Product · Path 06
Financing for the established med-spa owner opening a second (or third) location.
The coordinated capital stack for an established one-location med-spa owner ready to open a second or third clinic. Existing revenue de-risks the underwrite — three coordinated tranches (SBA 504 owner-occupant RE for the new build-out, equipment financing for the device stack, and an MCA bridge for the soft-open working capital) priced against three collaterals on the same intake. Read what makes an expansion file underwrite differently from a startup, the 3-tranche capital stack, the qualifying profile, and the realistic 45 – 90 day coordinated close before you walk the file to the desk.
Build-out at the second location, owner-occupied
The 25-yr fixed-rate CDC tranche plus bank senior — priced against the suite + TI + long-term equipment at Location #2.
The new device stack the second suite runs on
Invoice-priced devices funded per-asset — lasers, RF / microneedling, body contouring, hydrafacial-class — on per-device amortization tied to useful life.
Working capital for the 60 – 90 day soft-open
Sized to TTM card volume on the existing practice, not the new location’s projections — funds the pre-opening payroll, the opening inventory, the launch marketing.
Why an expansion file underwrites differently
Trailing-twelve-months revenue — not a pro-forma projection.
The starting condition on an expansion file is the opposite of a startup file. The med-spa owner walking the expansion file to the desk already carries twelve months (often two or three) of card volume, package revenue, membership economics, and provider productivity on the existing practice. The lender desks read those actuals — not a model. The three read-outs below are what carries the file over the line on intake: TTM de-risks the underwrite, the brand + operator retention carries over, and the new-location real-estate + devices are first-position collateral.
Underwriting reads trailing twelve months, not projections.
A startup file carries no TTM — the desk sizes to operator intent, projected card volume, and collateral. An expansion file carries a full year (often two) of the existing practice’s card volume, package revenue, membership economics, and provider productivity. The lender desks price to those numbers rather than the pro-forma — the file reads lower-risk because the revenue story is already on the page.
Owner-operator + brand retention carries over to Location #2.
The existing practice’s owner-operator is the gating credit on the expansion file — same FICO, same TIB, same clean tax record, same operator-of-record on the SBA 504 form. The brand that already retains 70%+ of first-year patients at the original location is the SBA + bank desk’s read on whether a second suite can launch at the same patient economics without twelve months of ramp-up risk.
The new-location real-estate + devices are first-position collateral.
On the expansion file the SBA 504 first-mortgage on the new suite is the largest secured item on the lender’s books; the equipment ticket at Location #2 is a per-device first-lien. Working-capital MCA is sized against the existing practice’s TTM card volume, not the new location’s projection — landing the MCA read on actuals rather than the pro-forma is what keeps the working-capital band priced where the desk reads.
3-tranche capital stack
SBA 504 RE · equipment · MCA bridge — sized against three collaterals.
The expansion file prices into the same three-tranche structure the desk already runs on a startup file — but each tranche sizes against a different collateral. The SBA 504 piece sits on the new suite’s owner-occupant real-estate + TI + long-term equipment; equipment financing sits on each new device at Location #2; and the MCA bridge sits on the existing-practice TTM card volume— not the new-location projection. The desk reads three collaterals on the same intake, coordinated by one pre-screen.
SBA 504 · owner-occupant RE
$400k – $2.5M+ real-estate line
Owner-occupant RE + TI + long-term equipment at Location #2
The long-form / fixed-rate / owner-occupant tranche against the second-location suite. CDC + bank partnership, 10% owner injection at the new build, fixed-rate 25-year CDC debenture pegged to the 10-year Treasury at sale. The 9 – 12 month second advance funds the build-out as the construction bills out.
Close in 6 – 12 weeks · long-term / owner-occupant path
Equipment financing · device stack
$50k – $750k device tickets
Secured by each device at Location #2 — no blanket UCC
Invoice-priced financing for the new device stack the second suite runs on — lasers, RF / microneedling, body contouring, hydrafacial-class platforms, PRP centrifuges. The desk sizes each device against its useful life on a single equipment ticket per file at Location #2.
