Bottom line
- Total investment $13.3M – $36.2M including a $75K franchise fee, 5.5% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $107/year (median $100K).
- Rated CAUTION with a risk score of 69/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 1 loans (below the industry average).
- 17 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
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 Aloft Hotels unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
0%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
Aloft Hotel franchisees own and operate upper-midscale, limited-service hotels (typically 150-300 rooms) under the Marriott-owned Aloft brand, managing daily operations including front desk, housekeeping, F&B, and guest services. Franchisees must maintain brand standards, pay 5.5% gross room sales royalty, and handle all staffing, maintenance, and local marketing while Marriott handles reservation systems and brand marketing. Success depends on occupancy rates, average daily room rates, and controlling operating costs across a capital-intensive, labor-dependent asset.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 24 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).
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.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Aloft presents meaningful caution-level risk due to extreme capital requirements without financial transparency, litigation overhang from data breach, stagnant unit growth, and unprotected territories—requiring deep validation of actual unit economics before commitment.
Score breakdown · what drove the 69 / 100 rating
- 01MEDMassive capital requirement ($13.3M-$36.2M) with no disclosed net income data to validate ROI
- 02MINORAnemic unit growth of only 2.5% YoY suggests market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction in 166-unit system
- 03HIGHOngoing 2018 Starwood data breach litigation creates reputational risk and potential liability exposure for franchisees
- 04MINORNo protected territory means direct competition from other Aloft franchisees and Marriott brands in same market
- 05MINOR5.5% royalty on gross room sales is owed regardless of profitability, creating cash flow pressure during downturns
- 06MINORMultiple class-action lawsuits and antitrust investigations indicate systemic franchisor governance issues
- 07MINORAbsence of Item 19 (financial performance representations) prevents validation of $107.73M average revenue claim
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
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
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Aloft Hotels · FDD (2025) PDF