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Buying a Business in Tennessee

The Numbers

FY2025 Acquisition Loans

106

$138M approved

Median Loan

$798k

FY2020 through FY2025

Loans Since FY2020

430

$539M in total approvals

Share of U.S. Activity

1.2%

Of change-of-ownership loans

What the Data Says

Tennessee ranks 25th of 53 states and territories for change-of-ownership SBA 7(a) lending: 430 loans since FY2020, 1% of the national total.

The typical deal runs large: its $798k 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 106 loans ran ahead of the state's own ~72 a year pace since FY2020.

The most-financed target is hotels (except casino hotels) and motels (32 loans), and the 5 most active lenders wrote about 33% of the state's acquisitions, a broad lender field.

Most Active Acquisition Lenders in Tennessee

  1. 1. The Huntington National Bank42 loans
  2. 2. Live Oak Banking Company40 loans
  3. 3. Pinnacle Bank (TN)29 loans
  4. 4. First Horizon Bank18 loans
  5. 5. Old National Bank15 loans

A lender being active in Tennessee does not require a local branch; several top SBA lenders work nationally. Build a shortlist with Lenders.

What Gets Bought in Tennessee

  • Hotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels32 loans
  • Limited-Service Restaurants19 loans
  • Full-Service Restaurants15 loans
  • Broilers and Other Meat Type Chicken Production11 loans
  • Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors11 loans

Industry-specific pricing and diligence live in the Guides. Where the buyable targets sit in Tennessee, by county, is in the Tennessee buying guide.

By Metro Area in Tennessee

  • Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN

    158 purchase loans, median $564k. Bought most: Full-Service Restaurants. Most active lender: The Huntington National Bank (16).

  • Memphis, TN-MS-AR

    88 purchase loans, median $779k. Bought most: Hotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels. Most active lender: Pinnacle Bank (TN) (10).

  • Knoxville, TN

    74 purchase loans, median $804k. Bought most: Hotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels. Most active lender: First Horizon Bank (8).

  • Chattanooga, TN-GA

    45 purchase loans, median $975k. Bought most: Hotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels. Most active lender: The Huntington National Bank (6).

Every metro area that drew 20 purchase loans, with three lenders each, is in the metro table.

Method & Source

Computed from the SBA 7(a) FOIA loan-level dataset (FY2020 through FY2025), filtered to approvals flagged change of ownership with a Tennessee project address. Approvals, not closings; excludes conventional and 504 financing.