Undergraduate by Hilton
Bottom line
- Total investment $10.6M – $36.6M including a $100K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Rated AVOID with a risk score of 85/100.
- 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 Undergraduate by Hilton unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
0%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
Franchisees operate extended-stay hotel properties branded under Hilton's budget segment, managing day-to-day guest services, housekeeping, front desk operations, and maintenance while paying Hilton 5% royalties on gross room revenue. Franchisees are responsible for all capital investment, staffing, local marketing, and compliance with Hilton standards across a 22-year agreement.
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 · 13 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.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Undergraduate by Hilton presents extreme risk: zero operating units, going concern status, active antitrust litigation, prior regulatory settlements, franchisor collection actions, and no financial performance data — positioning this as an unproven concept with a financially compromised parent company.
Score breakdown · what drove the 85 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHGoing concern status is FALSE — indicates potential solvency/viability crisis at franchisor level
- 02MINORZero operating units with unknown growth trajectory suggests brand has not launched or has failed to attract franchisees
- 03HIGHFive pending litigation actions including class action antitrust suit creates systemic legal and reputational risk
- 04MINORPrior settlements with Texas and Nebraska over mandatory fee disclosure suggests regulatory compliance issues and consumer trust problems
- 05MINORFranchisor initiated four collection suits in 2025 — indicates franchisee default/payment failures and cash flow stress
- 06MEDNo average revenue or net income disclosure (missing Item 19) prevents ROI validation and suggests poor unit economics
- 07MINORUnprotected territory creates direct cannibalization risk and eliminates competitive moat
- 08MINORExtremely wide investment range ($10.6M–$36.6M) with no unit count indicates undefined business model and unclear capital requirements
- 09MINOR22-year term locks franchisees into relationship with financially distressed franchisor
- 10MINORHilton brand extension into budget segment may signal market weakness or strategic pivot under duress
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
15 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Undergraduate by Hilton · FDD (2026) PDF