net operating income required to service a $500,000 ten-year SBA loan at a 1.15x debt-service coverage ratio.

Annual debt serviceCoverage cushion at 1.15x

Nothing about the business changed. The threshold moved. A project that pencilled at 1.15x coverage in FY2021 does not pencil today on the same revenue — the gap has to come from higher revenue, lower expenses, more equity, or a longer term.

$74,883NOI required at FY2021 pricing

$92,103NOI required at FY2025 pricing

+23.0%the same loan, four years apart

Source: Analysis of SBA 7(a) FOIA loan-level data (as of 31 March 2026). Initial interest rate as recorded at approval; 86.6% of loans carry variable terms and the rate paid has moved since. Cancelled approvals excluded. Published by sba-feasibility-study.com.