Buying a Business in Louisiana
The Numbers
FY2025 Acquisition Loans
71
$91.0M approved
Median Loan
$813k
FY2020 through FY2025
Loans Since FY2020
321
$375M in total approvals
Share of U.S. Activity
0.9%
Of change-of-ownership loans
What the Data Says
Louisiana ranks 32nd of 53 states and territories for change-of-ownership SBA 7(a) lending: 321 loans since FY2020, 0.9% of the national total.
The typical deal runs large: its $813k median loan sits above the $650k midpoint across states, so expect bigger checks and the larger injection and cash flow they need.
Activity is accelerating: FY2025's 71 loans ran ahead of the state's own ~54 a year pace since FY2020.
The most-financed target is hotels (except casino hotels) and motels (23 loans), and the 5 most active lenders wrote about 37% of the state's acquisitions, a broad lender field.
Most Active Acquisition Lenders in Louisiana
- 1. Hancock Whitney Bank28 loans
- 2. Live Oak Banking Company25 loans
- 3. American Bank (LA)23 loans
- 4. Gulf Coast Bank22 loans
- 5. First Financial Bank (AR)21 loans
A lender being active in Louisiana does not require a local branch; several top SBA lenders work nationally. Build a shortlist with Lenders.
What Gets Bought in Louisiana
- Hotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels23 loans
- Full-Service Restaurants16 loans
- Pharmacies and Drug Retailers15 loans
- Limited-Service Restaurants14 loans
- Insurance Agencies and Brokerages12 loans
Industry-specific pricing and diligence live in the Guides. How many buyable businesses Louisiana holds in each trade is in Where the Businesses Are.
Method & Source
Computed from the SBA 7(a) FOIA loan-level dataset (FY2020 through FY2025), filtered to approvals flagged change of ownership with a Louisiana project address. Approvals, not closings; excludes conventional and 504 financing.