Paul Davis franchise unit economics
Paul Davis franchisees run insurance restoration contracting businesses from a dedicated office, selling water drying, mitigation, mold remediation and structural reconstruction on claims sent by carriers, national programs and the brand call center.
Paul Davis in the news
- FirstService Q3 Earnings Call Highlights · MarketBeat ·
The Paul Davis headline above is the publisher's own and links to the publisher. Averan Advisors checked this Paul Davis link on 11 October 2026. Franchise news lists news on 95 brands, including Paul Davis. Paul Davis is in the Restoration franchise guide.
Paul Davis franchise at a glance
Paul Davis's Item 19 reports 2025 gross sales for 231 businesses trading two years or more, and sales for each person in the territory for 211 of them.
Paul Davis franchisees averaged $4,837,325 of sales in 2025, with a median of $3,008,596, according to Item 19 of Paul Davis’ 2026 FDD, issued 23 March 2026. The 231 in that group are 83%* of Paul Davis’ 277 locations. Fees paid to Paul Davis come to about 5.46%* of sales. A Paul Davis franchise costs $298,800 to $804,900 to open.
- A Paul Davis franchise costs $298,800 to $804,900 to open, including a $130,000 initial franchise fee, according to the brand's 2026 FDD.
- Paul Davis charges a royalty of 4% of sales, a 0.75% brand fund contribution and a $670 monthly technology fee.
- 30% of reporting Paul Davis locations reached the average.
- Work out Paul Davis's fees at your own sales with the minimum fee calculator.
These figures come from Paul Davis's 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document, as the brand reported them, and were read by Averan Advisors.
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Talk to Averan → Move your books and accounting to Averan →- The minimum royalty asks $6.00 of sales for every person in your territory.120 of 211 reporting businesses sit below it and 65 sit below the $3.00 a head that applies in the third year *. The median works out at $4.74 a head, which makes sales per head of population the one number this brand runs on.
- At a typical territory the ninth-year minimum asks $4,414,956 of sales.735,826 people at $6.00 *, against a median business billing $3,008,596, a $1,406,360 gap that turns a $120,344 royalty into a $176,598 one.
- A mature business averages $4,837,325 and the median one $3,008,596.69 of 231 reach the average, which is 30%, and the largest billed $64,400,470, 13.3 times the average *, while the smallest reporting territory billed $3,181.
- Thirteen businesses changed hands in 2025 at a median of 0.48 times prior-year sales.Prices ran from $1.00 to $8,500,000 *, two sold for a single dollar, one of them on $3,148,050 of sales in its prior twelve months, and the top multiple was 2.26.
- Businesses past two years bill 3.67 times those under two years.$4,837,325 against $1,318,117 for businesses under two years *, and 4.33 times at the median, $3,008,596 against $695,361, so the build-up in this model is measured in years.
How much does a Paul Davis franchise make?
The average Paul Davis unit reported $4,837,325 of revenue in the 2026 FDD, and the median reported $3,008,596. The brand’s disclosure document discloses revenue and not profit, so what an owner keeps depends on the cost structure set out below. Fees come off the top first, at about 5.5% of sales across royalty, brand fund and the rest of the stack. Revenue is not income. Rent, wages, cost of goods and the franchise fees all come out before an owner is paid. The figures for the highest-selling and lowest-selling businesses are below.
Top performers
What separates the top Paul Davis performers
Paul Davis lists 2025 gross sales office by office and does not group its locations by performance. The highest-performing franchisee reported $64,400,470. The lowest reporting territory had sales of $3,181. Both run the same brand, on the same agreement, paying the same fees. The middle location sold $3,008,596. The average was $4,837,325. More than half the system is below the number the brand quotes.
Decided before you open
- Site and trade area.The highest-selling business sells 21.4× the median business. Catchment, daytime population and neighboring businesses affect where a location falls.
- Capacity.Locations run 3,000 square feet. The build sets how much you can sell.
- Opening cost range.Opening costs $298,800 to $804,900, a 2.7× range inside one brand.
- Fees and the minimum.Fees run about 5.5% of sales. A minimum fee also applies, so lower-selling locations pay a higher effective rate. Work out the sales level where the percentage overtakes the minimum.
- Cash needed in the first year.This filing shows how a new location builds up: the month sales cover costs, and how much cash you fund before then.
Live operating levers
- Claims.The work is done first and the carrier pays later, so you fund wages and materials until the claim is paid. Track days to collect.
Context you underwrite around
- Locations included.These figures cover 231 of 277 locations. Locations open less than the full year, brand-owned, or not meeting the reporting criteria are excluded, as are locations under the brand’s current size standard.
