FranchiseVerdict
DoubleTree by Hilton logo
FV-00785·STRONGStandard71

DoubleTree by Hilton

Lodging - Hotels & MotelsFranchising since 2015Website
Investment
$31.5M
91st pct Hotels & Mote…
Avg revenue
7th pct Hotels & Mote…
Royalty
5.0%
7th pct Hotels & Mote…
Units
372
86th pct Hotels & Mote…
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $31.5M including a $85K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
  • No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
  • Rated STRONG with a risk score of 46/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 10 loans (below the industry average).
  • 15 litigation matters disclosed in Item 3 — higher than typical. Review the summary for patterns (franchisor-initiated vs. franchisee-initiated).

Item 1 · who you're contracting with

The Franchisor

Legal entity
Hilton Franchise Holding LLC
Parent company
Hilton Domestic Operating Company Inc.
Incorporated in
Delaware
HQ
7930 Jones Branch Drive, Suite 1100, McLean, Virginia 22102
Auditor
Cherry Bekaert LLP
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$1.6B
vs $1.5B prior year

Yale framework · single-unit ROIC

Returns Analysis

Pulls Item 7 (investment) and Item 19 (revenue) from this brand's FDD into the Yale unlevered-ROIC formula. Override any input to stress-test it against your own assumptions.

The model · Yale framework

What would one DoubleTree by Hilton unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
Item 19 not disclosed — typing your own estimate
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: hospitality
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
Working capital
$
FDD reports $900K–$1.3M

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

0%

Below typical band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$83K
EBITDA margin
11.0%
Total invested
$32.6M
Payback
4735 mo
Unit-level only. A multi-unit portfolio gives up roughly 5–15% of this to shared services (corporate G&A) before reaching the ~10-unit break-even Yale describes.

Overview

About

DoubleTree franchisees operate upscale hotel properties (typically 200-400 rooms) under the Hilton brand, managing daily guest services, housekeeping, food & beverage operations, and front-office functions. They pay 5% royalties on gross room revenue and must comply with Hilton's brand standards, technology systems, and pricing protocols. Revenue generation depends heavily on occupancy rates, average daily rates (ADR), and ancillary services.

CEO
Christopher J. Nassetta
Founded
2007
FDD year
2026
States available
48

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$31.5M
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$900K – $1.3M
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$85K
Royalty
5.0%
Gross Rooms Revenue · typical 6–8%
Ad fund
4.0%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
9.0%
vs 9–13% typical

Item 19

Financial Performance

This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
372
Opened
22
Last reporting year
Closed
4
Turnover rate
1.1%
Company-owned
0
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
100%
vs corporate-owned
Net growth (yr3)
+3.6%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
+3.0%
Compounded over last 3 years
2024
372+13
Franchised units
2025
359
Franchised units
2026
361
Franchised units

Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.

Item 20 · 20 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).

AK
ME
VT
NH
MA
RI
CT
NY
NJ
PA
DE
MD
DC
WA
OR
CA
NV
ID
MT
WY
UT
CO
AZ
NM
ND
SD
NE
KS
OK
TX
MN
IA
MO
AR
LA
WI
IL
MS
TN
MI
IN
KY
AL
OH
WV
GA
VA
NC
SC
FL
HI
Registered · 20 states
Not registered

States derived from franchisee phone area codes (Item 20). Approximate — ported numbers may show the original state, not the franchisee's current location.

Government records

SBA Loan Data

Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.

Total loans
10
Loan volume
Avg loan
Default rate
0.0%
vs <3% typical · system-wide
5-yr default

FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17

Risk & Legal

46
Risk · 0-100
STRONG46 / 100

DoubleTree presents moderate-to-caution risk: lack of financial transparency (no Item 19), slow growth, active antitrust litigation, unprotected territory, and aggressive termination enforcement create profitability uncertainty and operational vulnerability.

Score breakdown · what drove the 46 / 100 rating

  1. 01MEDNo Item 19 financial disclosures (Avg Revenue and Net Income not disclosed) prevents ROI validation and creates opacity around profitability
  2. 02MINORSlow unit growth of 3.6% YoY suggests market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction in a mature 372-unit system
  3. 03HIGHMultiple active antitrust litigations alleging price-fixing and improper rate-setting software create legal/reputational risk and potential for franchisor liability
  4. 04MINORBreach of contract termination lawsuits indicate aggressive enforcement and compliance standards that may expose franchisees to termination risk
  5. 05MINORNo territory protection means new DoubleTree locations can be placed adjacent to existing franchisees, cannibalizing revenue
  6. 06MED23-year term is unusually long and locks franchisees into Hilton ecosystem with limited exit flexibility
  7. 07HIGHConsumer protection litigation regarding mandatory guest fee disclosure suggests potential brand reputation damage and guest dissatisfaction
  8. 08MED$31.4M+ investment requirement is capital-intensive with no disclosed average returns to evaluate payback period

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal

Contract & Territory Detail

Protected territory
No
Initial term
23 years
Online sales rights
Granted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
15
Right of first refusal
Yes
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
No
Jury trial waiver
Yes
Owner-operator
Optional
Governing law
New York

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
111 hrs
On-the-job training
1 hrs
POS system
OnQ
Operating tech stack

Item 20

Franchisee Contacts

Phone numbers extracted directly from this brand's FDD Item 20. After purchase, you'll also receive a list of validation questions tailored to this brand.

Franchisee contacts

28 numbers

Locked
(414) 331-••••
Hotel Investment Group, LLC, Wauwatosa Milwaukee, WI,
FL
(775) 690-••••
KH REIT I TRS, Inc., Philadelphia West, PA,
AZ
(714) 376-••••
Brixton Metro Plaza LLC, Phoneix North, AZ,
CA

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

DoubleTree by Hilton · FDD (2026) PDF

Single-page checkout · instant download · CSV export of contacts available separately above