Can You Get an SBA Loan to Buy FedEx Routes?

Yes. You can buy a FedEx route business with an SBA 7(a) loan, which goes up to $5 million and, for a business purchase, is usually repaid over up to 10 years. You'll need to put in at least 10% of the total project cost yourself, and a seller note counts toward that only if the seller takes no payments for the life of the loan. Several SBA lenders advertise loans specifically for FedEx route purchases, so look for one that has financed them before.

How an SBA 7(a) loan works for a route purchase

• You apply through a lender, not the SBA. The SBA guarantees part of the loan, which is what makes a bank willing to lend on a business whose main asset is a contract.
• Up to $5 million. SBA's program terms cap a 7(a) loan at $5 million and guarantee 75% of loans over $150,000.
• Up to 10 years. The maximum term is 10 years unless the loan finances real estate, or equipment with a useful life longer than that.
• Collateral helps but isn't everything. The same page says a loan is "not to be declined solely on the basis of inadequate collateral."
• You guarantee it personally. Under SBA's loan conditions, holders of at least 20% of the borrower generally must guarantee the loan.
• The borrower is your corporation. FedEx contracts only with for-profit corporations, not LLCs, so that's the entity that buys the business and takes the loan.

The down payment rules, as of October 2026

SBA's lending rules live in its SOP 50 10. Version 8 took effect June 1, 2025, and version 8.1 applies to loans that receive an SBA loan number on or after October 1, 2026. For a complete change of ownership, which is what buying a route business is:

• At least 10% of the total project cost has to come in as equity. The project cost is everything needed to complete the purchase, not just the price.
• A seller note counts only on full standby: no principal or interest paid for the entire life of the SBA loan.
• Standby debt and outside investors can cover at most half of the required injection, combined. The rest comes from your own funds.
• No earnouts. SBA rules don't allow payments to the seller that depend on the business's future results.

These rules change. Ask your lender which version applies to your loan.

What the lender will look at

• Cash flow that covers the payments. Proven from FedEx settlement statements, tax returns and bank statements, not from the listing. See how to verify a route's financials.
• You. Your credit, your finances and your experience managing employees.
• FedEx's consent. The agreement can't be assigned without FedEx's written consent, so expect the lender to make it a condition of closing.
• The agreement's end date. FedEx says its agreements typically run one to two years, while the loan runs up to 10. Expect questions about the expiration date and any open MESO.

How to finance a route purchase, step by step

1. Talk to an SBA lender before you make offers. Ask whether it has financed FedEx route purchases, and get a sense of what you can borrow.
2. Set up your corporation. FedEx contracts with for-profit corporations, and the lender lends to the same entity.
3. Make an offer subject to financing and FedEx's consent. Put both conditions in the letter of intent.
4. Send the lender the documents. Settlement statements, tax returns, the seller's P&L, the truck list and the agreement.
5. Structure the down payment. Your cash, plus any seller note on full standby, within the limits above.
6. Get FedEx's consent, then close. The lender, the seller and FedEx all have to line up, so start the FedEx approval early.

A worked example

These are made-up numbers, chosen to show how the down payment rules work. They are not typical prices for any operation.

• Purchase price: $800,000
• Closing costs and working capital: $50,000
• Total project cost: $850,000
• Minimum equity, 10%: $85,000
• Most a standby seller note can cover, half of that: $42,500
• Least the buyer puts in from their own funds: $42,500
• SBA loan: $765,000

If the seller won't accept a note that pays nothing for 10 years, the buyer brings the full $85,000. A seller note that does take payments is still possible, but it's extra debt the lender has to approve, and it doesn't count toward the 10%.

Common questions

Can an SBA loan cover the trucks?

Yes. 7(a) loans can finance equipment, and trucks that come with the business are part of the purchase. Your lender will want the truck list with titles, ages and mileage.

Can the seller finance part of the price?

Yes, but a seller note only counts toward your 10% if it's on full standby for the life of the loan, and even then it can cover at most half of the required injection.

How much do I need for a down payment?

At least 10% of the total project cost, and at least half of that from your own funds. Lenders can ask for more.

What if FedEx doesn't approve me?

Then the deal doesn't close. That's why FedEx's consent belongs in the letter of intent and the loan conditions. See what FedEx requires of a buyer.

Does this work for linehaul too?

The SBA program is the same. Linehaul businesses have a different fleet and different numbers, so the lender's questions change.

Numbers a lender can check

Lenders underwrite cash flow, and revenue is the part settlement statements can prove. Route Impact's listings, at routeimpact.ai/listings, show revenue, stops and packages read from the seller's FedEx settlement statements and marked verified, with how many weeks they cover, and label anything from the seller's own books as the seller's. That's the same split your lender will make.