HouseMaster Home Inspections

#349

At a Glance

Products & Services: Home inspections

Number of Locations: 362

Total Investment: $59.2K - 89.2K

Founded: 1971

Began Franchising: 1979

Private Owned

About HouseMaster Home Inspections

Ken Austin began an independent house inspection service in northern New Jersey in 1970. Nine years later, he formed HouseMaster and began franchising, using marketing experience he gained at Johnson & Johnson and Warner Lambert Co. to spread the word about his new company.

HouseMaster inspectors check out all the major systems of the house, providing an objective opinion of its physical condition. The HouseMaster Express Report provides a comprehensive on-site report. HouseMaster franchises offer homebuyers a limited inspection guarantee and has an errors and omissions insurance program to protect franchisees.

Franchise Units

Year	U.S.	Canadian	International	Company Owned
2011	325	37	0	0
2010	330	36	0	0
2009	318	38	0	0
2008	356	40	0	0

Where Seeking Franchisees: Franchisor is seeking new franchise units in the U.S.,Australia/New Zealand, Canada.

Startup Costs, Ongoing Fees and Financing

Total Investment: $59,200 - $89,200
Franchise Fee: $42,500 - $54,000
Ongoing Royalty Fee: 6-7.5%
Term of Franchise Agreement: 10 years, renewable

Financial Requirements

Net Worth: $80,000
Liquid Cash Available: $40,000

Operations

Franchise can be run from home. 30% of all franchisees own more than one unit. Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 1 - 5. Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed. (95% of current franchisees are owner/operators).

Financing Type	In-House	Third Party
Franchise Fee
Startup Costs
Equipment
Inventory
Accounts Receivable
Payroll

How This Franchise Supports Franchisees

Training: Available at headquarters: 1 week. Technical training : 1 week.

Ongoing Support: Newsletter, Meetings, Toll-free phone line, Grand opening, Internet, Security/safety procedures, Field operations/evaluations, Purchasing cooperatives,

Marketing Support: Co-op advertising, Ad slicks, National media, Regional advertising,

Other marketing support: Annual conferences, proprietary software, database marketing