Happier at Home Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $101K – $143K
- Disclosed sales
- $617K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Under 10 loans (5)
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Happier at Home is a senior care franchise providing non-medical in-home care, companionship, and household help. Franchisees run local agencies, recruiting caregivers and managing scheduling, client care, and billing.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Happier at Home franchise requires a total initial investment of $101K – $143K, including a $49K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $617K[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low - issued within the last 12 months
Evidence: strong✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✗ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored7 of 8 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing; the rest are marked “Not cited” beside the figure.
Overview
- Investment
- $101K – $143K
- 51st pct Senior Care
- Avg gross sales
- $617K
- 8th pct Senior Care
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 5th pct Senior Care
- Units
- 19
- 45th pct Senior Care
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Senior Care · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Senior Care median · 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 $101K – $143K including a $49K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $617K/year (median $593K).
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 65/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHFlat: no net change in franchised outlets in the latest year (3 opened, 3 closed); 13 signed but not yet open (Item 20).
- FLAG3 units terminated last reporting year (15.8% of the system). Ask existing franchisees why.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Happier at Home, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- Bayview MSR Opportunity Master Fund, L.P.
- CEO title
- President, Chief Executive Officer and Treasurer
- Deborah Bernacki
- Incorporated in
- NY
- HQ
- 31 Oak Meadow Trail, Pittsford, NY 14534
- Auditor
- Amidon & Villeneuve, CPA's P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $1.2M
- vs $931K prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- of ours that operated a business similar to the one you will operate
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Deborah Bernacki
- Headquarters
- NY
- Founded
- 2004
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 12
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 11% below the typical senior care franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $49K | $49K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $20K | $35K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $32K | $59K |
| Total initial investment | $101K | $143K |
Source: Happier at Home 2026 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
- $101K – $143K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $35K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $49K – $49K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Set by a formula · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% |
| Technology fee | $425 |
| Transfer fee | $25K |
| Renewal fee | $12K |
| Inventory (initial) | $200 – $600 |
| Total fee load | 6.0% of rev |
A 6.0% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 42% below the senior care norm.
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
Single-unit · not modelled
Returns at a glance
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit, and the operating costs that turn one into the other are in no filing. We publish no modelled return for Happier at Home until someone supplies them — yours, in the models below.
—
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
Total invested capital · disclosed
$150K
Item 7 initial investment plus working capital, as filed — the one figure here that needs no assumption.
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, read against the 30–60% reference band · Yale SOM, Post-MBA Path Exhibit 2 (2023). Below that band a passive index fund likely outperforms; above it the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses, and it is the top line only — gross sales are not profit. No FDD discloses the operating costs that turn one into the other, so those fields start empty and nothing is modelled until you supply them from your own lease quote, labor market and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Happier at Home unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
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%.
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
A 25-unit return is built on a per-unit EBITDA. Fill in the operating costs in Model A above and this model runs on that figure, or take the whole scenario to the full ROI workbench, where the portfolio and LBO models accept your own per-unit economics directly.
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: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $617K
- Per unit/yr · from the Item 19 franchised-cohort breakdown (no single system-wide average disclosed)
- Median gross sales
- $593K
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- gross sales
- Sample size
- 13 outlets
- vs category median 22
- Range (low → high)
- $225K→$988KCited, not corroborated — printed on page 32 of the 2026 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- The FDD edition these figures were read from
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 79 Senior Care brands
Revenue is 5.0x the investment midpoint. At typical franchise margins, this suggests a payback under 3 years.
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 $617K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 5.0x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 6.0% (near the Senior Care median).
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
System expanding at 171.4% CAGR over 3 years across 19 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
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 Senior Care medians
How Happier at Home Compares
Category median of published Senior Care brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 19
- Opened
- 3
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- Terminated
- 3
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 15.8%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +171.4%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +171.4%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 3
- Signed, not yet open
- 13
- 0.68 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 9
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Ceased ops
- 21.1%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 11 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
- Indiana
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
18 current owners across 11 states.
- NY 3
- AL 2
- CA 2
- IA 2
- NC 2
- TX 2
- ID 1
- LA 1
- MI 1
- OH 1
- WA 1
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20; 7 entries carry no state. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
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 loan disclosures. This brand has only 5 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 5
- Loan volume
- $566K
- Median loan
- $150K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- Under 10 loans (5)
- Insufficient SBA coverage: 5 loans, rate hidden below 10
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- Under 10 loans (5)
- 5-yr charge-off
- Under 10 loans (5)
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 2
- Defaults
- N/A
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
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
Early-stage, lightly-regulated franchise system with recent state enforcement action, undisclosed profitability metrics, and minimal unit count raises substantial concerns about franchisor compliance, franchisee ROI, and system sustainability.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
State of Washington Consent Order (effective July 30, 2025): offered and sold franchise in Washington without effective registration; agreed to cease and desist and pay $1,000 investigative costs.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Amidon & Villeneuve, CPA's P.C.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
FY2025 audited Statement of Operations: Franchise Fee $395,556 + Royalty Income $708,805 + Miscellaneous Income $73,255 = Total Income $1,177,616 (vs $931,450 in 2024). Audited by Amidon & Villeneuve, CPA's P.C., opinion dated Feb 4, 2026.
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 65 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORRecent regulatory enforcement action in Washington (July 2025) for unlicensed franchise sales indicates compliance issues and potential systemic problems in franchise offering practices
- 02MEDOnly 19 franchised units with unknown/undisclosed growth trajectory raises questions about system viability and market acceptance
- 03MINORHigh initial investment ($101K-$143K) combined with 5% royalty + minimum royalty structure creates significant financial pressure on franchisees
- 04MINOR10-year term is lengthy given the young/unproven franchise system size and lack of transparent unit growth data
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 6.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · 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 | 4 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory population | 300,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 15 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 1 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 1 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | Rochester, New York (Monroe County) |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | NY |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
State of Washington Consent Order (effective July 30, 2025): offered and sold franchise in Washington without effective registration; agreed to cease and desist and pay $1,000 investigative costs.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 44 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 64 hrs
- Training location
- Virtual
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 1 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- eRSP
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: eRSP
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
25 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Happier at Home franchise?
The total investment to open a Happier at Home franchise ranges from $101K – $143K, with an initial franchise fee of $49K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Happier at Home franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Happier at Home FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $617K. The median is $593K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Happier at Home?
Happier at Home is franchised by Happier at Home, LLC. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is Bayview MSR Opportunity Master Fund, L.P.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Happier at Home 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 Happier at Home FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Happier at Home's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Happier at Home (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 Happier at Home franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Happier at Home has 19 total units in the United States, including 19 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 3 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Happier at Home a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Happier at Home as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 65 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Happier at Home, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
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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.