Feasibility Study Company for SBA, USDA, and EB-5 Commercial Real Estate Projects

What is a feasibility study company?

A feasibility study company is an independent, third-party firm that evaluates whether a proposed commercial real estate project is viable before a lender funds it. The firm holds no financial interest in the outcome, a condition required under SBA SOP 50 10 8 and USDA 7 CFR Part 5001. Its conclusion answers one question a credit committee must resolve: can this project service its debt?

Expansion paragraph (~90 words): That single question is harder to answer than it sounds, because it depends on inputs that do not yet exist. A proposed hotel has no operating history. A planned self-storage facility has no rent roll. A new car wash has no traffic counts of its own. The feasibility study company's job is to construct a credible, defensible forecast of performance from external evidence: comparable operating assets, licensed market data, demographic patterns, and the competitive supply already serving the trade area. The output is not an opinion. It is a quantified case a reviewer can test.

How a feasibility study company differs from adjacent professionals

A feasibility study company is not an appraiser, a business plan writer, or a market research vendor, and a credit committee treats the four work products differently. An appraiser establishes the value of an asset, typically one that already exists or is treated as complete. A business plan describes how the borrower intends to operate and is written from the borrower's perspective. A market research vendor compiles data without committing to a conclusion. A feasibility study company does what none of these do: it integrates market, financial, technical, management, and risk analysis into a single go or no-go conclusion, prepared from an independent standpoint, that a lender can rely on to size and approve a loan.

Why a feasibility study company, and not an individual consultant

A credit committee does not evaluate a feasibility study in isolation. It evaluates the entity that produced it. The distinction between a feasibility study company and a sole practitioner is not a matter of size for its own sake. It is a matter of capacity, redundancy, and the breadth of data and disciplines a single deliverable requires. Four differences matter to a lender.

Data Infrastructure

A bankable study draws on licensed commercial datasets that an individual rarely sustains: commercial real estate databases, demographic profiling systems, hospitality performance benchmarks, traffic and mobility data, and construction cost indices. A firm carries these subscriptions as fixed infrastructure, applied across every engagement. A study built on free internet data does not meet lender expectations, and the gap is visible to any reviewer who checks the sourcing.

Multiple disciplines in one deliverable

A single feasibility study integrates market analysis, financial modeling, technical and construction-cost review, management assessment, and regulatory compliance. A firm assigns these to analysts with the relevant specialization and a credentialed reviewer who signs off. An architect supports the technical and site-plan sections. A sole practitioner must be all of these at once, and the seams usually show in the section where the work falls outside their core training.

Capacity and timeline reliability

A firm runs multiple engagements in parallel without compromising any single timeline, because the work is staffed rather than bottlenecked on one person's calendar. When a closing date moves, capacity moves with it. This is why MMCG can commit to 9 to 16 business days for standard engagements and to rush delivery from 5 business days.

Independence that survives scrutiny

ndependence is a regulatory requirement, not a courtesy. A firm that provides only feasibility analysis, and not brokerage, development, or financing for the same project, satisfies the independence standard cleanly. MMCG's role on every engagement is analytical and third-party, which is exactly what a USDA reviewer or an SBA credit committee is looking for when it asks who prepared the study and what interest they hold.

When lenders and agencies require a third-party feasibility study

Most borrowers learn they need a feasibility study company when their lender tells them, often later in the process than is comfortable. The triggers are predictable, and identifying them at the start keeps the study from becoming the item that delays a closing. The requirement varies by program, and each program reads the obligation differently.

SBA 7(a) and 504

Under SOP 50 10 8, effective June 1, 2025, a feasibility study is required or strongly recommended for startups operating less than two years, complete changes of ownership, new construction or major expansion, and special-purpose or limited-purpose properties such as hotels, car washes, gas stations, cold storage, and bowling alleys. For 504 loans the equity injection escalates with risk: 10 percent standard, 15 percent for special-purpose properties, and 20 percent for startups acquiring special-purpose properties. The feasibility study informs that equity determination directly, which is why lenders want it in hand before they size the loan.

