Essential Speech & ABA Therapy Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Essential Speech & ABA Therapy is a healthcare franchise providing speech-language and Applied Behavior Analysis therapy for children with autism. Franchisees run the clinics, managing therapists, scheduling, and billing.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Essential Speech & ABA Therapy franchise requires a total initial investment of $268K – $699K, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.1M[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $268K – $699K
- 56th pct Healthcare
- Avg gross sales
- $1.1M
- Outlet subset19th pct Healthcare
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 4th pct Healthcare
- Units
- 13
- 34th pct Healthcare
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Healthcare · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Healthcare avg · 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 $268K – $699K including a $50K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $1.1M/year (median $1.2M) (reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system).
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 45/100 (higher is better).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Speech & ABA Therapy Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- none
- Incorporated in
- TX
- HQ
- 4638 Riverstone Blvd., Missouri City, Texas 77459
- Auditor
- Muhammad Zubairy, CPA PC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $404K
- vs $126K prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Nafisa Obi
- Headquarters
- TX
- Founded
- 2022
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 4
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 16% above the typical healthcare franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown21 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $50K | $50K | |
| Billing Onboarding Services Feenot refundable | $1K | $1K | |
| Travel to Training Expenses | $0 | $6K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $0 | $100K | |
| Professional Photography Fee | $500 | $1K | |
| EMR Service (3 months) | $1K | $4K | |
| Furniture and Fixtures | $20K | $100K | |
| Signage | $2K | $15K | |
| Technology | $15K | $30K | |
| Rent (3 months) | $15K | $55K | |
| Security Deposit | $10K | $25K | |
| Utilities | $5K | $10K | |
| Office Supplies | $1K | $3K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising Expenses | $6K | $6K | |
| Pre-Opening Advertising Expenditure | $5K | $15K | |
| Insurance | $3K | $5K | |
| Permits and Licenses | $3K | $5K | |
| Professional Fees | $2K | $4K | |
| Therapy Materials | $5K | $15K | |
| Contracting and Credentialing Services | $5K | $10K | |
| Total initial investment | $268K | $699K |
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
- $268K – $699K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $120K – $240K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 21.6%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $16 |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $3K |
| Inventory (initial) | $5K – $15K |
| Total fee load | 21.6% of rev |
At 21.6% total fee load, roughly $241K per year goes to the franchisor before you pay a single operating expense.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 21% below the healthcare norm.
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
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
$223K
20.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
34%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
36 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
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. The target band for an attractive franchise is 30–60% ROIC. Below that and a passive index fund likely outperforms; above that and the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses. It's the top line only. Operating costs below are category estimates. Override them to match your real lease quote, labor market, and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Essential Speech & ABA Therapy unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
34%
Within the 30–60% "attractive franchise" band
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%.
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Essential Speech & ABA Therapy units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
35.0%
4.49× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
2.33×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$5.1M
on $14.5M purchase
Total debt
$9.3M
SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note
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: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
- Avg gross sales
- $1.1M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.2M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- revenue by tenure cohort
- Sample size
- 13
- vs category median 20
- Range (low → high)
- $4K→$1.5M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- revenue_only
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 3 / 10 · above
Compared against 162 Healthcare brands
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 $1.1M/year in gross sales. Median ($1.2M) exceeds the average — distribution is bottom-heavy but most units perform well. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 2.3x. Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 21.6% — above the Healthcare average of 8.8%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +150.0% over 3 years (6 opened, 0 closed).
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 Healthcare averages
How Essential Speech & ABA Therapy Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 13
- Opened
- 6
- 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
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 3
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 77%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +150.0%
- Net unit change over 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 6
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 4 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.
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
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
High-growth healthcare franchise with undisclosed profitability, aggressive expansion, and franchisor stability concerns — suitable only for well-capitalized operators with healthcare industry experience.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $49,500
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Muhammad Zubairy, CPA PC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 45 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORNo Net Income disclosure in Item 19 — inability to assess actual profitability despite $1.1M average revenue
- 02MINORHigh investment-to-revenue ratio (initial investment of $267.5K-$698.75K against $1.1M avg revenue suggests 24-63% payback period minimum)
- 03MINORExplosive unit growth of 150% YoY with only 13 total units — unsustainable growth trajectory and market saturation risk in small territories
- 04HIGHGoing Concern flagged as False — suggests potential financial instability or disclosure issues at franchisor level
- 05MEDNo litigation disclosed but high-regulation industry (speech/ABA therapy) with potential liability exposure and state licensing requirements not addressed
- 06MINORFranchise fee of $49,500 is moderate but combined with high royalties (5%) on healthcare revenue creates cash flow pressure
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 21.6% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 3 mi |
| 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 | 25 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 1 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | Texas |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | TX |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 42 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 39 hrs
- Training location
- Franchisor headquarters (Pearland, TX), Affiliate-Owned Centers, virtually, or at franchisee location
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 9 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- CentralReach (EMR/practice management)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: CentralReach (EMR/practice management)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
12 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Essential Speech & ABA Therapy · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Essential Speech & ABA Therapy franchise?
The total investment to open a Essential Speech & ABA Therapy franchise ranges from $268K – $699K, 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 Essential Speech & ABA Therapy franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Essential Speech & ABA Therapy FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.1M. The median is $1.2M. Important context: Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Item 19 in the Essential Speech & ABA Therapy 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 Essential Speech & ABA Therapy FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Essential Speech & ABA Therapy's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Essential Speech & ABA Therapy (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 Essential Speech & ABA Therapy franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Essential Speech & ABA Therapy has 13 total units in the United States, including 10 franchised units and 3 company-owned units. 6 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Essential Speech & ABA Therapy a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Essential Speech & ABA Therapy as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 45 out of 100 (higher is better), 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.
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.