Crawl Space NinjaFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Crawl Space Ninja franchise requires a total initial investment of $211K – $457K, including a $59K franchise fee. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.1M[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $211K – $457K
- 70th pct Home Services
- Avg gross sales
- $1.1M
- 34th pct Home Services
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 22
- 27th pct Home Services
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Home Services · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Home Services 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
Each dollar invested generates 3.4x in gross revenue, well above the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Franchised units fell from 21 to 16 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
126% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line). Above the 20% threshold most investors target.
Bottom line
- Total investment $211K – $457K including a $59K franchise fee.
- Average unit revenue of $1.1M/year (median $1.1M), with an estimated 126% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 18/100.
- System contracting at -23.8% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven (consolidation) or franchisee-driven (economics).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Crawlspace Ninja Franchising LLC
- Parent company
- HTI Intermediate, LLC
- Incorporated in
- TN
- HQ
- 6011 Ridan Drive, Knoxville, TN 37909
- Auditor
- A&G, LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $3.0M
- vs $3.7M prior year
Affiliated brands
- Midwest Diversified Technologies U
- Crawlspace Ninja IP
- IAQS Operations
- Indoor Air Quality Specialists
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Crawl Space Ninja franchisees provide crawl space encapsulation, moisture control, insulation, and structural repair services to residential and commercial customers. Daily operations involve customer consultations, job estimation, crew management, and hands-on installation work in confined spaces. The business model relies on local marketing, repeat customers, and referral generation to maintain revenue.
- CEO
- Michael Church
- Headquarters
- TN
- Founded
- 2018
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 5
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 14 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $59K | $59K | |
| Design and Architectural Fees | $0 | $3K | |
| Construction, Leasehold Improvements | $0 | $20K | |
| Furniture and Fixtures | $3K | $10K | |
| Equipment (Including Vehicle) | $60K | $223K | |
| Technology Hardware/Software, Office Equipment, and Supplies | $4K | $8K | |
| Initial Inventory Package | $20K | $30K | |
| Utility and Security Deposits | $500 | $2K | |
| Insurance Deposits and Premiums | $2K | $8K | |
| Pre-opening Travel and Training Expense | $5K | $10K | |
| Initial Launch Marketing | $15K | $15K | |
| Professional Fees | $1K | $8K | |
| Business Permits and Licenses | $2K | $3K | |
| Additional Operating Funds - 3 Months | $40K | $60K | |
| Total initial investment | $211K | $457K |
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
$137K
12.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
36%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
34 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $211K – $457K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $40K – $60K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $59K – $59K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- the greater of 7% of Gross Revenue, or the Minimum Perfor…
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
- Payback period
- 0.8 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $121 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.1M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.1M
- Avg p&l bottom line
- $421K
- Reported as P&L Bottom Line in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 126.1%
- Based on P&L Bottom Line / investment midpoint
- Item 19 type
- Historical Financial Performance
- Sample size
- 16 units
- vs category median 25
- Range (low → high)
- $233K→$3.3M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $520K→$1.9M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 10 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 349 Home Services brands
vs Home Services averages
How Crawl Space Ninja Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 22
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 2
- Turnover rate
- 9.1%
- Company-owned
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 91%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -11.1%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -23.8%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 2
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 17 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
- California
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- New York
- North Dakota
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Virginia
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 5 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 5
- Loan volume
- $676K
- Median loan
- $150K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- 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)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 3
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Declining franchise system with opaque financial representations and aggressive royalty structure creates material risk despite solid unit-level economics.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · A&G, LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 18 / 100 rating
- 01MEDUnit count declined 11.1% YoY (22 units) indicating system contraction and potential franchisee struggles
- 02MEDNo Item 19 (Financial Performance Representations) disclosed — cannot verify if average revenue/net income figures are achievable for typical franchisees
- 03MINORHigh initial investment ($210k-$457k) paired with declining unit count suggests ROI challenges and franchisee attrition
- 04MINORMinimum Performance Requirement royalty structure is vague — unclear what threshold triggers this and how it impacts cash flow
- 05MINOR5-year term is relatively short; rebuilding customer base takes time in service businesses, creating renewal risk
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 | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Zip Codes/Geographic |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Tennessee |
| Litigation count | 0 |
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 110 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 72 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- POS system
- MarketSharp
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: MarketSharp
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
19 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Crawl Space Ninja · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Crawl Space Ninja franchise?
The total investment to open a Crawl Space Ninja franchise ranges from $211K – $457K, 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 Crawl Space Ninja franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Crawl Space Ninja FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.1M. The median is $1.1M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Crawl Space Ninja's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Crawl Space Ninja (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 Crawl Space Ninja franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Crawl Space Ninja has 22 total units in the United States, including 21 franchised units and 2 company-owned units.
Is Crawl Space Ninja a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Crawl Space Ninja as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 18 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.