USDA Business and Industry (B&I)

Under 7 CFR Part 5001, a full feasibility study by an independent qualified firm is mandatory for new businesses seeking guaranteed loans above $1 million. USDA codifies five explicit feasibility dimensions, market, technical, financial, management, and economic, and applies stricter independence standards than SBA. A USDA reviewer reads the study against the codified dimensions point by point, so a study that omits one of them invites a conditional approval or a rejection.

USDA REAP and Community Facilities

REAP projects require technical feasibility demonstrating energy production and a credible payback period. Community Facilities loans above $1 million to new entities require full feasibility analysis. Both programs serve rural markets where the trade area and demand evidence look different from a metropolitan project, which is why an off-the-shelf template tends to fail Rural Development review.

Conventional commercial lenders

Construction lenders, CMBS conduits, and life insurance companies routinely require independent demand and financial analysis for hospitality, healthcare, development, and capital-intensive projects, regardless of any government guarantee. The label is sometimes a market study and sometimes a feasibility study, but the underlying ask is the same: an independent forecast of performance the lender did not produce itself.

EB-5 regional center projects

Under the Matter of Ho precedent, feasibility studies must be comprehensive, detailed, and credible, supporting the economic impact report that demonstrates creation of at least 10 full-time jobs per investor. A feasibility study that cannot withstand that standard puts the entire capital raise at risk, because the job-creation case rests on it.

If a project sits in more than one of these categories, the study must satisfy the strictest applicable standard. MMCG calibrates each deliverable to the specific reviewing audience.

How to choose a feasibility study company

Not all feasibility studies survive credit review. A study that satisfies the borrower but not the credit committee has no value, and a rejected study costs the borrower time, money, and sometimes the project. Seven criteria separate a qualified firm with the right methodology from one whose work lenders reject.

Independence. The firm must hold no brokerage, development, or financing interest in the project. If the firm also stands to earn a commission or a development fee on the same deal, the study is not independent and a USDA reviewer will say so.
Regulatory alignment. The study must be calibrated to the specific program, whether SOP 50 10 8, 7 CFR Part 5001, or a conventional lender's internal standard. Ask the firm which standard it is writing to before the engagement begins.
Asset-class specialization. A hotel and a gas station require different revenue drivers, data sources, and competitive metrics. Ask whether the firm has completed studies in your specific property type, and ask to see the relevant section structure.
Licensed data. Institutional studies require paid datasets that free internet sources cannot provide. Ask whether the firm subscribes to commercial real estate, demographic, and construction cost platforms, and confirm the study will cite them.
Financial modeling depth. Look for a ten-year pro forma, DSCR calibrated to program minimums, sensitivity and scenario analysis, break-even calculations, and a complete assumptions book with an audit trail. Ask to see a sample table of contents before engaging.
Credentials. Appraisal Institute affiliation, an MAI designation, FMVA certification, a CPA, or equivalent signals analytical discipline. USPAP conformance is the baseline expectation for any serious firm.
Lender acceptance. Ask the only question that ultimately matters: do credit committees accept the firm's work product? A study the firm is proud of but the lender rejects has failed at its only job.

MMCG's 50/50 fee structure puts that last point in writing, aligning the firm's compensation with a study the credit committee accepts.

How we build a bankable feasibility study, stage by stage

A feasibility study is a credit-committee deliverable, not a marketing document, and it earns its standing through method rather than presentation. Every MMCG study moves through seven disciplined stages, each producing evidence the next stage depends on. The sequence is deliberate: a conclusion is only as defensible as the demand case beneath it, and the demand case is only as defensible as the market area it is measured within. What follows is how the work is actually done.

Stage 1 — Briefing and audience calibration

The engagement begins by establishing who will read the study. A sponsor who arrives with a defined program of record, a capital stack, and a named lender, CDC, or USDA Rural Development office gets a study calibrated to that exact audience. A sponsor with a vague concept and an unconfirmed lender risks a generic report no credit committee will accept. We resolve the scope, the program standard, the asset class, and the revenue structure before any analysis begins, because every later stage inherits these decisions.

Stage 2 — Primary market area definition

The primary market area is the trade area a project will realistically draw demand from, and it is the foundation every other number rests on. We do not use arbitrary concentric radii. We define the PMA from drive-time, physical and infrastructure barriers, competitive boundaries, and the actual movement patterns of the relevant customer, then validate it against Census, BLS, and ESRI data. A PMA drawn too wide inflates demand; a PMA drawn too narrow understates it. Getting this boundary right is what separates a study a reviewer trusts from one a reviewer discounts.

