Bottom line
- Total investment $25.5M – $37.4M including a $100K franchise fee, 5.5% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Rated STRONG with a risk score of 47/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 16 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
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 Hilton Garden Inn unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
0%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
Franchisees operate upscale, extended-stay hotel properties (typically 120-150 rooms) under Hilton's brand standards, managing daily guest services, housekeeping, food & beverage operations, and revenue optimization. They handle all P&L responsibility while paying 5.5% royalties on gross room revenue to Hilton, plus marketing fees and technology assessments for the proprietary revenue management system currently subject to antitrust scrutiny.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
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
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 14 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 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.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Hilton Garden Inn presents cautionary risk: massive capital outlay with no disclosed unit economics, minimal growth in mature system, active litigation on core operational practices, and complete absence of financial transparency required for informed investment decision.
Score breakdown · what drove the 47 / 100 rating
- 01MEDMassive capital requirement ($25.5M-$37.4M) with no disclosed average revenue or net income to validate ROI projectability
- 02MINORStagnant unit growth (1.2% YoY) suggests market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction in mature 759-unit system
- 03HIGHMultiple active litigation matters including antitrust allegations over revenue management software and consumer protection lawsuits regarding mandatory fee disclosure transparency
- 04MINORNo territorial protection combined with unprotected revenue management practices creates competitive vulnerability within own system
- 05MEDItem 19 financial performance representations not disclosed, preventing independent validation of claimed profitability across unit portfolio
- 06MINOR5.5% royalty on gross rooms revenue (not net) creates fixed burden during occupancy downturns without proportional cost relief
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
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
26 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Hilton Garden Inn · FDD (2026) PDF