Lawn DoctorFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Lawn Doctor franchise requires a total initial investment of $150K – $177K, including a $127K franchise fee and an ongoing 10.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.1M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 11.0% charge-off rate across 104 loans[1]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $150K – $177K
- 55th pct Home Services
- Avg gross sales
- $1.1M
- 33rd pct Home Services
- Royalty
- 10.0%
- 43rd pct Home Services
- Units
- 653
- 78th pct Home Services
- SBA default
- 11.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Home Services · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Home Services 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
Each dollar invested generates 6.9x in gross revenue, well above the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Franchising since 1967. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Bottom line
- Total investment $150K – $177K including a $127K franchise fee, 10.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.1M/year (median $659K).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 36/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 11.0% across 104 loans (above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Lawn Doctor, Inc.
- Parent company
- LD Parent, Inc.
- Predecessor
- began offering franchises under the MOSQUITO HUNTERS
- Prior franchisor entity
- Incorporated in
- NJ
- HQ
- 142 State Route 34, Holmdel, New Jersey 07733
- Auditor
- BDO USA, P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $41.0M
- vs $45.3M prior year
Overview
About
Franchisees operate lawn care and landscaping services, managing teams of technicians who treat residential and commercial properties for fertilization, weed control, and related yard maintenance. Day-to-day involves scheduling service routes, managing 2-10+ employees, maintaining equipment, customer billing/collections, and competing for customer retention in a seasonally volatile market.
- CEO
- Scott D. Frith
- Headquarters
- NJ
- Founded
- 1967
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 41
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $127K | $127K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $11K | $18K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $12K | $32K |
| Total initial investment | $150K | $177K |
Source: Lawn Doctor 2025 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$45K
4.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
25%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
3.9 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $150K – $177K
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $11K – $18K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $124K – $127K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Royalty
- 10.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 5.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 15.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 10.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $150 |
| Transfer fee | $75 |
| Total fee load | 15.0% of rev |
At 15.0% total fee load, roughly $170K per year goes to the franchisor before you pay a single operating expense.
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.1M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $659K
- Item 19 type
- net_sales
- Sample size
- 205 units
- vs category median 25 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $35K→$11.4M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency
- 6 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 349 Home Services brands
Revenue is 6.9x the investment midpoint. At typical franchise margins, this suggests a payback under 3 years.
vs Home Services averages
How Lawn Doctor Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 653
- Opened
- 24
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 1
- Turnover rate
- 0.2%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +3.7%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +4.6%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 9
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 41 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.
41
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
- 104
- Loan volume
- $19.8M
- Median loan
- $100K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 11.0%
- 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)
- 89.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 14.3%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 44
- Defaults
- 8
Vintage analysis
Lawn Doctor charge-off rate by loan vintage
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Lawn Doctor'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 15 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 25-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Lawn Doctor presents moderate-to-cautious risk due to missing profitability disclosure, anemic unit growth, and high upfront costs relative to unvalidated returns in a capital-intensive service business.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · BDO USA, P.C.
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 36 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNo Item 19 (Average Net Income) disclosed — unable to validate actual profitability against $150k-$177k investment
- 02MINORSlow unit growth of 3.7% YoY in a mature 653-unit system suggests market saturation or retention challenges
- 03MEDHigh franchise fee ($127k) represents 85% of total investment with no disclosed net income to justify ROI
- 04MEDRoyalty structure (10% of net revenues) on undisclosed profitability creates earnings opacity for franchisees
- 05MINORService-based lawn care is labor-intensive and seasonally dependent with high customer acquisition costs
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 | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Geographic |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 1.5 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | New Jersey |
| Litigation count | 0 |
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 100 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Service Assistant
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Service Assistant
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
34 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Lawn Doctor · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Lawn Doctor franchise?
The total investment to open a Lawn Doctor franchise ranges from $150K – $177K, with an initial franchise fee of $127K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Lawn Doctor franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Lawn Doctor FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.1M. The median is $659K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Lawn Doctor's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Lawn Doctor has a charge-off rate of 11.0% across 104 loans, meaning 11.0% 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 Lawn Doctor franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Lawn Doctor has 653 total units in the United States, including 624 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 24 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Lawn Doctor a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Lawn Doctor as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 36 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.