SBA 504 loans for Restaurants
Over the last decade, restaurant owners have used SBA 504 financing to fund more than $9 billion in real estate, build-outs, and equipment. We help you secure the same financing — with 25-year fixed rates and a team that knows the 504 program inside out.
Numbers first, bankers later
Answer a few questions about your restaurant and get a personalized report by email in about 10 minutes.
- Your estimated blended rate and monthly payment
- Your likelihood of funding, scored 1 to 5
- Estimated closing costs for your project
- The lenders most active in your state
No application. No credit pull. No sales call.
The Restaurant SBA 504 market, by the numbers
What ten years of Restaurant SBA 504 loans — pulled directly from the SBA's own data — tell us about how operators finance this business.
Source: SBA 504 loan approvals for NAICS 722511, 722513, FY2016–FY2025. Data via FOIA request, updated quarterly.
What an SBA 504 loan covers for a Restaurant
SBA 504 financing is built for long-term assets — the real estate, infrastructure, and major equipment that anchor a Restaurant business.
Property purchase & land
Own the building your restaurant fills instead of renting it. Whether you're buying the space you already operate in or a new spot on a busy corner, 504 lets you take down the real estate with as little as 15% down and stop paying a landlord.
- The building you currently lease
- Freestanding restaurant buildings
- Pad sites and high-traffic corners
- Buying out your current lease
- Converting an existing building to a restaurant
Ground-up construction
Build a restaurant designed around your concept. 504 covers the shell, the site work, and the commercial kitchen build-out — the hoods, the grease systems, the dining room — everything that turns a bare space into a restaurant ready to open.
- Ground-up freestanding builds
- Full commercial kitchen build-outs
- Hoods, grease traps, and ventilation
- Dining room and bar finishes
- Patios, drive-thrus, and signage
Expansion & second locations
A proven concept deserves a second dining room. Use 504 to open your next location, convert a new space to your concept, or expand the one you've got — without draining the cash flow that keeps the current spot running.
- Second and third locations
- Converting a new space to your concept
- Adding a patio, bar, or private dining
- Acquiring another operator's restaurant
- Renovating a space you've taken over
Equipment with long lives
The kitchen equipment and fixtures that make a restaurant run — and last long enough to finance. 504 is built for big-ticket equipment with a long useful life, so you spread the cost over the years it'll actually serve your guests.
- Commercial ranges, ovens, and fryers
- Walk-in coolers and freezers
- Ventilation and fire-suppression systems
- POS and kitchen-display systems
- Dining room furniture and fixtures
How SBA 504 financing is structured
Three pieces of capital come together so you only put 10% down on a project that might cost millions.
First lien (50%)
APC funds this directly — we're a private direct lender, not a broker. Term and rate quoted upfront.
SBA 504 / CDC (40%)
Second lien, fixed for 25 years through a Certified Development Company. Rates locked at funding.
Borrower equity (10%)
Cash down, retained equity in existing real estate, or seller carry-back in some cases.
What a 504 project for a Restaurant looks like
Three illustrative examples showing typical deal structures, financing splits, and project scopes.
Two restaurateurs with an established concept built a ground-up space around a scratch kitchen and a seasonal, farm-to-table menu. As experienced operators on a special-purpose build, it was structured at 15% down. One 504 loan wrapped the land, the dining room, and the commercial kitchen at a long fixed rate.
A family-owned neighborhood restaurant that had rented the same storefront for over a decade finally bought the building. As an established, cash-flowing business, the purchase came together at 10% down. The 25-year fixed 504 rate turned an unpredictable lease into a stable, owned asset — and a payment that won't jump at renewal.
A single-location independent restaurant with a loyal following opened a second dining room in a growing neighborhood across town. Rather than draining the cash flow from the original, the owners used a 504 loan at 15% down to buy and build out the new space. The long fixed term protected margins while the second location built its crowd.
Owning your Restaurant property beats leasing — here's the math
Slide the inputs to match your situation. The equity number on the right is what you'd have in 10 years if you owned instead of leased.
Where Restaurant SBA 504 money is going
Geography, deal sizes, top CDCs, and the banks making it happen — all pulled from a decade of SBA data.
Top 10 states by loan volume
| State | Loans | Total funded | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 576 | $519M |
| 2 | Florida | 427 | $449M |
| 3 | Illinois | 321 | $233M |
| 4 | Massachusetts | 303 | $177M |
| 5 | Texas | 252 | $271M |
| 6 | Minnesota | 245 | $162M |
| 7 | Georgia | 204 | $184M |
| 8 | Wisconsin | 191 | $137M |
| 9 | New York | 187 | $148M |
| 10 | Michigan | 169 | $111M |
Deal size distribution
Top CDCs financing Restaurants
These Certified Development Companies have funded the most Restaurant SBA 504 deals over the past decade. Click any CDC for their full profile.
Top 10 third-party lenders for Restaurant deals
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JPMorgan Chase Bank | 169 | $173M |
| 2 | Bank Five Nine | 86 | $176M |
| 3 | Bank of America | 75 | $77M |
| 4 | Ameris Bank | 61 | $79M |
| 5 | Rockland Trust Company | 58 | $46M |
| 6 | Eastern Bank | 57 | $40M |
| 7 | Glacier Bank | 51 | $48M |
| 8 | First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company | 50 | $47M |
| 9 | Harvest Commercial Capital | 44 | $47M |
| 10 | KeyBank National Association | 44 | $42M |
What it takes to qualify
SBA 504 has clear, objective criteria. Most Restaurant operators we work with qualify.
Business requirements
- For-profit businessSBA 504 is for operating companies, not investors or holding companies.
- Owner-occupied useYou operate the Restaurant — you're not just buying real estate to lease out.
- US-based and below SBA size limitsMost Restaurant businesses qualify under SBA's small business size thresholds.
- Demonstrated ability to repayCash flow, credit, and business experience all matter — but no perfect score required.
Project requirements
- 51% owner-occupancyYour business must occupy at least 51% of the financed property.
- Eligible use of fundsReal estate, ground-up construction, major equipment, and certain refinances qualify.
- Long useful lifeEquipment financed under 504 must have a useful life over 10 years.
- 10% equity contributionCash, retained property equity, or seller carry — structured to fit your situation.
Most Restaurant operators qualify. The fastest way to know is a 10-minute call. 1-855-504-LOAN
Built for Restaurant financing
We're a direct lender that specializes in SBA 504 — not a broker, not a generalist.
Explore SBA 504 loans by industry
A decade of loan data, case studies, and deal structures for each of the property types we finance most.
Ready to finance your Restaurant project?
Schedule a 15-minute call. No application fee, no obligation.