The Grounds Guys Franchise Failure Rate
SBA 7(a) loan default data, FY2010–FY2019 · Updated 2026
The Grounds Guys franchisees defaulted on 36.4% of SBA 7(a) loans between FY2010 and FY2019 — 20 of 55 loans were charged off — according to U.S. Small Business Administration data. That is higher than the Landscaping Services industry average of 7.0%.
- 36.4%SBA default rate20 of 55 loans
- 55loans resolvedapproved FY2010–FY2019
- 7.0%Landscaping Services averageall SBA loans in the industry
- 4th lowestindustry rankof 4 Landscaping Services brands
| SBA default rate | 36.4% |
|---|---|
| Loans approved | 55 |
| Loans charged off | 20 |
| Date range | FY2010–FY2019 |
| Industry | Landscaping Services |
| Industry average | 7.0% |
| Total initial investment (FDD Item 7) | $107,650–$252,850 |
| Data source | U.S. SBA 7(a) FOIA loan data |
Most SBA default figures published online use loans approved since 2020 — loans that have had six years or less to fail — so those rates are floors, not outcomes. Every rate on this site is computed from the matured FY2010–FY2019 cohort: loans that have been paid in full or charged off, so the result is settled. Loans approved since 2020 are shown as counts so early charge-offs are visible without being mistaken for a rate.
Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026. Figures also in the comparison table below.
About 1 in 3 The Grounds Guys SBA borrowers failed to repay — more than double the Landscaping Services average of 7.0%.
What is the The Grounds Guys franchise failure rate on SBA loans?
The Grounds Guys is a Landscaping Services franchise. This page reports the outcome of every SBA 7(a) loan the U.S. Small Business Administration's public FOIA file attributes to The Grounds Guys franchisees: 55 loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019, of which 20 were charged off. Loan statuses are as of June 30, 2026, and the cohort has matured, so these are settled outcomes rather than projections.
- SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY201955
- Charged off20
- Charge-off rate36.4%
- Landscaping Services franchise benchmark7.0%
- Brand vs industry5.2x
- All-franchise SBA benchmark10.2%
- Average loan size, 2010s cohort$162,696
- New SBA loans since 2020162
- Early charge-offs since 202020
How does The Grounds Guys compare with other Landscaping Services franchises?
The table sets The Grounds Guys's charge-off rate beside its Landscaping Services peers and the two economy-wide benchmarks. All figures use the same cohort — SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019, statuses as of June 30, 2026 — and the same denominator of resolved loans, so they are directly comparable. A cell in red is more than twice the industry benchmark.
| Measure | The Grounds Guys | Landscaping Services | All franchises | All SBA borrowers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Default (charge-off) rate | 36.4% | 7.0% | 10.2% | 8.0% |
| Loans in sample | 55 | — | — | — |
| Defaults | 20 | — | — | — |
| Average loan size | $162,696 | — | — | — |
What would The Grounds Guys's royalty and ad fund cost at your sales level?
From The Grounds Guys's FDD Item 6 (2026): royalty % of sales, advertising fund 2%. Royalty and ad fund only · illustration. Other Item 6 fees, fixed or percentage, and local marketing minimums are not included. The Grounds Guys charges a license fee of 5-6% of Gross Sales, the rate set by the prior year's annual Gross Sales, plus minimum license fees.
| Annual sales | Royalty | Ad fund | Royalty + ad fund |
|---|
What has The Grounds Guys SBA lending looked like since 2020?
Since 2020, The Grounds Guys franchisees have taken 162 new SBA 7(a) loans. 20 have already charged off. Early defaults on loans under six years old are worth noting. Most SBA failures take longer to develop.
Loans approved since 2020, by fiscal year — counts only: 20 have charged off to date and most are still outstanding, so no rate is drawn.
Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026.
Show the numbers behind this chart
| Fiscal year | Loans | Charged off | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2013 | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2014 | 5 | 2 | 40.0% |
| FY2015 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2016 | 10 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2017 | 7 | 3 | 42.9% |
| FY2018 | 12 | 5 | 41.7% |
| FY2019 | 18 | 10 | 55.6% |
| FY2020 | 27 | — | outstanding |
| FY2021 | 37 | — | outstanding |
| FY2022 | 19 | — | outstanding |
| FY2023 | 28 | — | outstanding |
| FY2024 | 28 | — | outstanding |
| FY2025 | 11 | — | outstanding |
| FY2026 | 12 | — | outstanding |
How to read this
A charge-off means a franchisee borrowed, operated, and failed severely enough that the SBA wrote off the government-guaranteed loan. Unlike franchisor marketing or Item 19 disclosures, this is an observed outcome recorded by a federal agency. One caveat cuts the other way: SBA borrowers are typically less capitalized than all-cash buyers, so these rates can overstate risk for well-funded operators.
How reliable is this number?
The Grounds Guys's figure rests on 55 resolved SBA 7(a) loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019. That cohort has matured, so the rate is a settled outcome, not a projection. With 55 resolved loans, one default moves the rate by about 1.8 percentage points. Loans approved since 2020 are excluded from the rate because most are still outstanding; they appear on this page as counts only. Every The Grounds Guys figure is recomputed from the public SBA FOIA file on each rebuild.
Based on 55 resolved loans — directional, not precise.
Is The Grounds Guys in financial trouble? What the SBA data shows
The Grounds Guys's SBA 7(a) default rate was 36.4% for loans approved FY2010–FY2019 (20 of 55 loans charged off) — the highest of 4 Landscaping Services brands tracked here. A default rate this far above the Landscaping Services average of 7.0% is a signal worth investigating further before investing.
Frequently asked
- What is The Grounds Guys's franchise failure rate?
- The Grounds Guys franchisees defaulted on 36.4% of SBA 7(a) loans between FY2010 and FY2019 — 20 of 55 loans were charged off — according to U.S. Small Business Administration data. That is higher than the Landscaping Services industry average of 7.0%.
- How does The Grounds Guys compare to other Landscaping Services franchises?
- The Grounds Guys's 36.4% SBA default rate is higher than the Landscaping Services industry average of 7.0%. See every Landscaping Services franchise ranked on the Landscaping Services industry page. Landscaping Services franchises →
- What does 'SBA default rate' mean?
- An SBA default rate is the share of SBA 7(a) loans, approved FY2010–FY2019 and since resolved (paid in full or charged off), that were charged off — written off after the borrower failed to repay. It is not a measure of unit closures.
- How much does a The Grounds Guys franchise cost?
- The Grounds Guys's 2026 FDD puts the total initial investment (Item 7) at $107,650–$252,850. The average SBA 7(a) loan to a The Grounds Guys franchisee in the 2010s cohort was $162,696.
- Who owns The Grounds Guys?
- The Grounds Guys is franchised by The Grounds Guys SPV LLC, according to the brand's FDD (2026).
Source
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, 7(a) loan program charge-off data, FY2010–FY2019. Franchise data is matched on the SBA's franchise code / brand name. "Failure rate" here means the share of approved loans (resolved: paid in full or charged off) that were charged off; it is not a measure of unit closures. Last updated September 30, 2026.
Every brand in one table, with percentiles and breakdowns by year, industry and loan size: franchise SBA default rates, all 415 brands.
Cite this page
Franchise Default Rates (2026). The Grounds Guys franchise SBA 7(a) default rate, FY2010–FY2019 cohort: 36.4% (20 of 55 loans charged off). Derived from U.S. SBA FOIA data, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
https://franchisefailurerates.com/franchise/the-grounds-guys/ · Data & methodology · Download the dataset (CSV)