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.
- Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 64/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 15 loans (below the industry average).
- 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
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 Keller Williams unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
37%
In Yale's "attractive" band (30–60%)
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.
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 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)
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
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.
Score breakdown · what drove the 64 / 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
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
94 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Keller Williams · FDD (2025) PDF