How much do lenders finance for a Safe Ship franchise?

The median SBA loan approved for a Safe Ship franchise is $70,000, with the middle 80% of loans between $30,000 and $87,000. That is the financed portion only - it excludes the buyer's equity injection, which SBA lenders typically require at 10% or more of total project cost for a business acquisition or new franchise unit.

Which lenders finance Safe Ship franchises?

By dollars approved, the most active SBA lenders for Safe Ship have been Celtic Bank Corporation, Starion Bank, Bank First, General Electric Credit Union. Many franchise brands also maintain their own lists of preferred lenders, which may differ from who has historically approved the most volume.

How long are Safe Ship SBA loans?

The median term is 7 yr. SBA 7(a) terms run up to 10 years for working capital and equipment, and up to 25 years when the loan is secured by real estate - so a longer median usually means the loans included property.

Franchise financing

Financing a Safe Ship franchise

SBA lenders have approved 10 loans against the Safe Ship brand since FY2010, totalling $647K. The median approval was $70,000. These are loans that actually closed - not projections from a disclosure document.

Rank by loan count

#1585

of 1,651 brands

Loans approved

FY2010 onward

Median loan

$70,000

Typical range

$30K-$87K

Middle 80% of loans

Median term

7 yr

Charge-off rate

Cohort too small

Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA data, as of 2026-06-30. Approvals from FY2010 onward. How we calculate this.

Lenders

Who financed Safe Ship

Lender	Loans	Approved
Celtic Bank Corporation	2	$225K
Starion Bank	3	$125K
Bank First	1	$87K
General Electric Credit Union	1	$78K
Stearns Bank	1	$77K
TD Bank	1	$30K
Bar Harbor Bank & Trust	1	$25K

Geography

Where Safe Ship units were financed

State	Loans	Share
North Dakota	3
Texas	2
Wisconsin	1
Ohio	1
Vermont	1
Florida	1
Oklahoma	1

Approvals by fiscal year

’12

’13

’14

’15

’16

’18

Loan count by fiscal year - a rough proxy for how fast the brand was opening units. Final bar is a partial year.

Loan sizes

Under $50K
40%
$50K - $150K
50%
$150K - $350K
10%

Financing a Safe Ship: common questions

How much do lenders finance for a Safe Ship franchise?: The median SBA loan approved for a Safe Ship franchise is $70,000, with the middle 80% of loans between $30,000 and $87,000. That is the financed portion only - it excludes the buyer's equity injection, which SBA lenders typically require at 10% or more of total project cost for a business acquisition or new franchise unit.
Which lenders finance Safe Ship franchises?: By dollars approved, the most active SBA lenders for Safe Ship have been Celtic Bank Corporation, Starion Bank, Bank First, General Electric Credit Union. Many franchise brands also maintain their own lists of preferred lenders, which may differ from who has historically approved the most volume.
How long are Safe Ship SBA loans?: The median term is 7 yr. SBA 7(a) terms run up to 10 years for working capital and equipment, and up to 25 years when the loan is secured by real estate - so a longer median usually means the loans included property.

Compare other brands

Median loan size and charge-off rate across every franchise in the SBA record.

How SBA 7(a) works

The programme most franchise buyers use, explained end to end.

Buying a franchise with an SBA loan

Equity injection, the franchise directory, and what lenders check.

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