Christian Brothers Automotive Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $515K – $650K
- Disclosed sales
- $2.9M
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- 0.0%
- on 295 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Christian Brothers Automotive is an automotive-repair franchise providing full-service maintenance and repair with a strong customer-experience focus. Franchisees run a service center managing technicians, diagnostics, and a service-advisor front office.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Christian Brothers Automotive franchise requires a total initial investment of $515K – $650K, including a $85K franchise fee. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $2.9M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 0.0% charge-off rate across 295 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low - issued within the last 12 months
Evidence: strong✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✓ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored5 of 7 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing; the rest are marked “Not cited” beside the figure.
Overview
- Investment
- $515K – $650K
- 48th pct Automotive
- Avg gross sales
- $2.9M
- Net sales20th pct Automotive
- Royalty
- Set by a formula
- Units
- 326
- 43rd pct Automotive
- SBA charge-off
- 0.0%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Automotive · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Automotive median · 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 $515K – $650K including a $85K franchise fee.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $2.9M/year (median $2.7M). Note: this is gross profit, not take-home income.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 100/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 0.0% across 295 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHPositive: net +24 franchised outlets in the latest year (24 opened, 0 closed); 97 signed but not yet open (Item 20).
- GROWTHSystem growing at 16.4% CAGR over 3 years with 326 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Christian Brothers Automotive Corporation
- CEO title
- President and Chief Executive Officer
- Don Carr
- Incorporated in
- Texas
- HQ
- 17725 Katy Freeway, Houston, Texas 77094
- Auditor
- Baker Tilly US, LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $179.4M
- vs $151.9M prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Don Carr
- Headquarters
- Texas
- Founded
- 1982
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 30
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 58% above the typical automotive franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown14 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $85K | $85K | |
| Real Estate and Improvements | — | — | |
| Equipment, Furniture and Software | $270K | $300K | |
| Shuttle Vehicle | $30K | $50K | |
| Shuttle Vehicle Wrap | $2K | $3K | |
| Inventory | $11K | $12K | |
| Security Deposits | $5K | $5K | |
| Signs | — | — | |
| Insurance & Business License | $15K | $60K | |
| Marketing/Advertising | $35K | $40K | |
| New Store Opening Marketing/Advertising | $20K | $30K | |
| Pre-Opening Training Travel/Salary | $8K | $10K | |
| Other Payments | $5K | $15K | |
| Additional Funds During Initial 3 Months | $30K | $40K | |
| Total initial investment | $515K | $650K |
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.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $515K – $650K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $30K – $40K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $85K – $85K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 50% of monthly "Split Profits" (revenue minus Shared Expe…
- Ad fund
- 0.4%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 3.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty (flat) | 50% of Split Profits — Split Profits = all revenues minus GAAP-approved expense items (including rent, debt service, and up to $60,000 combined owner/spouse salary) |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.4% |
| Technology fee | $200 |
| Transfer fee | $30K |
| Renewal fee | $14K |
| Inventory (initial) | $11K – $12K |
| Total fee load | 3.0% of rev |
A 3.0% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 179% above the automotive norm.
Reported as net sales, not gross sales
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
Single-unit · not modelled
Returns at a glance
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit, and the operating costs that turn one into the other are in no filing. We publish no modelled return for Christian Brothers Automotive until someone supplies them — yours, in the models below.
—
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for royalty rate, COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
Total invested capital · disclosed
$618K
Item 7 initial investment plus working capital, as filed — the one figure here that needs no assumption.
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, read against the 30–60% reference band · Yale SOM, Post-MBA Path Exhibit 2 (2023). Below that band a passive index fund likely outperforms; above it the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses, and it is the top line only — gross sales are not profit. No FDD discloses the operating costs that turn one into the other, so those fields start empty and nothing is modelled until you supply them from your own lease quote, labor market and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Christian Brothers Automotive unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for royalty rate, COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
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%.
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for royalty rate, COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
A 25-unit return is built on a per-unit EBITDA. Fill in the operating costs in Model A above and this model runs on that figure, or take the whole scenario to the full ROI workbench, where the portfolio and LBO models accept your own per-unit economics directly.
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
Reported as net sales, not gross sales
- Avg gross sales
- $2.9M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $2.7M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- range/tiered sales & profitability schedules (Net Sales ranges, age-cohort comparison, Total Owner Benefit top/bottom 20%)
- Sample size
- 302 outlets
- vs category median 70 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $939K→$6.5MNot cited — published from our reading of the franchisor's disclosure document; the page it is printed on has not been located.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 9 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 167 Automotive brands
Revenue is 4.9x the investment midpoint. At typical franchise margins, this suggests a payback under 3 years.
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 $2.9M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 4.9x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 3.0% — below the Automotive median of 8.0%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 9/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System expanding at 16.4% CAGR over 3 years across 326 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
Multi-unit rate
Only 13% of franchisees own multiple units. Could indicate challenging economics or a young system where operators haven't had time to expand.
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 Automotive medians
How Christian Brothers Automotive Compares
Category median of published Automotive brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 326
- Opened
- 24
- 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
- N/A
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 12.5%
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +16.4%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +16.4%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 13
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 97
- 0.30 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 28
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 8 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.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
18 current owners across 8 states.
