# Where to Buy a Business in Washington, D.C.

Buyable means an establishment with five to ninety-nine employees in the 36 trades this site covers, counted from SBA 7(a) FOIA loan-level dataset (as of June 30, 2026) and the Census establishment file.

Source: https://searchspheresource.com/guides/states/washington-dc
Last checked: 2026-09-23

## The Opportunity

- Buyable businesses: 2,578 of 4,295 establishments in the covered trades
- Buyable per 100,000 residents: 367.1
- Share of the national buyable market: 0.2%
- Rank among the guided states: 50
- SBA change-of-ownership loans: 70 since FY2020, 17 of them in FY2025
- Median loan: $575,000
- Population: 702,250

## The Deepest Counties in Washington, D.C.

Nobody searches a state; they search a metro they can drive across. These hold the most buyable targets in the covered trades, each with its share of the state's.

- District of Columbia: 2,578 buyable (100% of the state's)

## What Trades Run Deepest in Washington, D.C.

- Full-Service Restaurants (NAICS 722511): 751 buyable. https://searchspheresource.com/guides/buying-a-restaurant
- Limited-Service Restaurants (NAICS 722513): 588 buyable. https://searchspheresource.com/guides/buying-a-restaurant
- Child Care Services (NAICS 624410): 202 buyable. https://searchspheresource.com/guides/buying-a-childcare-center
- Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars (NAICS 722515): 196 buyable. https://searchspheresource.com/guides/buying-a-restaurant
- Offices of Dentists (NAICS 621210): 156 buyable. https://searchspheresource.com/guides/buying-a-dental-practice
- Pharmacies and Drug Retailers (NAICS 446110): 91 buyable. https://searchspheresource.com/guides/buying-a-pharmacy

## Before You Close in Washington, D.C.

The purchaser in a bulk sale notifies the Mayor by registered or certified mail at least fifteen days before taking possession or paying, whether or not the seller has said that any tax is owed. Without that notice the consideration carries a first priority right and lien for the seller's taxes and may not be paid over, and what the purchaser can lose is capped at the fair market value of the assets transferred.

Cited as D.C. Code section 47-4461.

## Next Door to Washington, D.C.

Nobody buys a state. These are the states Washington, D.C. touches, with the buyable businesses each holds in the same 36 trades.

- Maryland: 20,716 buyable (https://searchspheresource.com/guides/states/maryland)
- Virginia: 31,567 buyable (https://searchspheresource.com/guides/states/virginia)

## Method and Source

- Establishment counts: 2023, https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp.html
- Population: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html
- Lending: SBA 7(a) FOIA loan-level dataset (as of June 30, 2026), FY2020 through FY2025

Site index for machines: https://searchspheresource.com/llms.txt