ERA Real EstateFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A ERA Real Estate franchise requires a total initial investment of $33K – $447K, including a $25K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. The 2024 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 27.3% charge-off rate across 11 loans[1]. Verdict grade: C. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $33K – $447K
- 14th pct Real Estate
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 25th pct Real Estate
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 21st pct Real Estate
- Units
- 464
- 68th pct Real Estate
- SBA default
- 27.3%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Real Estate · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Real Estate 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
27.3% of SBA loans charged off across 11 loans, above the 16% franchise average.
Franchising since 1972. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Franchised units fell from 468 to 464 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
17 legal cases disclosed in the FDD. Read Item 3 before signing.
Bottom line
- Total investment $33K – $447K including a $25K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed. The franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Verdict C (Average) with a risk score of 68/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 27.3% across 11 loans (well above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- 17 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
- ERA Franchise Systems LLC
- Parent company
- Anywhere Real Estate Inc.
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 175 Park Avenue, Madison, New Jersey 07940
- Auditor
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $7K
- vs $6K prior year
Overview
About
ERA Real Estate franchisees operate residential real estate brokerage offices, managing agents who list and sell properties, handling client transactions, and generating revenue through buyer-broker commissions. Day-to-day operations include recruiting and training agents, managing listings, closing transactions, and remitting 6% royalties to ERA on gross revenues while navigating increasingly complex commission structures under regulatory scrutiny.
- CEO
- Alex Vidal
- Headquarters
- NJ
- Founded
- 1972
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 44
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 19 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $0 | $25K | |
| Real Estate | — | — | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $0 | $105K | |
| Yard Signs/Posts/Frames | $5K | $10K | |
| Open House Signs | $800 | $2K | |
| Exterior Signs | $700 | $20K | |
| Miscellaneous Riders | $200 | $400 | |
| Name Badges | $120 | $400 | |
| Miscellaneous | $250 | $500 | |
| Printed Materials | $5K | $8K | |
| Computer Equipment and Electronic Data System | $5K | $10K | |
| Website | $0 | $10K | |
| Multiple Listing Service (MLS) Dues | $0 | $3K | |
| Data Feed Transmission | $0 | $5K | |
| Insurance Deposits and Premiums | $500 | $4K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses During LaunchERA | $500 | $3K | |
| Legal Expenses | $0 | $4K | |
| Advertising/Public Relations, including Grand Opening Promotion | $0 | $10K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months) | $15K | $40K | |
| Total initial investment | $33K | $260K |
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
- $33K – $447K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $15K – $100K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $25K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Revenue · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.5%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.5% of gross sales |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Total fee load | 7.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
vs Real Estate averages
How ERA Real Estate Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 464
- Opened
- 31
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 25
- Turnover rate
- 5.4%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -1.3%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -1.7%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 31
- Closed (3yr)
- 25
- Terminated (3yr)
- 5
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 7
- Transfers (3yr)
- 2
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 40
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 0.4%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 2.5%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 5.3%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 26 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
- New York
- North Dakota
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- 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 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 11
- Loan volume
- $818K
- Median loan
- $60K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 27.3%
- 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)
- 72.7%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 9
- Defaults
- 3
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into ERA Real Estate's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 9 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 8 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 4-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
A 27.3% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 4 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
ERA Real Estate presents high-risk investment characteristics: a shrinking franchise network, hidden financial performance metrics, active antitrust litigation threatening the business model, unprotected territory, and documented franchisor-franchisee disputes.
Litigation (Item 3)
8 case reference(s): 0 pending, 3 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $20,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · PricewaterhouseCoopers 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: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 68 / 100 rating
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (-1.3% YoY) signals system contraction and potential franchisee dissatisfaction
- 02MEDNo disclosed average revenue or net income (missing FTC Item 19) prevents accurate ROI assessment and suggests underperformance
- 03MEDMultiple active antitrust class actions (Moehrl, Burnett, etc.) regarding commission practices create regulatory and reputational risk to franchisees
- 04MINORUnprotected territory exposes franchisees to direct competition from other ERA licensees and internal cannibalization
- 05MINORPending and resolved contract disputes with former franchisees indicate potential franchisor-franchisee relationship issues
- 06MEDHigh investment range ($33K-$447K) combined with 6% royalty on undisclosed revenues creates profitability uncertainty
- 07HIGHTrademark infringement litigation suggests brand IP vulnerabilities that could affect franchisee operations
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 | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 0 |
| Protected territory | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | New Jersey |
| Litigation count | 17 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
8 case reference(s): 0 pending, 3 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 25 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Site selection
- franchisee
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Internet Reporting System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Internet Reporting System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
109 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
ERA Real Estate · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a ERA Real Estate franchise?
The total investment to open a ERA Real Estate franchise ranges from $33K – $447K, with an initial franchise fee of $25K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do ERA Real Estate franchise owners earn?
ERA Real Estate does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is ERA Real Estate's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, ERA Real Estate has a charge-off rate of 27.3% across 11 loans, meaning 27.3% 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 ERA Real Estate franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, ERA Real Estate has 464 total units in the United States, including 468 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 31 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is ERA Real Estate a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates ERA Real Estate as a C-grade franchise with a risk score of 68 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.