- AL 8
- FL 2
- LA 2
- MI 2
- AR 1
- AZ 1
- GA 1
- OH 1
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 295
- Loan volume
- $110.6M
- Median loan
- $325K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- on 295 loans · 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)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 34
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 5.5%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 23.2%
- brand beats franchise avg ↓
- Jobs supported
- 1,804
- 1.6 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 20%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 75% went to startups / new businesses, 25% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in general automotive repair, franchised businesses charge off at 23.2% vs 13.9% for independents — franchising is associated with 67% higher SBA default risk in this category.
Vintage analysis
Christian Brothers Automotive charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Christian Brothers Automotive franchisees
Showing 3 of 34 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.
Lender network · 7(a) + 504
SBA Lending Report
Full lending analysis for Christian Brothers Automotive from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 0.0%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 76%
- Avg interest rate
- 5.46%
- Lender concentration
- 20.0%
- Job velocity
- 1.6 per $100K
- Startup risk premium
- 0.0pp
- NAICS benchmark
- 23.2%
- NAICS 811111
- Jobs supported
- 1,804
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 20% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wells Fargo Bank National Association | 59 | $23.0M | 0.0% |
| 2 | Stellar Bank | 53 | $15.3M | 0.0% |
| 3 | Bank of America, National Association | 53 | $20.1M | 0.0% |
| 4 | SouthState Bank, National Association | 34 | $14.7M | 0.0% |
| 5 | First Bank | 16 | $7.1M | 0.0% |
| 6 | Third Coast Bank | 13 | $5.0M | 0.0% |
| 7 | Stearns Bank National Association | 12 | $3.5M | 0.0% |
| 8 | JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association | 10 | $3.3M | 0.0% |
| 9 | Texas First Bank | 6 | $1.4M | 0.0% |
| 10 | Regions Bank | 5 | $1.9M | 0.0% |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| TXTexas | 116 | 0 | 0.0% |
| COColorado | 32 | 0 | 0.0% |
| GAGeorgia | 20 | 0 | 0.0% |
| OKOklahoma | 15 | 0 | 0.0% |
| TNTennessee | 14 | 0 | 0.0% |
| AZArizona | 12 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FLFlorida | 12 | 0 | 0.0% |
| NCNorth Carolina | 9 | 0 | 0.0% |
| MOMissouri | 7 | 0 | 0.0% |
| KSKansas | 5 | 0 | 0.0% |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
With a 0.0% charge-off rate across 295 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 0.0% — 100% below the 16.0% national norm, i.e. lower 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
Christian Brothers Automotive presents elevated risk due to an extractive 50% royalty structure, pending litigation, undocumented financial claims, and anemic unit growth that contradicts profitability claims.
Why this reads harsher than the A grade: the grade weighs financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency across the whole filing, while this summary lists individual flags without that weighting. The flags are worth checking with current owners; neither is investment advice.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
Pending: Evan Domanic v. CBAC (S.D. Tex.), Section 1981/Texas DTPA claim over declined franchise purchase; summary judgment granted for CBAC, plaintiff appealing to 5th Circuit. Prior: CBAC v. Seek 1st LLC (AAA arbitration) over secret competing business by a franchisee; arbitration panel upheld CBAC's termination and CBAC paid off franchisee's loan and took over the location.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Baker Tilly US, LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
ⓘ These are the parent company's consolidated financials (the parent guarantees the franchisor), not this brand's standalone results — the figure reflects the whole corporate group, not this brand alone.
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 100 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORUnusually high royalty structure (50% of split profits) is unsustainable and creates misaligned incentives between franchisor and franchisee
- 02HIGHTwo active litigations including material arbitration over competing business violation suggests enforcement issues and franchise relationship deterioration
- 03MINORSlow unit growth (7.9% YoY) with 302 units indicates market saturation or franchisee struggles despite claimed $314k avg net income
- 04MED15-year term length locks franchisee into exploitative royalty structure with limited exit options
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 3.0% 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 | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 3 |
| Territory type | Exclusive territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory radius | 3 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 3 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 15 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Houston, Texas |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Texas |
| Litigation count | 2 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Pending: Evan Domanic v. CBAC (S.D. Tex.), Section 1981/Texas DTPA claim over declined franchise purchase; summary judgment granted for CBAC, plaintiff appealing to 5th Circuit. Prior: CBAC v. Seek 1st LLC (AAA arbitration) over secret competing business by a franchisee; arbitration panel upheld CBAC's termination and CBAC paid off franchisee's loan and took over the location.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 65 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 345 hrs
- Training location
- CBAC Headquarters in Houston, Texas plus in-field CTL/CFT franchise locations
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 33 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisor
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Tekmetric
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Tekmetric
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
18 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Christian Brothers Automotive franchise?
The total investment to open a Christian Brothers Automotive franchise ranges from $515K – $650K, with an initial franchise fee of $85K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Christian Brothers Automotive franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Christian Brothers Automotive FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $2.9M. The median is $2.7M. Important context: Reported as net sales, not gross sales. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Christian Brothers Automotive?
Christian Brothers Automotive is franchised by Christian Brothers Automotive Corporation. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Christian Brothers Automotive 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 Christian Brothers Automotive FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Christian Brothers Automotive's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Christian Brothers Automotive has a charge-off rate of 0.0% across 295 loans, meaning 0.0% 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 Christian Brothers Automotive franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Christian Brothers Automotive has 326 total units in the United States, including 326 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 24 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Christian Brothers Automotive a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Christian Brothers Automotive as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 100 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Christian Brothers Automotive, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
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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.