Skip to content
SearchSphereSource
Sign inSign up

Buying a Business in Utah

The Numbers

FY2025 Acquisition Loans

109

$127M approved

Median Loan

$650k

FY2020 through FY2025

Loans Since FY2020

523

$587M in total approvals

Share of U.S. Activity

1.5%

Of change-of-ownership loans

What the Data Says

Utah ranks 21st of 53 states and territories for change-of-ownership SBA 7(a) lending: 523 loans since FY2020, 1% of the national total.

The typical deal is mid-market: its $650k median loan is close to the $650k midpoint across states.

Activity is accelerating: FY2025's 109 loans ran ahead of the state's own ~87 a year pace since FY2020.

The most-financed target is landscaping services (25 loans), and the 5 most active lenders wrote about 40% of the state's acquisitions, a broad lender field.

Most Active Acquisition Lenders in Utah

  1. 1. Zions Bank, A Division of60 loans
  2. 2. Live Oak Banking Company49 loans
  3. 3. Central Bank (UT)38 loans
  4. 4. Community Banks of Colorado, A Division of NBH Bank31 loans
  5. 5. America First Federal Credit Union31 loans

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

What Gets Bought in Utah

  • Landscaping Services25 loans
  • Full-Service Restaurants15 loans
  • All Other Specialty Trade Contractors12 loans
  • Limited-Service Restaurants12 loans
  • Hotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels12 loans

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

By Metro Area in Utah

  • Salt Lake City-Murray, UT

    184 purchase loans, median $715k. Bought most: All Other Specialty Trade Contractors. Most active lender: Zions Bank, A Division of (18).

  • Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT

    123 purchase loans, median $597k. Bought most: Landscaping Services. Most active lender: Central Bank (UT) (24).

  • Ogden, UT

    87 purchase loans, median $606k. Bought most: Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors. Most active lender: Zions Bank, A Division of (15).

  • St. George, UT

    46 purchase loans, median $722k. Bought most: Cut Stone and Stone Product Manufacturing. Most active lender: Zions Bank, A Division of (11).

  • Logan, UT-ID

    27 purchase loans, median $413k. Bought most: Offices of All Other Miscellaneous Health Practitioners. Most active lender: Cache Valley Bank (10).

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 Utah project address. Approvals, not closings; excludes conventional and 504 financing.