HouseMaster Home Inspections

Founded: 1971 Franchising since: 1979

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.

426 Vosseller Ave. Bound Brook, New jersey 08805

Phone: (800)526-3939

Franchisor is a privately-held company with 20 employee(s); 20 employee(s) in franchise department.

Franchise Growth

Year	U.S. Franchises	Canadian Franchises	Foreign Franchises	Company Owned
2009	318	38	0	0
2008	356	40	0	0
2007	341	36	0	0
2006	325	37	0	0
2005	318	38	0	0

Where Seeking Franchisees
In the U.S. Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North carolina, North dakota, New hampshire, New jersey, New mexico, Nevada, New york, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode island, South carolina, South dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, West virginia, Wyoming
Outside the U.S.: Canada

Exclusive territories available.
Territory size: Determined by number of owner-occupied homes

Total investment: $37.5K-61.5K Franchise fee: $24.5K

Ongoing royalty fee: 6-7.5% Term of agreement: 5 years, renewable

Type of Financing Available

	In-House	Third Party
Franchise Fee	Yes	Yes
Startup Costs	No	Yes
Equipment	No	No
Inventory	No	No
Accounts Receivable	No	No
Payroll	No	No

Qualifications
Net worth requirement: $50K
Cash liquidity requirement: $20K
Business Experience:

• Marketing skills
• Management skills

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 allowed. (95% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

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

Franchise 500® rank:
#154 (2009); #178 (2008); #257 (2007); #318 (2006); #223 (2005);

Ranked #1 in category in:
2009;

Low-Cost Franchises:
#32 (2009); #35 (2008); #63 (2007); #81 (2006); #58 (2005);

Top Home Based Franchises:
#37 (2009); #37 (2008); #68 (2007); #86 (2006); #60 (2005);

America's Top Global Franchises:
#120 (2009); #156 (2008); #195 (2007); #171 (2005);