Stage 3 — Demographic and demand analysis

Within the defined market area we quantify demand: the population, household, income, employment, and growth characteristics that drive use of the proposed facility, projected forward over the study horizon. Demand is then translated into a capture rate, the share of total market demand the project can realistically secure given its position and the competition. The capture rate is the single most scrutinized assumption in any feasibility study, and we defend it to the standard an SBA underwriter or USDA reviewer will test rather than asserting it. Every demand figure traces back to a source

Stage 4 — Competitive supply and saturation analysis

A demand figure means nothing without the supply already competing for it. We inventory the competitive set, benchmark its performance, and assess whether the market is undersupplied, balanced, or saturated. For income-producing assets we derive achievable rate, occupancy, and absorption from real comparables operating under comparable conditions, adjusted for inflation and for differences in quality and location, rather than from the sponsor's expectations. Saturation analysis is where optimistic projects most often fail, and surfacing that risk early protects both the lender and the sponsor.

Stage 5 — Technical and cost feasibility

The study confirms the project can be built as proposed and at the cost assumed. We review hard costs (materials, labor, equipment), soft costs (design, permits, legal, insurance), and financing costs, benchmarked against current construction cost data and the specifics of the site. We assess zoning, entitlement, and infrastructure constraints. A pro forma built on an unrealistic cost basis is unbankable no matter how strong the demand case, so the cost side receives the same rigor as the revenue side.

Stage 6 — Financial modeling, DSCR stress, and sensitivity

The analytical case becomes a ten-year discounted cash flow model. From it we derive the metrics a credit committee reads first: effective revenue and operating expenses by year, debt service and debt service coverage ratio, net present value, internal rate of return, cash-on-cash return, the anticipated exit capitalization rate, and break-even occupancy. The DSCR is then stressed against program minimums under multiple scenarios, because a project that covers debt only under best-case assumptions is not bankable. Sensitivity analysis isolates which variables the outcome depends on most, so the lender can see exactly where the risk lives.

Stage 7 — Conclusion and assumptions book

The study closes with a clear go or no-go recommendation, supported by quantified evidence rather than narrative reassurance. Behind that conclusion sits a complete assumptions book: every input, every source, every adjustment, documented so a reviewer can audit the path from raw data to final number. This audit trail is what makes a study defensible under questioning. When a credit committee challenges an assumption, the answer is already on the page.

See our full methodology for the complete framework and the standards each stage is held to.

What the completed feasibility study contains, chapter by chapter

The deliverable is a professionally formatted report structured for direct inclusion in an SBA, USDA, or conventional loan package. It is not a narrative summary and it is not a business plan. It is an analytical document a credit committee can evaluate on its own terms. Reports typically range from 120 to 250 or more pages depending on project complexity.

Executive summary. A clear go or no-go recommendation supported by quantified evidence, written so a reviewer can grasp the conclusion and its basis in minutes.
Project description. The proposed use, site, development plan, and capital stack, stated precisely enough that the rest of the study can be read against it.
Methodology statement. Data sources, analytical frameworks, and limiting conditions, disclosed up front so the reviewer knows exactly how every number was produced.
Market feasibility. Trade area definition, demographic analysis, demand quantification, competitive benchmarking, and absorption projections, the evidentiary heart of the study.
Financial feasibility. Ten-year pro forma, DSCR analysis, NPV, IRR, cash-on-cash return, break-even occupancy, and sensitivity analysis.
Technical feasibility. Construction cost benchmarking, zoning and entitlement review, and infrastructure assessment confirming the project can be built as assumed.
Management feasibility. An assessment of operator qualifications and the staffing plan, because even a sound project fails under an operator who cannot execute it.
Risk assessment. A structured framework covering market, construction, regulatory, and financial risk, with the mitigation each risk allows.
Appendices and assumptions book. Demographic profiles, competitive data sheets, the financial model workbook, and a complete audit trail of every assumption.

For projects with multiple revenue streams, each component is modeled independently before integration into a single consolidated financial analysis, so no stream's risk is hidden inside another's.

