SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · PENNSYLVANIA
SYLVAN LEARNING, SYLVAN LEARNING CENTER, SYLVAN franchise in Pennsylvania: what the public record shows
Franchisees of SYLVAN LEARNING, SYLVAN LEARNING CENTER, SYLVAN in Pennsylvania have taken 11 SBA loans since 1991 (average $107,500)— too few resolved loans in-state to publish a local failure rate (we require a resolved cohort, never extrapolate), so the brand's national rate of 23.9% is the better guide. Its latest FDD Item 20 state table reports 8 franchised outlets in Pennsylvania (fiscal 2025) — about 0.06 per 100k residents.
Loans in PA
11
Resolved
9
Local charge-off
thin
National charge-off
23.9%
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = PA. Charge-off rate = charged-off ÷ (charged-off + paid-in-full); open loans excluded. A local rate is published only when the resolved cohort clears our floor of 30 loans.
Businesses in this industry
4,035
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
30.9
national 26.5
Versus the country
+17%
denser
Every business in SYLVAN LEARNING, SYLVAN LEARNING CENTER, SYLVAN's industry operating in Pennsylvania — franchised and independent — from the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns (2023), against 2024 population estimates. Counter-intuitively, density is not a warning: across 198 brand-state cells in our loan data, the densest quartile charges off at 5.6% versus 18.1% in the thinnest. A crowded market is usually proven demand; an empty one is often empty for a reason.
| Fiscal year | Franchised | Company-owned |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 9 | — |
| 2024 | 10 | — |
| 2025 | 8 | — |
| System | Loans in PA | Local charge-off | Units in PA |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Goddard School | 41 | 0.0% | — |
| Kiddie Academy | 34 | 0.0% | — |
| Goddard Early Learning Center | 21 | 0.0% | — |
| The Learning Experience | 20 | thin | — |
| PRIMROSE SCHOOLS | 13 | thin | 9 |
| Huntington Learning Center | 12 | thin | — |
| Learning Express | 9 | thin | 10 |
| Goldfish Swim School | 8 | thin | — |
| Gymboree | 6 | thin | — |
| Ivybrook Academy | 5 | thin | 2 |
Same sector, same state, same public records — how SYLVAN LEARNING, SYLVAN LEARNING CENTER, SYLVAN compares to the systems a buyer in Pennsylvania would actually be choosing between. Local rates under 10 resolved loans are marked thin, not hidden.
A broker is paid by the franchisor to place you. An independent CPA is paid by you — and the job is pressure-testing SYLVAN LEARNING, SYLVAN LEARNING CENTER, SYLVAN's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.
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