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Analysis Examined Markets with the Highest Annual Revenue, Credit Scores and Other Factors
Biz2Credit, the leading online credit marketplace, today released the results of a study of bank failures sorted by state and their impact on small business borrowers.
"The failure of so many small banks in Georgia and in Florida created a credit desert," said Rohit Arora, CEO of Biz2Credit, who oversaw the research. "The housing market bust hit particularly hard in the Southeast, which resulted in bank failures and risk averse lending behaviors by those banks that survived. Thus, small business owners were stymied in their attempts to secure capital -- even when their companies had solid credit scores."
A result of the bank reluctance to fund small business ventures was the rise of alternative lenders -- merchant cash advance, factors and other non-bank entities -- in the marketplace. While these lending institutions made financing available, often the money came at a high interest rate.
"Small business owners were caught between a rock and a hard place. If they needed money, many times the only willing lenders were cash advance companies that charged interest rates of 30 to 40 percent," Arora added. "Borrowing money at those rates and terms simply is not a sustainable funding option in the long term."
States with the Highest Percentages of Bank Failures
- Denver, CO
- Riverside-San Bernardino, CA
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
- Las Vegas, NV
- Charlotte, NC
- Washington DC metro area
- Baltimore, MD
- New York metro area
- San Francisco-Oakland, CA
- Portland, OR
- Atlanta, GA
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
- Indianapolis, IN
- Chicago, IL
- Seattle, WA
- Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL
- Philadelphia, PA
- Phoenix, AZ
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Houston, TX
- Milwaukee, WI
- Charleston, SC
- Orlando, FL
- Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
- Jacksonville, FL
The Top 25 metro areas by Annual Revenue were: Jacksonville, FL; Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC; Chicago, IL-IN-WI; Denver, CO; Pittsburgh, PA; Atlanta GA; Los-Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA; Las Vegas, NV; Dallas-Fort Worth, TX and San Francisco-Oakland CA
Top 25 Metro areas with the highest applications in 2013
| Top 25 Metro areas with the highest applications in 2013 | Average Annual Revenue | Average Credit Score | Average of Age in Months | Average BizAnalyzer Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville, FL | $1,395,927 | 576 | 32.6 | 45.2 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | $1,146,263 | 591 | 46.6 | 52.3 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $1,076,557 | 621 | 40.4 | 49.5 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | $1,011,458 | 638 | 62.0 | 54.6 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $547,125 | 620 | 38.0 | 47.6 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $504,944 | 601 | 46.7 | 49.9 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $464,623 | 632 | 43.3 | 52.6 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | $427,297 | 628 | 33.3 | 52.5 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $400,474 | 600 | 34.7 | 45.4 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | $395,720 | 633 | 60.8 | 50.1 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $359,484 | 609 | 63.8 | 51.2 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $273,920 | 605 | 41.6 | 49.7 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $223,964 | 589 | 22.7 | 47.1 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $199,881 | 626 | 35.0 | 50.1 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $198,006 | 594 | 31.3 | 45.7 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | $192,448 | 609 | 45.8 | 48.3 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $188,713 | 596 | 55.5 | 51.1 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $167,391 | 643 | 15.7 | 50.0 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | $166,963 | 611 | 55.7 | 47.8 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $165,071 | 607 | 37.9 | 53.9 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $110,843 | 615 | 28.2 | 48.9 |
| Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI | $109,071 | 600 | 23.4 | 46.1 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $102,313 | 612 | 40.4 | 48.2 |
| Charleston-North Charleston, SC | $97,714 | 589 | 30.2 | 46.0 |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | $68,000 | 615 | 53.3 | 49.7 |
| National Average | $282,991 | 611 | 37.6 | 48.7 |
"Centers of technological innovation are booming. Cities like Jacksonville are taking advantage of their slower pace, lower costs and good standard of living offered to residents," explained Arora.
When sorted by Age of Business (in months), Portland was the leader.
