LMMMAlower middle market M&A

NE · 281 financed acquisitions

$233MCapital deployed

Business acquisitions in Nebraska

281 businesses in Nebraska changed hands with SBA 7(a) acquisition financing since FY2019, carrying $233M of bank debt between them. The median deal was financed with $415,000 over 10 years at 7.25%.

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Volume and price

What businesses in Nebraska financed by an SBA 7(a) acquisition loan actually cost, and how many of them there were.

Financed acquisitions281Disbursed loans, FY2019 to date
Capital deployed$233MGross approval, all years
Median loan$415,000Half above, half below
Interquartile range$169k - $1.1MMiddle half of deals
Median rate7.25%281 loans with a recorded rate
Median term10 years281 loans with a recorded term

Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA loan-level extract, change-of-ownership approvals, FY2019 onward. Data as of 30 June 2026. n = 281 financed acquisitions.

Loan size distribution
Size bandAcquisitionsShare
Under $250k9634.2%
$250k to $500k6021.4%
$500k to $1M5017.8%
$1M to $2M3813.5%
$2M to $3.5M2810.0%
$3.5M to $5M62.1%
$5M and above31.1%
All281100.0%

The 7(a) programme caps a single loan at $5M, so the top band is a ceiling of the instrument, not of the market. Deals above it are financed conventionally and do not appear in this file at all.

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How the paper was structured

Loan terms here are not spread smoothly. They spike at exactly ten years and again at exactly twenty-five, with very little in between. Those two points are the programme's maturity ceilings, and which one applies depends on what secures the loan, so a term running past ten years indicates real property was financed alongside the business.

Term structure
TermWhat it indicatesAcquisitionsShare
Under 10 yearsShorter than the goodwill maximum6322.4%
Exactly 10 yearsThe standard goodwill-only note16056.9%
10 to 20 yearsMixed collateral248.5%
20 years and overReal property financed with the business3412.1%

56.9% of loans here run exactly ten years and 12.1% run twenty years or more. n = 281 loans with a recorded term.

§3

What happened next

Two outcomes are visible in the file: approvals that never funded, and funded loans that later charged off. Both are facts about deals, not forecasts.

Approvals cancelled7.9%24 of 305 approvals never disbursed
Charged off, FY2019-FY2021 cohort3.45%4 of 116 funded loans
Jobs recorded3,659Jobs supported, as reported by the lender at approval
Franchised15.7%Share of acquisitions carrying a franchise name

The charge-off share is cumulative as of 30 June 2026 for loans approved in FY2019-FY2021. Those loans are five to seven years into terms that are usually ten years, so the figure is a floor and the lifetime rate will be higher. It is not comparable to a rate computed over a fully matured cohort, and the site does not publish one for later years for that reason.

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By fiscal year

FY19FY20FY21FY22FY23FY24FY25FY26*

* FY2026 is incomplete. The extract closes 30 June 2026, nine months into a fiscal year that ends 30 September, and some FY2026 approvals have not yet disbursed. Do not read the last column as a decline.

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Sectors in Nebraska

Sectors with enough local volume to report on their own. Each has its own page combining this state with that sector.

Nebraska acquisitions by sector
SectorAcquisitionsCapitalMedian loanMedian rateMedian termCancelled
72 Accommodation and Food Services43$32.9M$301,5007.50%10 years4.4%
44-45 Retail Trade42$24.7M$262,5507.50%10 years8.7%
23 Construction38$49.4M$804,1507.50%10 years5.0%
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Counties in Nebraska

Counties with at least 30 financed acquisitions.

Nebraska acquisitions by county
CountyAcquisitionsCapitalMedian loanMedian rateMedian termCancelled
Douglas101$99.2M$600,0006.59%10 years4.7%
Lancaster45$25.6M$375,3007.99%10 years13.5%
Sarpy36$33.1M$359,5008.04%10 years5.3%
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Who lends here

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Elsewhere

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The figures above describe businesses in Nebraska at the size the 7(a) programme reaches. They describe a market, not your business. FIH advises owners of privately held companies on sale processes, and the first conversation costs nothing and commits you to nothing.

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