Camden County restaurants borrow big: a worked $394,000 loan
Accommodation and food services led Camden's SBA lending with 50 loans worth $34.5 million [1]. Full-service restaurants took 31 of them, limited-service places 9, snack and beverage bars 4 and food trucks 3 [1]. The median food loan was $394,000, far above the county's overall median of $180,000 [1].
$394,000 SBA 7(a) loan for a Camden County restaurant
Above $350,000 the SBA's variable-rate cap is the lowest it gets: the base rate plus 3.0% [3]. With prime at 7.00% on Oct 20, 2026 [4], that is 10.0%.
At the cap, $394,000 over 10 years costs $5,206.74 a month and $230,808.68 in interest. For land or a building, SBA 7(a) terms can run up to 25 years [3], which lowers the payment and raises total interest. Fees are extra.
Cherry Hill leads; Camden City barely shows up
Cherry Hill borrowers took 77 SBA loans worth $36.9 million, the most in the county, at a median of $166,500 [1]. Beauty salons (7), dentists (7) and full-service restaurants (6) were the most common types there [1]. Cherry Hill ZIP codes held 2,742 establishments in 2023 [2]. Next came Pennsauken (34 loans), Sicklerville (28), Blackwood (25), Haddonfield (19) and Berlin (17) [1].
Camden City is the opposite story. Its ZIP codes held 1,014 establishments in 2023 [2], yet Camden City borrowers took just 10 SBA loans worth $2.8 million from FY2024 to June 2026 [1]. If you run a Camden City business and feel that SBA lenders rarely lend nearby, the SBA's own records match that feeling.
Camden City and Gloucester City are the county's two Urban Enterprise Zone towns [5]. Certified businesses may collect sales tax at 3.3125% on qualifying sales at their zone location [6]. Camden also has 11 Opportunity Zone tracts from 2018: 7 in Camden City, 2 in Pennsauken, and 1 each in Lindenwold and Pine Hill [7].
Camden's lenders, including two that rarely lead elsewhere
| Lender | Loans | Median loan |
|---|---|---|
| TD Bank | 106 | $47,500 |
| Northeast Bank | 18 | $50,000 |
| M&T Bank | 17 | $50,000 |
| Fulton Bank | 16 | $572,500 |
| Newtek Bank | 15 | $200,000 |
TD Bank made 106 of Camden's 354 SBA 7(a) loans, mostly small ones [1]. Fulton Bank, with a median of $572,500, was the large-loan lender here [1]. For SBA 504 property loans, Empire State Certified Development Corporation made 8 of Camden's 11, and Trenton Business Assistance Corporation 3 [1].
What Camden County's economy looks like
Camden had 11,541 establishments and 190,853 employees in 2023, with 9,756 locations under 20 people [2]. Retail (1,600), ambulatory health care (1,235), professional services (1,297) and construction (1,006) are the largest groups [2]. SBA borrowing reflects that mix: after food service came repair and personal services (49 loans) and construction (44), with dentists taking 10 loans at a median of $375,000 [1].
Card processing for Camden County businesses
Camden County had 1,600 retail stores, 885 restaurants, 172 beauty salons and 119 nail salons in 2023 [2], and beauty salons tied dentists as the most common SBA borrower in Cherry Hill [1]. Nail and lash studios live on short, frequent appointments, so the fixed part of each card fee carries real weight.
On a $40 manicure, Square's in-person 2.6% + 15¢ [11] comes to $1.19, almost 3%. When the client pays with debit from a large bank, the interchange that bank can collect tops out at 21¢ plus 0.05% of the sale [10], 23¢ here. A studio where most clients pay by debit can often do better than a flat rate.
Want to pass card costs on? Under New Jersey's P.L.2023, c.146, a credit card surcharge may not exceed what processing actually costs you [9]. See the credit card processing fees breakdown, then load a statement into the fee analyzer.
Where to get free help in Camden County
The NJSBDC at Rutgers University-Camden serves Burlington, Camden, Gloucester and Salem counties from Friends Street in Camden, (856) 225-6905 [8]. Camden City's UEZ office is at 520 Market Street [5]. For other routes: a term loan or line of credit can close faster than an SBA loan; kitchen gear fits equipment financing; and a merchant cash advance is a purchase of future receivables, not a loan, usually at the highest cost. Batch Capital compares them after the quiz.