Evidence on business, economics, and finance

Note · Sep 2, 2026

SBA 7(a) Loan Eligibility: Which Industries Qualify and Why

Note · Sep 2, 2026

Four Key Trends Shaping the U.S. Dessert Industry in 2026

Note · Sep 1, 2026

How to Get Funded in Texas: A Data-Driven Guide for Startups and Small Businesses

Note · Aug 30, 2026

Collateral Required for SBA 7a Loan

Note · Aug 12, 2026

Guide to Small Business Loans Avoiding Risks and Choosing Right

Programs

What this desk studies

Business

Industry structure, margins, firm survival, and the credit small firms actually receive.

Economics

Household income by place, the goods-trade balance, and the size of cities.

Finance

The statements and ratios used to read a firm: margins, break-even, cash, and the balance sheet.

Data desk

Datasets behind the briefs

Each file is a public statistical release or a named research dataset. The vintage and the method are on the dataset page.

All market research

Census ACS

US income and demographics by ZIP code

Median income, housing, and education for 33,000+ ZIP codes.

SBA FOIA

SBA 7(a) lending rankings

Lenders, project locations, and NAICS sectors from the public loan file.

Census trade

US goods trade by country

Imports, exports, and the balance by partner, monthly since 1985.

BLS BED

Establishment survival rates

One-, three-, and five-year survival by industry and state.

Damodaran

Average profit margin by industry

Gross, net, and EBITDA margins across 96 industries.

Census CBP

Business counts by ZIP code

Establishment counts and a retail gap index for nine categories.

Household income

Income and demographics by state

Census ACS reports. Each blurb is the state’s median and mean household income, set against the US average.

All income reports

Oregon Income & Demographics by ZIP Code

Oregon has a population-weighted median household income of $86,294 and mean household income of $110,986 across 411 ZIP codes — 1.5% lower than the US average for median income.

California Income & Demographics by ZIP Code

California has a population-weighted median household income of $105,266 and mean household income of $137,079 across 1,730 ZIP codes — 20.2% higher than the US average for median income.

Texas Income & Demographics by ZIP Code

Texas has a population-weighted median household income of $83,948 and mean household income of $108,740 across 1,887 ZIP codes — 4.2% lower than the US average for median income.

New York Income & Demographics by ZIP Code

New York has a population-weighted median household income of $94,710 and mean household income of $127,760 across 1,746 ZIP codes — 8.1% higher than the US average for median income.

Florida Income & Demographics by ZIP Code

Florida has a population-weighted median household income of $78,393 and mean household income of $105,292 across 977 ZIP codes — 10.5% lower than the US average for median income.

Pennsylvania Income & Demographics by ZIP Code

Pennsylvania has a population-weighted median household income of $83,711 and mean household income of $108,539 across 1,763 ZIP codes — 4.5% lower than the US average for median income.

Maryland Income & Demographics by ZIP Code

Maryland has a population-weighted median household income of $111,451 and mean household income of $138,606 across 464 ZIP codes — 27.2% higher than the US average for median income.

Virginia Income & Demographics by ZIP Code

Virginia has a population-weighted median household income of $104,448 and mean household income of $130,947 across 874 ZIP codes — 19.2% higher than the US average for median income.