Close in 2 – 3 weeks · per-device amortization
MCA · soft-open bridge
$25k – $250k working capital
Sized to existing-practice TTM card volume
The working-capital bridge the practice runs on between signing and the soft-open at Location #2 — funded off the existing practice’s existing merchant processor (TTM card volume), not the new location’s pro-forma. Covers pre-opening payroll (60 – 90 days), opening inventory (skincare + consumables), launch marketing, and the gap until the Location #2 device ticket + 504 close.
Close in 7 – 14 days · factor-rate payoff
How the stack sizes together
MCA bridges the cash gap while the 504 closes — equipment lands at the soft-open.
On the expansion file, the three desks run in parallel on the same intake but read three different collaterals. The MCA desk sizes to existing-practice TTM card volume (which is why MCA closes first — week 1 – 2). The equipment desk sizes to each new device’s invoice value (closes week 2 – 3, before Location #2 opens). The SBA 504 desk sizes to the new suite’s real-estate + TI (closes week 6 – 12) and pegs fixed to the 10-yr Treasury at debenture sale, with the 9 – 12 month second advance funding the build-out as it bills out.
Qualifying profile
Owner FICO · TTM card volume · ≥ 51% owner-occupancy at Location #2.
The expansion underwriter reads six signals — the existing-location TIB (12+ months), the existing-practice TTM monthly card volume (the MCA desk’s floor), the owner-operator FICO + clean credit + clean tax record, and the owner-occupancy structure at Location #2. All six gate the file at intake; missing any of them outside accepted industry norms fails the file before pricing. The rebuttal card addresses the recurring “you only have one location” question the SBA desk reads first.
Owner-side
Operator credit + tax standing
FICO · charge-offs · tax record
Owner FICO + clean credit
680+ FICO · no recent charge-offs
The same owner-operator credit file that opened the existing practice reads the expansion file. 680+ FICO with no recent charge-offs (24+ months old and resolved are workable) and the clean tax record the SBA + bank desks read at license / payroll-tax-standing.
Clean tax record · no back-taxes
No open IRS / state balances
The SBA pre-screen reads the operator’s federal + state tax standing. Open IRS balances, payroll-tax liens, or unresolved state tax warrants fail the SBA 504 file before pre-screen — a routine payoff plan on a small balance is workable on intake.
Owner-operator intent at Location #2
Owner operates Location #2 post-open
The SBA + bank desks read the file as an owner-operator — the owner-operator of the existing practice will own + operate Location #2 post-open. An expansion that intends to passively run Location #2 through a manager without a sub-practitioner license fails the file at intake.
Existing-practice
TTM + card volume + TIB
12+ mo TIB · $30k+/mo TTM
Existing-location TIB (12+ months)
12+ mo at the existing suite
The practice running today must have at least 12 months of operating history at the established location — 24+ months is the clean read across every lender in the stack. The expansion underwriter reads TIB on the existing location, not on the prospective operator entity.
TTM monthly card volume floor
$30k+/mo TTM card volume
The MCA desk sizes the working-capital bridge off the existing practice’s trailing-12-months card volume on the merchant processor the practice currently runs on — not off the new location’s pro-forma. A practice below $30k/mo TTM does not clear the MCA desk on the expansion file.
Structure-side
Operator intent at Location #2
51% occ · owner-operator
≥ 51% owner-occupancy at Location #2
Owner occupies the suite + asset
SBA 504 requires the operator to occupy 51%+ of the new suite at Location #2 — the loan is a working-operator file, not an investment asset. Condo / sub-lease structures on Location #2 that dilute the owner-occupant read above 49% will fail the SBA pre-screen.
“You have one location — does the SBA desk read that as a real-estate file or a brand?”
The SBA & bank desks read the brand first; the 51% occupancy governs the loan.
The correct framing on the expansion file: the existing practice’s TTM card volume + patient retention + provider productivity is the brand the lender reads; Location #2’s owner-occupied real-estate + 51% owner-operator is the collateralthe SBA 504 first-mortgage sits against. The two are not the same underwriting read — the brand-side of the file uses the existing practice’s P&L as the proof of an operational operator; the SBA-side of the file reads the new suite as a long-form / fixed-rate / owner-occupant collateral position. Walk the desk both sides of the file in the same intake.
Coordinated timeline
45 – 90 days to soft-open — MCA leads, SBA 504 closes at month 2 – 3.
