Data
SBA loans to hotels in Tennessee: lenders, volume and loan sizes
Compiled by Matthews Hotel Markets · Last updated: September 18, 2026 · SBA data as of June 30, 2026
From FY2021 to FY2025, SBA approved 91 loans to hotels and motels in Tennessee for $241.6 million: 67 under 7(a) and 24 under 504, per SBA loan-level data as of June 30, 2026. That is 1.7% of the 5,298 SBA hotel loans approved nationally in those years, which ranks Tennessee 20th of 53 states and territories by loan count. In FY2025 alone, Tennessee had 18 SBA hotel loans. GBank is named on the most 7(a) hotel loans in Tennessee from FY2023 to FY2025: 3.
What stands out in Tennessee
- The 504 program makes up 26.4% of SBA hotel loans in Tennessee from FY2021 to FY2025, versus 26.8% nationally. The rest are 7(a) loans.
- The median 7(a) hotel loan in Tennessee was $2.50 million, 4.2% above the national median of $2.40 million for the same years. The median 504 debenture was $2.96 million, 39.7% above the national $2.12 million.
- 25 different lenders are named on the 32 7(a) hotel loans in Tennessee from FY2023 to FY2025. The five with the most loans account for 34.4% of them.
- SBA hotel lending in Tennessee peaked in FY2021 with 28 loans. FY2025 had 18.
- FY2026 is a partial year in this release. Through June 30, 2026, SBA had approved 7 hotel loans in Tennessee.
What is counted. A loan counts toward Tennessee when SBA reports Tennessee as the project state, which is where the hotel is, not where the lender or borrower is based. Where SBA left the project state blank, the borrower state is used. Hotels means NAICS 721110, and cancelled loans are excluded. Dollar figures, averages and medians are withheld in any cell with fewer than three loans, because they would describe a single loan. The full method is on the national page. SBA loans to hotels, national figures and methodology
Tennessee against the national figures
All figures cover FY2021 to FY2025, the five most recent full SBA fiscal years. For 7(a), loan size is the full loan. For 504 it is the SBA/CDC debenture only, so the hotel project behind it is larger.
| Measure | Tennessee | United States |
|---|---|---|
| SBA hotel loans | 91 | 5,298 |
| 7(a) loans | 67 | 3,879 |
| 504 loans | 24 | 1,419 |
| 504 share of loans | 26.4% | 26.8% |
| Gross approval, both programs | $241.6 million | $13.41 billion |
| Median 7(a) loan | $2.50 million | $2.40 million |
| Average 7(a) loan | $2.59 million | $2.58 million |
| Median 504 debenture | $2.96 million | $2.12 million |
| Average 504 debenture | $2.83 million | $2.39 million |
| Share of national SBA hotel loans | 1.7% | 100.0% |
| Share of national gross approval | 1.8% | 100.0% |
| Rank among states and territories, by loans | 20th of 53 | n/a |
SBA hotel loans in Tennessee by fiscal year
Approvals by SBA fiscal year, which ends September 30 and is named for the year it ends in. For 504, gross approval is the SBA/CDC debenture only. "Withheld" marks a year and program with one or two loans in Tennessee.
| Fiscal year | 7(a) loans | 7(a) gross approval | 504 loans | 504 gross approval | All SBA hotel loans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 (partial) | 7 | $23.5M | 0 | $0 | 7 |
| FY2025 | 13 | $41.3M | 5 | $15.3M | 18 |
| FY2024 | 9 | $20.3M | 8 | $20.6M | 17 |
| FY2023 | 10 | $31.1M | 1 | Withheld | 11 |
| FY2022 | 13 | $35.3M | 4 | $14.2M | 17 |
| FY2021 | 22 | $45.7M | 6 | $14.7M | 28 |
| FY2020 | 13 | $28.5M | 3 | $7.6M | 16 |
| FY2019 | 12 | $30.6M | 3 | $7.5M | 15 |
| FY2018 | 14 | $32.7M | 2 | Withheld | 16 |
| FY2017 | 3 | $5.5M | 1 | Withheld | 4 |
| FY2016 | 10 | $20.3M | 3 | $10.3M | 13 |
| FY2015 | 17 | $35.3M | 2 | Withheld | 19 |
| FY2014 | 8 | $19.0M | 0 | $0 | 8 |
| FY2013 | 10 | $17.4M | 4 | $4.1M | 14 |
| FY2012 | 9 | $9.7M | 7 | $16.9M | 16 |
| FY2011 | 12 | $21.5M | 5 | $8.8M | 17 |
| FY2010 | 6 | $7.6M | 7 | $10.9M | 13 |
Top SBA hotel lenders in Tennessee, FY2023 to FY2025
Lenders and certified development companies are ranked by the number of hotel loans in Tennessee from FY2023 to FY2025, the three most recent full fiscal years, using names exactly as SBA reports them. SBA defines the 7(a) name as the bank the loan is currently assigned to. Lenders with the same count are ordered by dollars. A ranking here is a count of public records. It is not a recommendation, and Matthews Hotel Markets has no arrangement with any lender on it.
