FranchiseVerdict
AC Hotels by Marriott logo
FV-00058·MODERATEStandard76

AC Hotels by Marriott

Lodging - Hotels & MotelsFranchising since 2011Website
Investment
$18.2M
82nd pct Hotels & Mote…
Avg revenue
7th pct Hotels & Mote…
Royalty
6.0%
74th pct Hotels & Mote…
Units
126
71st pct Hotels & Mote…
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $18.2M including a $90K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
  • No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
  • Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 61/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 7 loans (below the industry average).
  • 21 litigation matters disclosed in Item 3 — higher than typical. Review the summary for patterns (franchisor-initiated vs. franchisee-initiated).

Item 1 · who you're contracting with

The Franchisor

Legal entity
MIF, L.L.C.
Parent company
Marriott International, Inc. ("MII")
Incorporated in
Delaware
HQ
7750 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, Maryland 20814
Auditor
Ernst & Young LLP
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$103.3M
vs $94.4M prior year

Yale framework · single-unit ROIC

Returns Analysis

Pulls Item 7 (investment) and Item 19 (revenue) from this brand's FDD into the Yale unlevered-ROIC formula. Override any input to stress-test it against your own assumptions.

The model · Yale framework

What would one AC Hotels by Marriott unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
Item 19 not disclosed — typing your own estimate
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: hospitality
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
Working capital
$
FDD reports $300K–$750K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

0%

Below typical band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$86K
EBITDA margin
11.5%
Total invested
$18.7M
Payback
2604 mo
Unit-level only. A multi-unit portfolio gives up roughly 5–15% of this to shared services (corporate G&A) before reaching the ~10-unit break-even Yale describes.

Overview

About

Franchisees develop and operate upscale select-service hotel properties under the AC Hotels by Marriott brand, managing 24/7 front desk operations, housekeeping, maintenance, and guest services. Daily operations include revenue management, staff scheduling, brand compliance audits, and coordination with Marriott's loyalty and distribution systems while paying 6% of gross room sales in royalties.

CEO
Anthony Capuano
Founded
2012
FDD year
2025
States available
35

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$18.2M
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$300K – $750K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$90K
Royalty
6.0%
6% of Gross Room Sales · typical 6–8%
Ad fund
2.5%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
12.3%
vs 9–13% typical

Item 19

Financial Performance

This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
126
Opened
9
Last reporting year
Closed
0
Turnover rate
0.0%
Company-owned
8
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
94%
vs corporate-owned
Multi-unit owners
15.0%
Net growth (yr3)
+8.3%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
+18.0%
Compounded over last 3 years
2023
118+9
Franchised units
2024
109
Franchised units
2025
100
Franchised units

Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.

Item 20 · 22 states with active franchisees

The Territory Map

Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator — not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).

AK
ME
VT
NH
MA
RI
CT
NY
NJ
PA
DE
MD
DC
WA
OR
CA
NV
ID
MT
WY
UT
CO
AZ
NM
ND
SD
NE
KS
OK
TX
MN
IA
MO
AR
LA
WI
IL
MS
TN
MI
IN
KY
AL
OH
WV
GA
VA
NC
SC
FL
HI
Registered · 22 states
Not registered

States derived from franchisee phone area codes (Item 20). Approximate — ported numbers may show the original state, not the franchisee's current location.

Government records

SBA Loan Data

Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.

Total loans
7
Loan volume
Avg loan
Default rate
0.0%
vs <3% typical · system-wide
5-yr default

FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17

Risk & Legal

61
Risk · 0-100
MODERATE61 / 100

AC Hotels presents meaningful risks due to opaque financial performance data, active litigation exposures, lack of territorial protection, and capital-intensive model with unproven returns.

Score breakdown · what drove the 61 / 100 rating

  1. 01MEDNo Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — impossible to validate $18.2M investment ROI claims
  2. 02HIGHSignificant litigation portfolio including 2018 data breach class actions, regulatory investigations, and ongoing fee disputes affecting brand reputation
  3. 03MINORModest unit growth of 8.3% YoY suggests slower expansion and potential market saturation in select-service segment
  4. 04MINORNo territorial protection leaves franchisees vulnerable to company-owned or competing franchisee cannibalization
  5. 05MINORHigh capital requirement ($18.2M) with 6% royalty creates significant fixed cost burden without revenue guarantees

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal

Contract & Territory Detail

Territory
Non-exclusive
Protected territory
No
Initial term
20 years
Renewal term
0 years
Online sales rights
Restricted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
21
Right of first refusal
No
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
Yes
Jury trial waiver
Yes
Non-compete
20 yrs
Post-termination restriction
Owner-operator
Optional
Governing law
Maryland

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
187 hrs
On-the-job training
0 hrs
POS system
Proprietary (system designated by Marriott)
Operating tech stack

Item 20

Franchisee Contacts

Phone numbers extracted directly from this brand's FDD Item 20. After purchase, you'll also receive a list of validation questions tailored to this brand.

Franchisee contacts

75 numbers

Locked
(408) 496-••••
CA
(816) 673-••••
MO
(407) 597-••••
FL

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

AC Hotels by Marriott · FDD (2025) PDF

Single-page checkout · instant download · CSV export of contacts available separately above