SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · IOWA
True Value Hardware franchise in Iowa: what the public record shows
Franchisees of True Value Hardware in Iowa have taken 12 SBA loans since 1991 (average $405,333), and of the 12 loans whose story has ended, 41.7% were charged off — versus 14.7% for True Value Hardware nationally and 14.8% across all rateable franchise brands.
Loans in IA
12
Resolved
12
Local charge-off
41.7%
National charge-off
14.7%
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = IA. 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.
Businesses in this industry
1,128
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
34.8
national 39.6
Versus the country
-12%
thinner
Every business in True Value Hardware's industry operating in Iowa — 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.
| System | Loans in IA | Local charge-off | Units in IA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coast-to-Coast Store | 19 | 16.7% | — |
| Ace Hardware | 15 | 10.0% | — |
| Hardware Hank | 14 | 0.0% | — |
| Snap-On Tools | 12 | 18.2% | — |
| Roto Rooter | 7 | thin | — |
Same sector, same state, same public records — how True Value Hardware compares to the systems a buyer in Iowa 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 True Value Hardware's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.
Talk to an independent CPA before you buy →