BrightStar Care HomesFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A BrightStar Care Homes franchise requires a total initial investment of $201K – $2.2M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2024 FDD, average unit revenue was $691K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $201K – $2.2M
- 90th pct Senior Care
- Avg gross sales
- $691K
- 19th pct Senior Care
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Senior Care
- Units
- 5
- 16th pct Senior Care
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Senior Care · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Senior Care avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
At 0.6x revenue per dollar invested, this system underperforms the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Franchised units fell from 5 to 4 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $201K – $2.2M including a $50K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $691K/year (median $707K).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 52/100.
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- BrightStar Senior Living Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- BrightStar Group Holdings, Inc.
- Incorporated in
- IL
- HQ
- 2275 Half Day Road, Suite 210, Bannockburn, Illinois 60015
- Auditor
- BDO USA, P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $458K
- vs $570K prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2024
- Status as of 2024; may have been resolved in a later filing we don't yet have.
Overview
About
BrightStar Care Homes franchisees operate home care agencies providing non-medical in-home services (personal care, companionship, household support) to elderly and disabled clients. Daily operations involve recruiting and training caregivers, managing client schedules and billing, ensuring regulatory compliance, and building relationships with referral sources (hospitals, social services, families).
- CEO
- Andrew Ray
- Headquarters
- IL
- Founded
- 2013
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 1
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 35 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $50K | $50K | |
| Architecture / Engineering / Development Fee & Expensesnot refundable | $80K | $225K | |
| Site Demolitionnot refundable | $0 | $50K | |
| Legal Expensesnot refundable | $2K | $5K | |
| Fees for Applications, Permits Review, and Recordingnot refundable | $13K | $20K | |
| Community's Constructionnot refundable | $715K | $1.1M | |
| Landnot refundable | $200K | $450K | |
| Landscape Architect Feesnot refundable | $35K | $50K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures & Equipmentnot refundable | $8K | $32K | |
| Technology/Computer Requirementsnot refundable | $4K | $12K | |
| Supplies & Materials Inventorynot refundable | $15K | $25K | |
| Banking Fees, Interest, and Land Taxes During Constructionnot refundable | $49K | $53K | |
| Pre-Opening Marketing Costsnot refundable | $16K | $24K | |
| Pre-Opening Labor Costsnot refundable | $9K | $13K | |
| Employee Travel and Living Expenses Associated with Trainingnot refundable | $4K | $8K | |
| Recruiting Spendnot refundable | $900 | $2K | |
| General Marketing Feenot refundable | $2K | $2K | |
| State Required Licensurenot refundable | $1K | $2K | |
| Registered Nurse Hired Before Openingnot refundable | $0 | $9K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 monthsnot refundable | $23K | $51K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.4M | $2.5M |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$121K
17.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
10%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
10.3 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $201K – $2.2M
- Below avg, review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $23K – $67K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.5%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.3%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.5% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $0 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Total fee load | 8.3% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $691K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $707K
- Item 19 type
- Historical Revenue and Occupancy
- Sample size
- 3 units
- vs category median 22 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $570K→$796K
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 70 Senior Care brands
Revenue is only 0.6x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Senior Care averages
How BrightStar Care Homes Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 5
- Opened
- 1
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +25.0%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +25.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 6 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 contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 2 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 2
- Loan volume
- $1.6M
- Median loan
- $795K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 1
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into BrightStar Care Homes's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 1 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 1 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 1-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
BrightStar Care Homes presents meaningful litigation risk, undisclosed profitability metrics, and a tiny franchise network with franchisor financial concerns that warrant careful validation before investment.
Litigation (Item 3)
Four cases disclosed: (1) Starcatcher Healthcare LLC v. BrightStar Franchising (settled Nov 2014, $137,000 in fees/costs reimbursed, no substantive damages paid, case dismissed); (2) Cosmo Fraser and Adam Fraser v. BrightStar Franchising (settled March 2018, $215,000 paid, dismissed with prejudice); (3) BrightStar Franchising v. Angelito D. Caballa and Silver Servants LLC (pending arbitration filed Dec 2023, seeking $126,386 plus costs and attorneys' fees); (4) BrightStar Franchising v. SFV LLC, Ivan Wai Wing Yeung, and Chun Fei Lui (pending arbitration filed Nov 2023, text incomplete but seeking payment from terminated franchisee).
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · BDO USA, P.C.⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 52 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNet Income not disclosed in Item 19 despite $691K average revenue — unable to validate actual profitability
- 02MINORFive active lawsuits/arbitrations (2 settled franchisee suits + 3 franchisor claims for post-termination damages) indicate systemic relationship friction
- 03MINOROnly 5 franchised units with 25% YoY growth is minimal scale; small network limits peer support and brand leverage
- 04MINORHigh fee-to-revenue ratio: $50K franchise fee + 5% royalty on net billings creates significant upfront and ongoing cost burden
- 05HIGHGoing Concern status suggests financial instability at franchisor level, raising questions about support infrastructure sustainability
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 20 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Radius or Zip Codes |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Not allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Illinois |
| Litigation count | 5 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Four cases disclosed: (1) Starcatcher Healthcare LLC v. BrightStar Franchising (settled Nov 2014, $137,000 in fees/costs reimbursed, no substantive damages paid, case dismissed); (2) Cosmo Fraser and Adam Fraser v. BrightStar Franchising (settled March 2018, $215,000 paid, dismissed with prejudice); (3) BrightStar Franchising v. Angelito D. Caballa and Silver Servants LLC (pending arbitration filed Dec 2023, seeking $126,386 plus costs and attorneys' fees); (4) BrightStar Franchising v. SFV LLC, Ivan Wai Wing Yeung, and Chun Fei Lui (pending arbitration filed Nov 2023, text incomplete but seeking payment from terminated franchisee).
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 38 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- On-site at restaurant
- Time to open
- 12 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- Advanced Business System (ABS)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Advanced Business System (ABS)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
7 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
BrightStar Care Homes · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a BrightStar Care Homes franchise?
The total investment to open a BrightStar Care Homes franchise ranges from $201K – $2.2M, with an initial franchise fee of $50K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do BrightStar Care Homes franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the BrightStar Care Homes FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $691K. The median is $707K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is BrightStar Care Homes's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for BrightStar Care Homes (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many BrightStar Care Homes franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, BrightStar Care Homes has 5 total units in the United States, including 5 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 1 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is BrightStar Care Homes a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates BrightStar Care Homes as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 52 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.