Cait’s Estate Sales Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Cait's Estate Sales is a real estate services franchise running on-site and online estate sales for downsizing and estates. Franchisees run local operations, staging and pricing contents, marketing sales, and running selling events.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Cait’s Estate Sales franchise requires a total initial investment of $82K – $111K, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.5% royalty[2]. The 2026 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $82K – $111K
- 61st pct Real Estate
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Company-owned onlyn=2
- Royalty
- 6.5%
- 40th pct Real Estate
- Units
- 2
- 4th pct Real Estate
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Real Estate · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Real Estate avg · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- COSTTotal investment $82K – $111K including a $50K franchise fee, 6.5% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSGross Sales figures are for 2 affiliate-owned (company) outlets only, not franchised outlets, for calendar year 2025; sales tax excluded; ancillary service revenue excluded.
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 48/100 (higher is better).
- FLAGBankruptcy history disclosed in the FDD. Review Item 4 for details before proceeding.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Caits Estate Services, Inc.
- Parent company
- None
- CEO title
- Owner and President
- George Venturella
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- Illinois
- HQ
- 10201 191st Street, Mokena, IL 60448
- Auditor
- Kezos & Dunlavy
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- Most recent fiscal year
Overview
About
- CEO
- George Venturella
- Headquarters
- IL
- Founded
- 2025
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 2
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 55% below the typical real estate franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $10K | $15K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $23K | $46K |
| Total initial investment | $82K | $111K |
Source: Cait’s Estate Sales 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $82K – $111K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $10K – $15K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Royalty
- 6.5%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.5% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $500 |
| Training fee | $200 |
| Transfer fee | $49K |
| Renewal fee | $7K |
| Inventory (initial) | $500 – $700 |
| Total fee load | 7.5% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Cait’s Estate Sales did not disclose financial performance in FDD Item 19. The ROIC and return models require Item 19 revenue. Without it all inputs are estimates. You can still run the calculator with your own assumptions by entering an expected revenue figure.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Cait’s Estate Sales unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
99%
Above the 30–60% band. Verify revenue is per-unit average
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
Gross Sales figures are for 2 affiliate-owned (company) outlets only, not franchised outlets, for calendar year 2025; sales tax excluded; ancillary service revenue excluded.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a sample of only 2
- Item 19 type
- actual gross sales of 2 affiliate-owned outlets
- Sample size
- 2
- vs category median 64 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $190K→$1.3M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 6 / 10
- vs category median 0 / 10 · above
Compared against 101 Real Estate brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 7.5% — below the Real Estate average of 9.1%.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports actual gross sales of 2 affiliate-owned outlets rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Real Estate averages
How Cait’s Estate Sales Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 2
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 6
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 2 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
2
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Micro-franchise system with unverified financials, no going concern status, and insufficient operational track record to validate investment returns.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Item.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Disclosed in last 7 years
Owner and President George Venturella filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition on April 20, 2018 (In re Venturella, No. 18-11555); the court entered a discharge on December 10, 2018.
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Kezos & Dunlavy
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 48 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDOnly 2 franchise units with unknown growth trajectory indicates extremely limited system scale and unproven scalability
- 02HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE, suggesting potential financial instability or undisclosed operational concerns at franchisor level
- 03MINORHigh franchise fee ($49,900) relative to system size creates significant franchisee risk with minimal brand infrastructure support
- 04MINOR6.5% royalty on claimed $596K revenue = ~$38,764 annual ongoing payments with only 2-unit reference base for validation
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 7.5% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 7 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 3 |
| Territory type | exclusive |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory population | 300,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 30 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 13 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 4 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | Illinois (franchisor's principal place of business); litigation/mediation venue also Illinois |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | Illinois |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Item.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 27 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 36 hrs
- Training location
- Mokena, Illinois (in-person) and remote via Zoom
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 36 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 3 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisee (home office or leased commercial space within Territory)
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Cait's Management
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Cait's Management
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Cait’s Estate Sales franchise?
The total investment to open a Cait’s Estate Sales franchise ranges from $82K – $111K, 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 Cait’s Estate Sales franchise owners earn?
Cait’s Estate Sales does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Item 19 in the Cait’s Estate Sales FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the Cait’s Estate Sales FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Cait’s Estate Sales's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Cait’s Estate Sales (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 Cait’s Estate Sales franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Cait’s Estate Sales has 2 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 2 company-owned units.
Is Cait’s Estate Sales a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Cait’s Estate Sales as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 48 out of 100 (higher is better), 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.
For franchisors
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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.