The data and tools behind every study

A feasibility study is only as credible as the data beneath it, and a reviewer can tell the difference between licensed evidence and free internet figures within the first few pages. MMCG prepares every engagement on the same paid datasets the institutional consultancies use, and supplements them with proprietary tools the firm built where the right instrument did not exist on the open market.

Licensed datasets

Our studies draw on commercial real estate, demographic, hospitality performance, mobility, and construction cost platforms, including the major institutional sources, integrated and cross-checked rather than taken at face value. Where two sources disagree, the study reconciles them and documents the reconciliation. This is the difference between a number a reviewer accepts and a number a reviewer questions.

Proprietary screening tools Better preliminary screening produces better lending decisions. Where the screening tool a sponsor or lender needs did not exist on the open market, MMCG built it and published it free, with no account and no fee at any stage. Borrowers and lenders can pre-screen any site in the United States before an engagement begins.

30+ commercial real estate asset classes, each with a dedicated analytical framework

eneric firms apply one template to every property type. MMCG maintains distinct frameworks because the inputs are not interchangeable. A hotel study turns on ADR, occupancy, and RevPAR against a defined competitive set. A gas station turns on fuel volume and traffic counts. An assisted living facility turns on acuity-based revenue tiers and Certificate of Need. The framework follows the asset.

Hospitality and recreation

Retail, food, and service

Residential and healthcare

Industrial, warehouse, and flex

Specialty and community

How an engagement works, from first call to post-closing

A feasibility study should run like the credit-committee deliverable it is, with a clear path from the first conversation to a report the lender accepts. The engagement moves through six steps, and the sponsor knows at every point what is happening and what comes next.

Free market overview. Send a project address and receive a complimentary preliminary market overview within one business day. It is a fast read on whether the fundamentals support proceeding, before any fee is committed.
Scoping and proposal. We confirm the asset class, the program standard, the revenue structure, and the reviewing audience, then issue a fixed-fee proposal so the cost is known before work begins.
Data and field research. We assemble the licensed data, define the market area, and gather the primary research the trade area requires, building the evidentiary foundation the analysis will rest on.
Analysis and modeling. We quantify demand, benchmark supply, build the ten-year model, and stress the DSCR. This is the stage where the conclusion is earned rather than assumed.
Review and delivery. We iterate with the sponsor and, where useful, the lender, then deliver the final report in the format the credit committee expects, ready for inclusion in the loan package.
Post-delivery support. We stand behind the study through credit committee questions and any post-funding compliance documentation, because the engagement is not finished until the loan is.

Studies start at $4,900 on a 50/50 fee structure. Standard delivery is 9 to 16 business days, with rush turnaround available from 5 business days. A senior analyst responds to proposal requests within 12 business hours.

Who performs your study

MMCG Invest, LLC is a Practicing Affiliate of the Appraisal Institute, the nation's largest professional association of real estate appraisers and valuation professionals. All studies are prepared in conformance with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice. Engagements are led by named analysts who sign their work, not outsourced to anonymous contractors a reviewer cannot trace.

Michal Mohelsky, J.D. serves as principal and lead analyst. His credentials include a Juris Doctor, the Certified Financial Modeling and Valuation Analyst (FMVA) designation, and Practicing Affiliate status with the Appraisal Institute. He has led feasibility analysis supporting nearly $1.6 billion in aggregate construction cost across 30 or more commercial real estate asset classes for national lenders, SBA Certified Development Companies, and federal agencies. His legal training informs the regulatory compliance framework that underpins every SBA and USDA engagement.

Behind the principal, the firm is staffed for the breadth a single study requires. Senior analysts carry specific sectors, including industrial and USDA programs on one desk and hospitality and retail on another. An architect supports the site-plan and technical feasibility sections. Analysts execute the competitive research, demographic profiling, and data verification that form the evidentiary foundation of every study. The structure is the point: no single deliverable depends on a single person. See the MMCG team and project experience.

Feasibility study company FAQ

Q: What is a feasibility study company?

An independent, third-party firm that evaluates whether a proposed commercial real estate project can service its debt under realistic market conditions, before a lender funds it. The firm holds no financial interest in the outcome, a requirement under SBA SOP 50 10 8 and USDA 7 CFR Part 5001.