Top 25 Metro areas with the highest applications in 2013
| Top 25 Metro areas with the highest applications in 2013 | Average Annual Revenue | Average Credit Score | Average of Age in Months | Average BizAnalyzer Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $167,391 | 643 | 15.7 | 50.0 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $223,964 | 589 | 22.7 | 47.1 |
| Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI | $109,071 | 600 | 23.4 | 46.1 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $110,843 | 615 | 28.2 | 48.9 |
| Charleston-North Charleston, SC | $97,714 | 589 | 30.2 | 46.0 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $198,006 | 594 | 31.3 | 45.7 |
| Jacksonville, FL | $1,395,927 | 576 | 32.6 | 45.2 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | $427,297 | 628 | 33.3 | 52.5 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $400,474 | 600 | 34.7 | 45.4 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $199,881 | 626 | 35.0 | 50.1 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $165,071 | 607 | 37.9 | 53.9 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $547,125 | 620 | 38.0 | 47.6 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $1,076,557 | 621 | 40.4 | 49.5 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $102,313 | 612 | 40.4 | 48.2 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $273,920 | 605 | 41.6 | 49.7 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $464,623 | 632 | 43.3 | 52.6 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | $192,448 | 609 | 45.8 | 48.3 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | $1,146,263 | 591 | 46.6 | 52.3 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $504,944 | 601 | 46.7 | 49.9 |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | $68,000 | 615 | 53.3 | 49.7 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $188,713 | 596 | 55.5 | 51.1 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | $166,963 | 611 | 55.7 | 47.8 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | $395,720 | 633 | 60.8 | 50.1 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | $1,011,458 | 638 | 62.0 | 54.6 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $359,484 | 609 | 63.8 | 51.2 |
| National Average | $282,991 | 611 | 37.6 | 48.7 |
"Portland is a low-cost, friendly place to live. There is also a thriving organic food revolution going on there, which has resulted in many women that have opened new businesses in the food industry," Arora explained. "Midwestern cities like Milwaukee are growing in the high-tech and medical technology industries. High end IT startup companies are beginning to emerge in this area. Further, traditional manufacturing hubs are evolving and supporting IT companies, and many of them are women-owned."
When sorted by Credit Score, Portland was the leader. Rounding out the Top 25 were Denver, San Francisco-Oakland, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, Las Vegas, New York metro, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, and Seattle.
Top 25 Metro areas with the highest applications in 2013
| Top 25 Metro areas with the highest applications in 2013 | Average Annual Revenue | Average Credit Score | Average of Age in Months | Average BizAnalyzer Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $167,391 | 643 | 15.7 | 50.0 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | $1,011,458 | 638 | 62.0 | 54.6 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | $395,720 | 633 | 60.8 | 50.1 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $464,623 | 632 | 43.3 | 52.6 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | $427,297 | 628 | 33.3 | 52.5 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $199,881 | 626 | 35.0 | 50.1 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $1,076,557 | 621 | 40.4 | 49.5 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $547,125 | 620 | 38.0 | 47.6 |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | $68,000 | 615 | 53.3 | 49.7 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $110,843 | 615 | 28.2 | 48.9 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $102,313 | 612 | 40.4 | 48.2 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | $166,963 | 611 | 55.7 | 47.8 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $359,484 | 609 | 63.8 | 51.2 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | $192,448 | 609 | 45.8 | 48.3 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $165,071 | 607 | 37.9 | 53.9 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $273,920 | 605 | 41.6 | 49.7 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $504,944 | 601 | 46.7 | 49.9 |
| Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI | $109,071 | 600 | 23.4 | 46.1 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $400,474 | 600 | 34.7 | 45.4 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $188,713 | 596 | 55.5 | 51.1 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $198,006 | 594 | 31.3 | 45.7 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | $1,146,263 | 591 | 46.6 | 52.3 |
| Charleston-North Charleston, SC | $97,714 | 589 | 30.2 | 46.0 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $223,964 | 589 | 22.7 | 47.1 |
| Jacksonville, FL | $1,395,927 | 576 | 32.6 | 45.2 |
| National Average | $282,991 | 611 | 37.6 | 48.7 |
"Indianapolis is growing because it has become a transportation hub, and certified women-owned businesses are taking advantage of opportunities there," Arora said. "In Pittsburgh, companies are benefitting in the transformation from a steel and manufacturing industry to a medical and financial services hub. There are more than twice as many women working in the health care service industry than men in Pittsburgh, a city that is on the rise."
About the Biz2Credit Best Small Business Cities in America Study
Biz2Credit analyzed 12,000 businesses with less than 250 employees and less than $10 million in annual revenues from across the country that have been in operation for more than 1 year.