- What the filing does not include.Item 19 publishes no profit or cost data for franchised locations. Ask the franchisor or current owners for cost and profit figures.
Top performers
How far apart the locations are
Paul Davis does not group its locations by performance. The table on the Finance tab gives the highest, lowest, median and average gross sales for businesses open two years or more and for those open less than two years.
Discounts available
- Paul Davis takes 25% off the initial franchise fee for qualified U.S. Armed Forces veterans (VetFran).
From Item 5 of the Paul Davis 2026 FDD. The costs on this page use the full initial franchise fee for one unit, before any discount.
Sales per person
Minimum sales requirement by territory population
| Year | Minimum sales a head | Sales it implies * | Royalty it implies * |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partial year after opening | $0 | n/a | n/a |
| First full year | $1.00 | $735,826 | $29,433 |
| Second full year | $2.00 | $1,471,652 | $58,866 |
| Third full year | $3.00 | $2,207,478 | $88,299 |
| Fourth full year | $3.50 | $2,575,391 | $103,016 |
| Fifth full year | $4.00 | $2,943,304 | $117,732 |
| Sixth full year | $4.50 | $3,311,217 | $132,449 |
| Seventh full year | $5.00 | $3,679,130 | $147,165 |
| Eighth full year | $5.50 | $4,047,043 | $161,882 |
| Ninth full year onward | $6.00 | $4,414,956 | $176,598 |
The brand reported the rate a head. We applied it to the middle territory of 735,826 people at the 4% royalty rate, both marked *.
The median business does $4.74 of sales a head. Across the 211 territories reporting both a population and a sales figure *, the middle of the system sits between the sixth-year and seventh-year rate, wherever each business happens to be in its own term.
120 of 211 sit below $6.00 a head and 65 sit below $3.00 *. 31% of reporting businesses sell less than the rate required from the third full year, so they pay the minimum.
A territory of 735,826 people is $1,406,360 short of the ninth-year target. That is $4,414,956 asked against $3,008,596 billed by the median business *. The royalty on actual sales is $120,344. The minimum is $176,598, so falling short costs $56,254.
The highest-selling business does $19.33 a head. That business billed $64,400,470 across 3,331,742 people *. That is three times the ninth-year rate and four times the middle of the system, which shows how much room a restoration territory holds.
The territory costs $0.26 a head to buy and $6.00 a head to hold. A Paul Davis territory costs $130,000 for 500,000 people and $208,000 at the 800,000 maximum. The yearly sales target is 23 times the entry price *, which is the clearest statement of what this franchise asks of an owner.
What the fees come to
Franchise fees on an average and a median business
| Charge | Rate | On $4,837,325 * | On $3,008,596 * |
|---|---|---|---|
| Royalty | 4% of gross sales | $193,493 | $120,344 |
| Strategic marketing plan | 0.75% plus $500 a month | $42,280 | $28,564 |
| Guarantee fund | 0.5% of gross sales | $24,187 | $15,043 |
| Indemnity fund | 0.10% down to 0.04%, tiered | $4,102 | $2,807 |
| Total to the brand and its funds | n/a | $264,062, 5.46% | $166,758, 5.54% |
| Core software and reviews | $670 a month | $8,040 | $8,040 |
Every rate is as the brand reported it and each dollar figure applies it to the stated sales level, marked * throughout.
The published royalty is 4% and the real load is 5.46%. That is $264,062 at the average business *. The extra 1.46 points come from the marketing plan, the guarantee fund and the indemnity fund, each billed on the same gross sales.
The load falls as sales rise. That is 5.46% at $4,837,325 and 5.54% at $3,008,596 *. The $500 monthly marketing charge and the tiered indemnity rate both reward scale, so the biggest businesses pay the smallest share.
Royalty runs on everything invoiced, including subcontracted work. Gross sales cover labor, material and services performed by the franchisee or by third-party vendors and subcontractors. That includes items the client or insurer pays direct. So the royalty base is wider than the cash the business handles itself.
The guarantee fund stops once it reaches its cap. The cap is $25,000 for the first 500,000 people, plus $2,000 for each further 100,000. A territory of 735,826 people costs $31,000 *, which takes about two years to fill at 0.5% of the median Paul Davis business’s sales. A resale pays 1% until the fund refills.
Working capital (cash to run the business day to day) is a covenant, at $500,000 or 10% of last year’s sales. Whichever is larger applies, so $500,000 applies up to $5,000,000 of sales *. Above that, every extra million of sales requires another $100,000 to sit behind it.