7(a) lenders with the most hotel loans in Tennessee
32 7(a) hotel loans in Tennessee from FY2023 to FY2025, from 25 different lenders. GBank is named on the most 7(a) hotel loans in Tennessee from FY2023 to FY2025: 3.
| Rank | 7(a) lender, as SBA reports it | Hotel loans | Share of the state's loans in this program | Gross approval |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GBank | 3 | 9.4% | $14.0M |
| 2 | Millennium Bank | 2 | 6.3% | Withheld |
| 3 | Peoples Bank | 2 | 6.3% | Withheld |
| 4 | Enterprise Bank & Trust | 2 | 6.3% | Withheld |
| 5 | Community Trust Bank, Inc. | 2 | 6.3% | Withheld |
| 6 | Readycap Lending, LLC | 2 | 6.3% | Withheld |
| 7 | Global One Bank | 1 | 3.1% | Withheld |
| 8 | Shoreham Bank | 1 | 3.1% | Withheld |
| 9 | Port 51 Lending LLC | 1 | 3.1% | Withheld |
| 10 | Bank of Hope | 1 | 3.1% | Withheld |
504 certified development companies with the most hotel loans in Tennessee
14 504 hotel loans in Tennessee from FY2023 to FY2025, through 3 different CDCs. Brightbridge, Inc. is named on the most 504 hotel loans in Tennessee from FY2023 to FY2025: 11.
| Rank | 504 CDC, as SBA reports it | Hotel loans | Share of the state's loans in this program | Gross approval |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brightbridge, Inc. | 11 | 78.6% | $30.5M |
| 2 | South Central Tennessee Business Development Corporation | 2 | 14.3% | Withheld |
| 3 | Southern Development Council | 1 | 7.1% | Withheld |
How big are SBA hotel loans in Tennessee?
Loan size by gross approval, FY2021 to FY2025. The most common 7(a) hotel loan size in Tennessee is $2.0 million to $3.49 million, with 35.8% of loans, against 28.7% nationally in the same band. 9.0% of Tennessee's 7(a) hotel loans are in the top band, at the $5 million 7(a) limit, against 12.9% nationally. Bands show loan counts only.
| Gross approval | 7(a) loans in Tennessee | Share in Tennessee | Share nationally, 7(a) | 504 loans in Tennessee | Share in Tennessee, 504 | Share nationally, 504 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under $350,000 | 1 | 1.5% | 5.6% | 0 | 0.0% | 3.0% |
| $350,000 to $999,999 | 7 | 10.4% | 11.8% | 3 | 12.5% | 18.6% |
| $1.0 million to $1.99 million | 18 | 26.9% | 23.7% | 4 | 16.7% | 25.2% |
| $2.0 million to $3.49 million | 24 | 35.8% | 28.7% | 8 | 33.3% | 28.6% |
| $3.5 million to $4.99 million | 11 | 16.4% | 17.3% | 8 | 33.3% | 16.1% |
| $5.0 million and over | 6 | 9.0% | 12.9% | 1 | 4.2% | 8.5% |
Methodology
These figures are the Tennessee slice of our national compilation of SBA's "7(a) & 504 FOIA" loan-level files, as of June 30, 2026. The source files, the definitions, the caveats (approvals are not disbursements, NAICS codes are self-reported, lender names are not merged) and the reconciliation are on the national page, along with JSON and CSV downloads that include every state. SBA loans to hotels, national figures and methodology
Cite as
SBA's underlying loan data is a U.S. government work in the public domain. This compilation is published under CC BY 4.0. Cite SBA for the raw data and this page for the state aggregates. License: CC BY 4.0
Matthews Hotel Markets. "SBA loans to hotels in Tennessee: lenders, volume and loan sizes." https://matthewshotelmarkets.com/data/sba-hotel-lending/tennessee. SBA data as of 2026-06-30. Last updated 2026-09-18.Sources
- 7(a) & 504 FOIA dataset · U.S. Small Business Administration · files as of June 30, 2026; read September 18, 2026
- 7(a) and 504 FOIA Data Dictionary · U.S. Small Business Administration · defines GrossApproval, LoanStatus, BankName and the other fields used here; read September 18, 2026
- Dataset record for SBA-OHA-2016-08-001 (license, update frequency, file list) · U.S. Small Business Administration · read September 18, 2026
- 7(a) loans (maximum loan amount) · U.S. Small Business Administration · read September 18, 2026
The data shows who has lent on hotels in Tennessee. A conversation shows who will lend on yours.
SBA hotel lending in other states
Every state with at least 25 SBA hotel loans from FY2021 to FY2025 has a page. The number in brackets is that state's loan count for those years.
- Alabama (97)
- Arizona (126)
- Arkansas (52)
- California (492)
- Colorado (150)
- Connecticut (38)
- Florida (232)
- Georgia (319)
- Idaho (30)
- Illinois (205)
- Indiana (151)
- Iowa (54)
- Kansas (62)
- Kentucky (61)
- Louisiana (79)
- Maine (30)
- Maryland (44)
- Massachusetts (46)
- Michigan (148)
- Minnesota (83)
- Mississippi (71)
- Missouri (100)
- Montana (29)
- Nevada (29)
- New Hampshire (28)
- New Jersey (65)
- New Mexico (83)
- New York (136)
- North Carolina (241)
- North Dakota (27)
- Ohio (223)
- Oklahoma (66)
- Oregon (80)
- Pennsylvania (133)
- South Carolina (129)
- South Dakota (39)
- Texas (610)
- Utah (75)
- Virginia (134)
- Washington (142)
- West Virginia (30)
- Wisconsin (119)
- Wyoming (29)