EzLane.com Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
EzLane is an automotive franchise operating a used-vehicle auto auction platform connecting dealers and buyers. Franchisees run local operations, managing auctions, vehicle listings, and accounts.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A EzLane.com franchise requires a total initial investment of $118K – $249K, including a $75K franchise fee and an ongoing 15.0% royalty[2]. The 2023 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). FranchiseVerdict grade: D (Below average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2023 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $118K – $249K
- 17th pct Automotive
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Company-owned only1 outlet
- Royalty
- 15.0%
- 43rd pct Automotive
- Units
- 1
- 1st pct Automotive
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Automotive · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Automotive 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 $118K – $249K including a $75K franchise fee, 15.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAudited statement is a Balance Sheet only as of January 5, 2023; franchisor had not been in business three years and generated no revenue as of the balance sheet date.
- RISKVerdict D (Below average), verdict score 35/100 (higher is better).
- DATAItem 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- EzLane Auto Auctions Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Polen's BuyBid Auto Exchange, Inc.
- CEO title
- CEO
- Phillip Steven Polen
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- FL
- HQ
- 4100 Corporate Square #160, Naples, FL 34104
- Auditor
- Metwally CPA PLLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- Most recent fiscal year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Phillip Steven Polen
- Headquarters
- FL
- Founded
- 2021
- FDD year
- 2023
- States available
- 1
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 80% below the typical automotive franchise.
Source: FDD 2023 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2023 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $75K | $75K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $10K | $60K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $33K | $114K |
| Total initial investment | $118K | $249K |
Source: EzLane.com 2023 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
- $118K – $249K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $10K – $60K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $75K – $75K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 15.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 25.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 15.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $10 |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Total fee load | 25.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2023 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
EzLane.com did not disclose financial performance in FDD Item 19. The ROIC and return models require Item 19 revenue. Without it all inputs are estimates. You can still run the calculator with your own assumptions by entering an expected revenue figure.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one EzLane.com 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
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: 2023 FDD
Financial Performance
Audited statement is a Balance Sheet only as of January 5, 2023; franchisor had not been in business three years and generated no revenue as of the balance sheet date.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single outlet - not a system average
- Item 19 type
- gross revenue
- Sample size
- 1 outlet
- vs category median 70 · small
- Reporting year
- 2022
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2023
- Disclosed in the 2023 filing, covering 2022
- Transparency
- 6 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 167 Automotive brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 25.0% — above the Automotive average of 9.3%.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands.
Multi-unit rate
Only 1% of franchisees own multiple units. Could indicate challenging economics or a young system where operators haven't had time to expand.
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 Automotive averages
How EzLane.com Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2023 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1
- Opened
- 0
- 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
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 1.0%
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 5
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 1 state 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.
1
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
Extremely limited franchise validation (1 unit only), unclear franchisor financial health, missing performance data, and high royalty burden create significant execution and viability risk.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Metwally CPA PLLC
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 35 / 100 verdict
- 01MINOROnly 1 unit in system with unknown growth trajectory—no franchise system scale or proven replicability
- 02HIGHGoing Concern = False indicates potential financial instability or restructuring risk at franchisor level
- 03MINOR15% royalty on adjusted gross revenues is high relative to single-unit performance and creates cash flow pressure
- 04MINORNo Item 19 financial performance representations—cannot validate if $801k avg revenue and $600k net income are achievable or current
- 05MINORProtected territory provided but meaningless without proven system demand or franchisor growth plans
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 25.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2023 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Territory type | exclusive |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory population | 30,000 |
| 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 | 250 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Florida |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | FL |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 15 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 18 hrs
- Training location
- Illinois (affiliate outlet) or designated location
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 1 mo
- From signing to launch
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
1 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
EzLane.com · FDD (2023) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a EzLane.com franchise?
The total investment to open a EzLane.com franchise ranges from $118K – $249K, with an initial franchise fee of $75K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do EzLane.com franchise owners earn?
EzLane.com 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 Item 19 in the EzLane.com 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 EzLane.com FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is EzLane.com's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for EzLane.com (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 EzLane.com franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, EzLane.com has 1 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 1 company-owned units.
Is EzLane.com a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates EzLane.com as a D-grade franchise with a verdict score of 35 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.