Z PlumberzFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Z PLUMBERZ franchise requires a total initial investment of $265K – $427K, including a $45K franchise fee and an ongoing 8.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $737K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $265K – $427K
- 74th pct Home Services
- Avg gross sales
- $737K
- 26th pct Home Services
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- 38th pct Home Services
- Units
- 52
- 43rd 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
Franchised units fell from 46 to 27 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Bottom line
- Total investment $265K – $427K including a $45K franchise fee, 8.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $737K/year (median $596K).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 22/100.
- System growing at 70.4% CAGR over 3 years with 52 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- PLUMBERZ International, LLC
- Parent company
- BELFOR Franchise Group, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- ASP BF Intermediate Sub, LLC
- Incorporated in
- MI
- HQ
- 5405 Data Court, Ann Arbor, MI 48108
- Auditor
- BDO USA, P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $29.5M
- vs $30.1M prior year
Independent franchisee associations
- Independent Franchisee Association
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- Plumberz North America
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Z PLUMBERZ franchisees operate residential and commercial plumbing service businesses, managing service calls, technician teams, and customer acquisition in protected territories. Day-to-day activities include scheduling appointments, managing field technicians, handling customer service, and executing plumbing repairs ranging from basic maintenance to emergency water damage mitigation.
- CEO
- Sheldon Yellen
- Headquarters
- MI
- Founded
- 2019
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 17
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing · 34 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee (Standard)not refundable | $45K | $45K | |
| Initial Package Fee (Standard)not refundable | $76K | $76K | |
| Rent (Standard) | $0 | $6K | |
| Leasehold Improvements (Standard) | $0 | $20K | |
| Exterior Signage (Standard) | $0 | $3K | |
| Licenses/Permits (Standard) | $500 | $5K | |
| Technology System (Standard) | $250 | $2K | |
| Initial Supplies and Inventory (Standard) | $3K | $54K | |
| Insurance (Standard) | $3K | $10K | |
| Vehicles (Standard) | $70K | $90K | |
| Full-time Service Technician (Standard) | $7K | $21K | |
| Business Telephone Fee (Standard) | $150 | $1K | |
| High Speed Internet, Anti-Virus Software (Standard) | $210 | $600 | |
| Security Deposits/Utility Deposits (Standard) | $0 | $3K | |
| Costs Incurred While Attending Training (Standard) | $1K | $5K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising and Marketing (Standard) | $0 | $6K | |
| Additional Working Capital (three months) (Standard) | $60K | $80K | |
| Initial Franchise Fee (Conversion)not refundable | $20K | $20K | |
| Initial Package Fee (Conversion)not refundable | $29K | $76K | |
| Rent (Conversion) | $0 | $6K | |
| Total initial investment | $359K | $750K |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
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
$66K
9.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
16%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
6.3 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $265K – $427K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $60K – $80K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $45K – $45K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 10.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 8.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $650 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $10 |
| Inventory (initial) | $0 – $54K |
| Total fee load | 10.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $737K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $596K
- Item 19 type
- Quartiles
- Sample size
- 11 units
- vs category median 25 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $9K→$2.2M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- none
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 349 Home Services brands
vs Home Services averages
How Z Plumberz Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 52
- Opened
- 17
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 2
- Turnover rate
- 3.8%
- Company-owned
- 6
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 89%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +48.4%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +70.4%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 15
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 3
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 3
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Termination rate
- 6.5%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 15 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.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 10
- Loan volume
- $2.3M
- Median loan
- $196K
- 50th percentile
- 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
- 4
- 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
Z PLUMBERZ presents elevated risk due to undisclosed profitability, aggressive unit growth masking franchisee viability concerns, franchisor going-concern status, and absence of Item 19 financial performance data.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 3 pending, 0 settled.
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: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 22 / 100 rating
- 01MINORNo net income disclosure (Item 19) prevents ROI validation; claimed $737k revenue is meaningless without profitability data
- 02MINORRapid unit growth of 48.4% YoY is unsustainable and suggests recruitment-heavy model over organic franchisee success
- 03HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — indicates financial instability at franchisor level, raising questions about support and longevity
- 04MEDHigh total investment ($264k-$426k) combined with 8% royalties creates significant cash flow burden without disclosed unit economics
- 05MED52-unit system is very small; limited track record and vulnerable to market downturns or franchisor operational issues
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 | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Population-based |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Territory population | 275,000 |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| 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 |
| Termination groundsℹ | 1 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Michigan |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 3 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 50 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- QuickBooks Online
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: QuickBooks Online
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
20 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Z PLUMBERZ · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Z PLUMBERZ franchise?
The total investment to open a Z PLUMBERZ franchise ranges from $265K – $427K, with an initial franchise fee of $45K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Z PLUMBERZ franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Z PLUMBERZ FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $737K. The median is $596K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Z PLUMBERZ's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Z PLUMBERZ (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 Z PLUMBERZ franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Z PLUMBERZ has 52 total units in the United States, including 46 franchised units and 6 company-owned units. 17 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Z PLUMBERZ a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Z PLUMBERZ as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 22 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.