The expansion file is not a fast-cash bridge and not a single SBA 504 greenfield build — it is the coordinated middle: MCA bridges the cash gap while SBA 504 closes; equipment financing lands the device stack at the soft-open. The five steps below are what the desk reads on every expansion file from intake through the Location #2 soft-open.
Intake / pre-screen against the existing practice
Owner-operator intake on the expansion file — the existing-location TTM card volume, the proposed Location #2 build-out pro-forma, the device stack the second suite will run on, and the operator’s clean-tax / FICO standing. The desk pre-screens the file against SBA 504 + equipment financing + MCA in parallel against the same intake.
Week 1
MCA bridge funds the soft-open working capital
MCA leads the file because it prices against the existing practice’s TTM card volume — not against the new suite. The working-capital line funds the pre-opening payroll (60 – 90 days), the opening inventory, the launch marketing push, and the cash bridge until Location #2 opens. Factor-rate payoff calibrated against the existing merchant processor.
Week 1 – 2
Equipment financing on the new device stack
Equipment financing closes in parallel with MCA — funded against the new-suite device stack so the equipment is in place a few weeks before soft-open. Per-device amortization, first-lien only on each financed device; no blanket UCC on the practice entity.
Week 2 – 3
SBA pre-screen + bank / CDC underwriting
SBA pre-screen confirms the size-standard + affiliate rules + 51% owner-occupancy at Location #2. Bank senior + CDC second-mortgage underwrite the file in parallel; the CDC debenture is sold on the secondary market at a fixed rate pegged to the 10-year Treasury at sale. Conditional term sheets from both desks before closing.
Week 3 – 10
Closing + soft-open at Location #2
Closing funds the SBA 504 first-mortgage against Location #2 (the long-term / fixed-rate / owner-occupant tranche) and the first CDC advance (~50% of project against TI + long-term equipment at Location #2). The second CDC advance lands 9 – 12 months later as the build-out bills out; the soft-open at Location #2 lands roughly 45 – 90 days from intake.
Week 8 – 12
MCA is the working-capital bridge while SBA 504 closes. The expansion file runs the three tickets on the same intake, but the desk sequencing matters: MCA funds first (week 1 – 2) against the existing practice’s TTM card volume; the equipment financing closes before Location #2 opens (week 2 – 3) so the new suite’s device stack is in place at the soft-open; SBA 504 closes when the real-estate + TI is ready to fund (week 6 – 12), with the 9 – 12 month second advance covering the build-out as it bills out. The coordinated close runs 45 – 90 days from intake to soft-open, longer than a pure-equipment file and shorter than a true SBA 504-only greenfield build.
Send the file to the desk
One short form. The expansion context prefilled.
Tell us the existing practice, the new-location build, and the device stack the second suite will run on. We respond inside one business day with a routing read and an SBA 504 + equipment + MCA sizing estimate against the coordinated stack above. Submit the intake with the “opening a second location” tag carried by ?source=expansion-financing so the underwriting desk reads the expansion context first.
On the Review step of /apply: the notes textarea is prefilled with “I’m opening a second location — ”. Edit freely; the desk reads whatever is in the field at submission.
Independent vertical-credit desk · MedGuild Capital is not a lender. The 3-tranche capital stack, qualifying profile, and 45 – 90 day coordinated timeline above are illustrative of the desk’s first-pass sizing — not an offer to fund, not a comment on any applicant’s specific file, and not a guarantee of term-sheet outcomes from any listed SBA-lender / CDC / equipment-finance / MCA partner.
The new-location real-estate + build-out is the SBA 504 program — read SBA 504 for the program anatomy on the owner-occupied second-location suite. The 504 piece and the equipment ticket + MCA bridge are sized together when all three apply.
The new device stack the second suite runs on is the equipment financing program — read equipment financing for the per-device pricing, useful-life amortization, and the 2 – 3 week close on the device ticket.
The notes field on /apply uses the existing intake pattern — a 2,000-character free-text notes textarea on the Review step, prefilled with “I’m opening a second location — ”. Edit, expand, or replace with the specifics the desk reads first: Location #2’s build-out pro-forma, the device stack it will carry, the existing practice’s TTM card volume, and the soft-open timeline.