Commercial Investors Group Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $123K – $314K
- Disclosed sales
- $5.2M
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Commercial Investors Group is a commercial real estate franchise focused on investment brokerage and property transactions. Franchisees run local operations, sourcing deals and managing investor and client relationships.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Commercial Investors Group franchise requires a total initial investment of $123K – $314K, including a $50K – $150K franchise fee and an ongoing 1.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2022 FDD, average unit revenue was $5.2M[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: D (Below average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: 2022 filing · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: high - figures are from a filing two or more years old
Evidence: partial✓ 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 5 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $123K – $314K
- 73rd pct Real Estate
- Avg gross sales
- $5.2M
- Company-owned only1 outlet
- Royalty
- 1.0%
- 0th pct Real Estate
- Units
- 3
- 7th pct Real Estate
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Real Estate · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Real Estate 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 $123K – $314K including a $50K franchise fee, 1.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $5.2M/year (company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance).
- RISKVerdict D (Below average), verdict score 36/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHPositive: net +2 franchised outlets in the latest year (2 opened, 0 closed) (Item 20).
- FLAGRevenue data based on only 1 outlet. Treat as directional, not definitive. Ask franchisees directly for current unit economics.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- CIG Franchise Systems, LLC
- CEO title
- Managing Member
- Mike Sowers
- Incorporated in
- WY
- HQ
- 2738 Winnetka Avenue N, #201, New Hope, MN 55427
- Auditor
- Omar Alnuaimi, CPA (Naperville, IL)
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $158K
- Most recent fiscal year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Mike Sowers
- Headquarters
- MN
- Founded
- 2021
- FDD year
- 2022
- States available
- 2
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 64% above the typical real estate franchise.
Source: FDD 2022 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2022 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $25K | $75K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $48K | $189K |
| Total initial investment | $123K | $314K |
Source: Commercial Investors Group 2022 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
- $123K – $314K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $75K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $150K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Royalty
- 1.0%
- Set by a formula · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- Marketing Fund contribution: 1.5% of the franchise fee pe…
- Total fee load
- 2.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $1K |
| Training fee | $10K |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Total fee load | 2.5% of rev |
A 2.5% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 1254% above the real estate norm.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single outlet - not a system average
Source: FDD 2022 · 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 Commercial Investors Group 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 ad fund 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
$268K
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 Commercial Investors Group 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 ad fund 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 ad fund 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: 2022 FDD
Financial Performance
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single outlet - not a system average
- Avg gross sales
- $5.2M
- Per unit, per year
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 sales
- Sample size
- 1 outlet
- vs category median 53 · small
- Reporting year
- 2021
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2022
- Disclosed in the 2022 filing, covering 2021
- Transparency
- 6 / 10
- vs category median 0 / 10 · above
Compared against 101 Real Estate brands
Revenue is 23.8x 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 $5.2M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 23.8x. Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 2.5% — below the Real Estate median of 7.5%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 6/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence. Sample size of 1 outlet — treat as directional only.
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 medians
How Commercial Investors Group Compares
Category median of published Real Estate 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 2022 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 3
- Opened
- 2
- 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
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 67%
- vs corporate-owned
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Signed, not yet open
- 0
- 0.00 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 4
- 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
A micro-scale franchise system with unverified financials, questionable franchisor viability despite franchisee profitability claims, and complex royalty mechanics that warrant intensive due diligence before investment.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Omar Alnuaimi, CPA (Naperville, IL)
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Single audited fiscal year (year ended December 31, 2021); franchisor formed July 5, 2021. Total Revenue = Franchise Fees $153,644 + Book Sales & Royalties Income $4,642. Other Income $9,054 reported separately below operating income.
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 36 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDOnly 3 units in system with unknown growth trajectory indicates extremely limited track record and scale
- 02MINORNo franchise fee ($0) may indicate franchisor relies heavily on transaction-based royalties, creating misaligned incentives
- 03MINORMassive gap between claimed franchisee net income ($3.76M) and franchisor viability raises questions about business model sustainability and data verification
- 04MINORProtected territory with only 3 units suggests either early-stage concept or failed expansion strategy
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 2.5% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2022 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 7 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 7 years |
| Territory type | Exclusive territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Sheridan, Wyoming (where franchisor headquarters is located) |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | WY |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 16 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- Our Office, New Hope, MN; Virtual via Zoom; franchisee location
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 3 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee (subject to franchisor approval)
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- CRETools
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: CRETools
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Commercial Investors Group franchise?
The total investment to open a Commercial Investors Group franchise ranges from $123K – $314K, 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 Commercial Investors Group franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Commercial Investors Group FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $5.2M. Important context: Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance; Based on a single outlet - not a system average. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Commercial Investors Group?
Commercial Investors Group is franchised by CIG Franchise Systems, LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2022 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Commercial Investors Group 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 Commercial Investors Group FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Commercial Investors Group's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Commercial Investors Group (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 Commercial Investors Group franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Commercial Investors Group has 3 total units in the United States, including 2 franchised units and 1 company-owned units. 2 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Commercial Investors Group a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Commercial Investors Group as a D-grade franchise with a verdict score of 36 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
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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.