Caring Transitions Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Caring Transitions is a senior-move-management and estate-liquidation franchise helping older adults downsize, relocate, and sell household belongings. Franchisees run a service business coordinating packing, moves, and online estate sales, earning fees and sale commissions.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Caring Transitions franchise requires a total initial investment of $76K – $123K, including a $59K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $297K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 20.0% charge-off rate across 10 loans[1]. 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
- $76K – $123K
- 59th pct Real Estate
- Avg gross sales
- $297K
- 4th pct Real Estate
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 21st pct Real Estate
- Units
- 423
- 77th pct Real Estate
- SBA charge-off
- 20.0%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
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 $76K – $123K including a $59K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $297K/year (median $223K).
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 56/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 20.0% across 10 loans (above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHSystem growing at 34.7% CAGR over 3 years with 423 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- C.T. Franchising Systems, Inc.
- Parent company
- Strategic Franchising
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Ray Fabik
- Incorporated in
- OH
- HQ
- 4755 Lake Forest Drive, Suite 100, Cincinnati, Ohio 45242
- Auditor
- Clark, Schaefer, Hackett & Co.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $12.4M
- vs $9.7M prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Ray Fabik
- Headquarters
- OH
- Founded
- 2006
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 45
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 53% 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 | $59K | $59K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $4K | $38K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $13K | $26K |
| Total initial investment | $76K | $123K |
Source: Caring Transitions 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
- $76K – $123K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $4K – $38K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $59K – $59K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $250 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 80% below the real estate norm.
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
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
$44K
15.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
37%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
32 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
What one unit earns on your invested capital
Model A · Single-Unit Return
Computes unlevered return on invested capital (ROIC) for a single franchise unit. The target band for an attractive franchise is 30–60% ROIC. Below that and a passive index fund likely outperforms; above that and the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses. It's the top line only. Operating costs below are category estimates. Override them to match your real lease quote, labor market, and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Caring Transitions unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
37%
Within the 30–60% "attractive franchise" band
What 25 units return when you use SBA financing
Model B · Return on Equity: Debt-Financed Acquisition
Models a 25-unit portfolio acquisition financed with an SBA 7(a) loan. Shows equity IRR (your return on cash invested), DSCR (how safely the cash flow covers debt service), and the capital stack (SBA + seller + equity breakdown).
This is the “search fund” or “entrepreneurship through acquisition” scenario: you buy an existing multi-unit operator, use leverage to amplify returns, and either operate or hire management. The 25-unit size is the typical minimum for an SBA-backed franchise portfolio acquisition to pencil as a full-time income.
What “return on equity” means here: if you put in $500K of your own cash and the business generates enough EBITDA to pay down debt and grow, your equity IRR is the annual return on that $500K, including the value created when you eventually sell. Target IRR for a search fund is typically 25–35%.
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Caring Transitions units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
49.9%
7.57× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.88×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$475K
on $2.4M purchase
Total debt
$1.9M
SBA $1.2M + senior + seller note
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
- Avg gross sales
- $297K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $223K
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- gross receipts
- Sample size
- 307
- vs category median 64 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $15K→$2.8M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $67K→$633K
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 4 / 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.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $297K/year in gross sales. Median is $223K — top performers pull the average up, so a typical unit earns less. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 3.0x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 8.0% (near the Real Estate average).
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System expanding at 34.7% CAGR over 3 years across 423 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
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 Caring Transitions Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 423
- Opened
- 65
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- Terminated
- 4
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 3
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 7.3%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +34.7%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +34.7%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 195
- Closed (3yr)
- 14
- Terminated (3yr)
- 10
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 7
- Transfers (3yr)
- 63
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 13
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 9 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.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 10
- Loan volume
- $1.9M
- Median loan
- $123K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 20.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 80.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 8
- Defaults
- 2
- Typical loan rate
- 7.4%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 14.0%
- brand above franchise avg ↑
- Jobs supported
- 109
- 5.7 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 20%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 100% went to startups / new businesses, 0% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in services for the elderly and persons with disabi, franchised businesses charge off at 14.0% vs 12.2% for independents — franchising is associated with 15% higher SBA default risk in this category.
Top lenders financing Caring Transitions franchisees
Showing 3 of 8 lenders. The full breakdown — every lender, state distribution, interest rates & risk ratings — is in the SBA Lending Report below.
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Caring Transitions's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 8 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 9 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 9-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
A 20.0% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 5 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 20.0% — 25% above the 16.0% national norm, i.e. higher lender-observed risk.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Significant governance and transparency red flags (regulatory litigation, missing financial disclosures) combined with unvalidated unit economics create elevated risk despite apparent growth momentum.
Litigation (Item 3)
Commonwealth of Virginia v. F.C. Franchising Systems (affiliate, settled 2021); CA Commissioner v. CTFSI and affiliates (personal bankruptcy non-disclosure, consent order 2021); CA Commissioner v. CTFSI and affiliates (CPA registration issue, $5,000 penalty, consent order 2021); LaBarbera v. C.T. Franchising Systems (SC Business Opportunity Act, dismissed 2025)
Largest disclosed settlement: $8,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Clark, Schaefer, Hackett & Co.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 56 / 100 verdict
- 01HIGHRegulatory litigation from Virginia and California involving undisclosed officer bankruptcies and auditor registration failures, suggesting governance and transparency issues at corporate level
- 02HIGHFive disclosed litigations including regulatory actions indicate potential compliance culture problems and ongoing legal exposure for franchisees
- 03MINORStrong unit growth (18.5% YoY to 372 units) may reflect recruitment-heavy expansion rather than unit profitability or system health
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.0% 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 | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | exclusive |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory population | 200,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | No |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 15 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 7 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 5 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Hamilton County, Ohio |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | OH |
| Litigation count | 4 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Commonwealth of Virginia v. F.C. Franchising Systems (affiliate, settled 2021); CA Commissioner v. CTFSI and affiliates (personal bankruptcy non-disclosure, consent order 2021); CA Commissioner v. CTFSI and affiliates (CPA registration issue, $5,000 penalty, consent order 2021); LaBarbera v. C.T. Franchising Systems (SC Business Opportunity Act, dismissed 2025)
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 35 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- Cincinnati, Ohio (corporate headquarters)
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 2 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisee
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- CTBids and QuickBooks Online
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: CTBids and QuickBooks Online
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
75 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Caring Transitions · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Caring Transitions franchise?
The total investment to open a Caring Transitions franchise ranges from $76K – $123K, with an initial franchise fee of $59K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Caring Transitions franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Caring Transitions FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $297K. The median is $223K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Item 19 in the Caring Transitions 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 Caring Transitions FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Caring Transitions's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Caring Transitions has a charge-off rate of 20.0% across 10 loans, meaning 20.0% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many Caring Transitions franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Caring Transitions has 423 total units in the United States, including 423 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 65 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Caring Transitions a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Caring Transitions as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 56 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.