Q: How is a feasibility study company different from a business plan writer or appraiser?

An appraiser establishes value. A business plan writer describes how the borrower intends to operate. A feasibility study company integrates market, financial, technical, management, and risk analysis into a single, evidence-based conclusion a credit committee can evaluate independently.

Q: How is a feasibility study company different from an individual consultant?

A firm carries licensed data subscriptions, multiple disciplines, and the capacity to staff several engagements at once, so no study depends on a single person. A reviewer evaluates the entity that produced the study, and a firm satisfies the independence and capacity standards a sole practitioner cannot.

Q: How much does a feasibility study cost?

MMCG studies start at $4,900. The final fee depends on asset class, project complexity, and the number of revenue streams modeled separately. MMCG works on a 50/50 fee structure aligned with lender acceptance.

Q: How long does a feasibility study take?

Standard delivery is 9 to 16 business days. Rush delivery is available from 5 business days. A complimentary preliminary market overview is returned within one business day of receiving a project address.

Q: Is a feasibility study required for an SBA loan?

Under SOP 50 10 8, a feasibility study is required or strongly recommended for startups, complete changes of ownership, new construction or major expansion, and special-purpose properties such as hotels, car washes, and gas stations.

Q: Is a feasibility study required for a USDA B&I loan?

Yes. Under 7 CFR Part 5001, a full feasibility study by an independent qualified firm is mandatory for new businesses seeking B&I guaranteed loans above $1 million, addressing the five feasibility dimensions USDA codifies.

Q: Does an EB-5 project need a feasibility study?

EB-5 regional center projects rely on feasibility studies that are comprehensive, detailed, and credible under the Matter of Ho precedent, supporting the economic impact report behind each investor's job-creation requirement.

Q: Who can perform an SBA-compliant feasibility study?

An independent third party with no financial interest in the project, the licensed data and sector expertise to support its conclusions, and a record of lender acceptance. Appraisal Institute affiliation and USPAP conformance signal the required discipline.

Q: Can my lender reject a feasibility study?

Yes. A study that does not meet the credit committee's standard for independence, data, or modeling depth can be rejected, delaying the loan. This is why lender acceptance record is the most important selection criterion.

Q: What makes a feasibility study bankable?

Independence, licensed data, a ten-year pro forma with DSCR stressed against program minimums, sensitivity analysis, and a complete assumptions book, all formatted for direct inclusion in the loan package.

Q: What is a capture rate, and why does it matter?

The capture rate is the share of total market demand a project can realistically secure. It is the most scrutinized assumption in any study, because the entire revenue forecast scales with it, so it must be defended from comparable evidence rather than asserted.

SBA, USDA, and Conventional Feasibility Study Coverage by State

MMCG is a feasibility study company that delivers commercial real estate feasibility studies nationally, including SBA and USDA loan programs. State landing pages below summarize regional coverage, regulatory context, and recent engagements:

Alabama · Arizona · Arkansas · California · Colorado · Connecticut · Florida · Georgia · Idaho · Illinois · Indiana · Iowa · Kansas · Kentucky · Louisiana · Maryland · Massachusetts · Michigan · Minnesota · Missouri · Montana · Nebraska · Nevada · New Jersey · New Mexico · New York · North Carolina · Ohio · Oklahoma · Oregon · Pennsylvania · South Carolina · South Dakota · Tennessee · Texas · Utah · Virginia · Washington · West Virginia · Wisconsin · Wyoming

Lets Discuss Your Project

Every project has its own program, lender, and documentation context. Book a working session and we will review the site, the comparable set, and the lender requirements together. No prepared pitch, no obligation.

Engagements are led by Michal Mohelsky, J.D., Practicing Affiliate of the Appraisal Institute. Feasibility studies are prepared under USPAP discipline, aligned with SBA SOP 50 10 8 for 7(a) and 504 loans and with 7 CFR Part 5001, Appendix A to Subpart D for USDA Business and Industry, REAP, and Community Facilities financing. Engagements start at $4,900 with fixed-fee scoping. Standard delivery is 9 to 16 business days, with rush turnaround available from 5 days. A senior analyst responds to proposal requests within 12 business hours from the firm's San Francisco office at 27 Maiden Lane, Suite 625.