Keller WilliamsFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Keller Williams franchise requires a total initial investment of $182K – $336K, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 0.0% charge-off rate across 12 loans[1]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $182K – $336K
- 72nd pct Real Estate
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 25th pct Real Estate
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 21st pct Real Estate
- Units
- 773
- 73rd pct Real Estate
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- 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
Only 0.0% of 12 SBA loans charged off, well below the 16% franchise average.
Franchising since 1995. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Franchised units fell from 784 to 762 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
29 legal cases disclosed in the FDD. Read Item 3 before signing.
Bottom line
- Total investment $182K – $336K including a $35K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed. The franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 24/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 0.0% across 12 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- 29 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
- Keller Williams Realty, LLC
- Parent company
- KW Intermediate Co LLC
- Incorporated in
- TX
- HQ
- 1221 South Mopac Expressway, Suite 400, Austin, Texas 78746
- Auditor
- RSM US LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $497.3M
- vs $431.9M prior year
Overview
About
Keller Williams franchisees operate as real estate brokers, managing agents who list and sell residential and commercial properties within their market. Day-to-day activities include recruiting and training sales agents, managing transaction logistics, marketing listings, maintaining CRM systems, and generating commission income from agent-closed deals. Franchisees retain a percentage of agent commissions and pay 6% of their gross commission income to the franchisor.
- CEO
- Chris Czarnecki
- Headquarters
- TX
- Founded
- 1994
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 51
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $35K | $35K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $75K | $75K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $72K | $226K |
| Total initial investment | $182K | $336K |
Source: Keller Williams 2025 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
- $182K – $336K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $75K – $75K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $35K – $35K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Commission Income (GCI) · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.5%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.5% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $79 |
| Training fee | $60 |
| Transfer fee | $2K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $4K – $7K |
| Total fee load | 6.5% 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 Keller Williams Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 773
- Opened
- 9
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 18
- Turnover rate
- 2.3%
- Company-owned
- 11
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 99%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -0.5%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -2.8%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 9
- Closed (3yr)
- 9
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 5
- Transfers (3yr)
- 13
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 0
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 1.7%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 0.7%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 1.2%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 51 states 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.
51
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.
- Total loans
- 12
- Loan volume
- $5.8M
- Median loan
- $155K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- 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)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 11
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Keller Williams's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 8 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 7-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
With a 0.0% charge-off rate across 12 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Keller Williams presents HIGH RISK due to declining unit count, unresolved antitrust litigation threatening commission model viability, absence of financial performance disclosure, unprotected territory, and going concern indicators.
Litigation (Item 3)
8 case reference(s): 0 pending, 20 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $5,359
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · RSM US 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 24 / 100 rating
- 01MEDMultiple active class action antitrust lawsuits (Moehrl, Sitzer) alleging commission inflation conspiracy create existential legal and reputational risk to the franchise system
- 02HIGHSystem declining 0.5% YoY with 773 units suggests erosion of franchisee confidence and potential accelerating departures if litigation outcomes are unfavorable
- 03MEDNo disclosed average revenue or net income (missing Item 19 equivalent) prevents validation of the $182k–$335k investment ROI and profitability claims
- 04MED6% royalty on Gross Commission Income is high relative to industry peers and creates ongoing cash drain even during market downturns or individual underperformance
- 05MINORUnprotected territory enables franchisor to recruit competing franchisees in same market, undercutting individual franchisee profitability and customer acquisition
- 06HIGHGoing Concern = False status indicates franchisor financial instability or auditor concerns about long-term viability, threatening support infrastructure and system cohesion
- 07HIGH5-year term with no renewal guarantees combined with litigation risk creates uncertainty in franchisee's ability to recoup initial investment
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 | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Territory type | Awarded Area |
| Protected territory | No |
| Online sales rights | 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 | 14 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 4 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Texas |
| Litigation count | 29 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
8 case reference(s): 0 pending, 20 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 27 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and classroom
- POS system
- CommandMC
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: CommandMC
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
94 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Keller Williams · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Keller Williams franchise?
The total investment to open a Keller Williams franchise ranges from $182K – $336K, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Keller Williams franchise owners earn?
Keller Williams 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 Keller Williams's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Keller Williams has a charge-off rate of 0.0% across 12 loans, meaning 0.0% 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 Keller Williams franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Keller Williams has 773 total units in the United States, including 784 franchised units and 11 company-owned units. 9 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Keller Williams a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Keller Williams as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 24 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.