Top Rail®Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A TOP RAIL® franchise requires a total initial investment of $161K – $297K, including a $60K franchise fee. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.2M[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $161K – $297K
- 60th pct Home Services
- Avg gross sales
- $1.2M
- 36th pct Home Services
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 167
- 65th pct Home Services
- SBA default
- N/A
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 5.3x in gross revenue, well above the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
The system grew 80% year-over-year. Fast growth means demand, but can strain support.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $161K – $297K including a $60K franchise fee.
- Average unit revenue of $1.2M/year (median $1.1M).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 44/100.
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- HFB FenceCo Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- HFB Franchisor Holdings, LLC
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Jeffrey Dudan
- Incorporated in
- NC
- HQ
- 107 Parr Drive, Huntersville, North Carolina 28078
- Auditor
- Kezos & Dunlavy
- Audited financials
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2025
- Auditor flagged doubt about continued operations. Verify against the latest FDD before deciding.
Overview
About
TOP RAIL franchisees operate specialty retail or service locations (likely railings, fencing, or outdoor home improvement products/installation based on brand name). Day-to-day activities include customer sales/consultations, order fulfillment, installation coordination, inventory management, and local marketing to drive the $1.2M average annual revenue.
- CEO
- Jeffrey Dudan
- Headquarters
- NC
- Founded
- 2022
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 27
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $60K | $60K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $30K | $45K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $72K | $193K |
| Total initial investment | $161K | $297K |
Source: TOP RAIL® 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
$134K
11.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
50%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
24 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $161K – $297K
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $30K – $45K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $55K – $74K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- blended 7% - 5% of Gross Revenue
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $599 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.2M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.1M
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 20 units
- vs category median 25
- Range (low → high)
- $159K→$5.4M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $497K→$2.2M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 349 Home Services brands
Revenue is 5.3x the investment midpoint. At typical franchise margins, this suggests a payback under 3 years.
vs Home Services averages
How Top Rail® Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 167
- Opened
- 75
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 1
- Terminated
- 1
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.6%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 1.0%
- Net growth (yr3)
- +79.6%
- Net unit change last year
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 17
- Transfer rate
- 10.2%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 0.6%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 0.6%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 17 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.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 23
- Loan volume
- $3.7M
- Median loan
- $162K
- average
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 6
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
TOP RAIL presents moderate-to-cautious risk due to undisclosed profitability metrics, aggressive growth trajectory, and lack of transparent earnings documentation despite a $1.2M average revenue baseline.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Item.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Kezos & Dunlavy⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 44 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — cannot validate profitability claims against $1.2M average revenue
- 02MINORHigh unit growth rate (79.6% YoY) suggests either rapid expansion or significant prior contraction — sustainability unclear
- 03MINORBlended royalty structure (7%-5%) is ambiguous — unclear thresholds and potential for disputes
- 04MEDInitial investment range of $161K-$297K is substantial with no disclosed average net income to justify ROI
- 05MINOR167-unit system is still relatively small — less operational maturity and support infrastructure than established franchises
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 | Qualified Households |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory population | 80,000 |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | North Carolina |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Item.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 29 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 19 hrs
- Training location
- Our Home Office (Huntersville, NC), virtually, or other location we designate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 13 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 2 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- Fencecloud / Service Minder
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Fencecloud / Service Minder
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
20 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
TOP RAIL® · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a TOP RAIL® franchise?
The total investment to open a TOP RAIL® franchise ranges from $161K – $297K, with an initial franchise fee of $60K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do TOP RAIL® franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the TOP RAIL® FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.2M. The median is $1.1M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is TOP RAIL®'s franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for TOP RAIL® (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 TOP RAIL® franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, TOP RAIL® has 167 total units in the United States, including 21 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 75 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is TOP RAIL® a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates TOP RAIL® as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 44 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.