What a business sold for
Resales closed during 2025
| Closed | Price | Prior 12 months of sales | Price to sales | Price a head |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 January | $7,461,000 | $3,305,686 | 2.26 | $9.91 |
| 1 January | $7,461,000 | $3,667,878 | 2.03 | $8.90 |
| 30 June | $750,000 | $453,370 | 1.65 | $1.15 |
| 3 March | $1,200,000 | $1,452,058 | 0.83 | $1.23 |
| 29 August | $1,400,000 | $1,839,811 | 0.76 | $3.62 |
| 30 May | $1,600,000 | $2,625,470 | 0.61 | $4.15 |
| 30 January | $8,500,000 | $16,348,823 | 0.52 | $16.79 |
| 31 March | $250,000 | $565,807 | 0.44 | $0.37 |
| 8 October | $750,000 | $2,164,161 | 0.35 | $0.84 |
| 30 May | $750,000 | $2,762,690 | 0.27 | $2.20 |
| 30 December | $575,000 | $4,190,246 | 0.14 | $1.79 |
| 1 August | $875,000 | $6,689,442 | 0.13 | $1.35 |
| 19 March | $1.00 | $3,148,050 | 0.00 | $0.00 |
Prices, prior-year sales, ratios and price a head are as the brand reported it, with three combined-operation sales shown once each.
The median business sold for 0.48 times its prior year of sales. Across the 14 priced territories *, so an owner billing $3,008,596 should expect a conversation that starts near $1,444,126.
Two businesses sold for a single dollar. One of those Paul Davis businesses had $3,148,050 of sales in its prior twelve months, and the buyer took it on for its obligations. That is what a sale looks like when working capital and claim liabilities exceed the goodwill.
The two highest multiples both closed on 1 January at $7,461,000. That is 2.26 and 2.03 times sales, at $9.91 and $8.90 a head, both Pennsylvania territories of roughly 800,000 people. The pair sets the practical ceiling for what this brand resells at.
The biggest seller by revenue got the seventh-highest multiple of the 13 listed. $8,500,000 on $16,348,823 of sales, which is 0.52, the highest price a head in the table at $16.79. So size raised the price and lowered the ratio at the same time.
Price a head runs from $0.00 to $16.79, with a median of $1.29 *. The median is five times what the territory cost at $0.26 a head, which shows what building one of these businesses is worth.
What changes as a location ages
Sales by years in operation, 2025
| Measure | Two years and over | Under two years | Step * |
|---|---|---|---|
| Businesses | 231 | 54 | n/a |
| Average gross sales | $4,837,325 | $1,318,117 | 3.67 times |
| Median gross sales | $3,008,596 | $695,361 | 4.33 times |
| Reaching the average | 69, 30% | 20, 37% | n/a |
| Highest | $64,400,470 | $9,070,345 | 7.10 times |
| Lowest reporting | $3,181 | $4,351 | n/a |
| Total reported | $1,117,421,990 | $71,178,302 | n/a |
Every figure is as the brand reported it and the step column is marked *.
The median more than quadruples in the step across two years. It rises from $695,361 to $3,008,596 *. The step is wider than the averages suggest, because a few very large businesses lift the mature group's average far above its middle.
30% of mature businesses reach their own average. That is 69 of 231, against 37% in the young group. The average is 1.61 times the median *, so an owner planning against $4,837,325 is planning against the top third of the system.
The top business under two years old billed $9,070,345. That is three times the $3,008,596 median for mature Paul Davis businesses, while 65 mature businesses billed under $3.00 a head *.
The system grew from 224 outlets to 277 in three years. That is 72 opened and 19 left, 26 departures for every 100 openings *, with 10 more franchises sold and in training at year end.
The territory is expressly non-exclusive. The protection covers office location only. National and regional insurer programs may be assigned to another franchisee where an owner declines or fails to qualify. Renewal may depend on hitting a sales volume or market penetration. That is the same $6.00 a head arriving by another route.
Questions we get asked
Questions an owner asks
How much does a Paul Davis franchise make?
Paul Davis franchisees averaged $4,837,325 of sales in 2025, with a median of $3,008,596, according to Item 19 of Paul Davis’ 2026 FDD, issued 23 March 2026. The 231 in that group are 83%* of Paul Davis’ 277 locations. Fees paid to Paul Davis come to about 5.46%* of sales. A Paul Davis franchise costs $298,800 to $804,900 to open.
What does a Paul Davis business bill?
Across 231 businesses trading two years or more, the 2025 average was $4,837,325 of gross sales and the median $3,008,596, on $1,117,421,990 of reported sales in total. 69 of the 231 reached the average, which is 30%. The largest billed $64,400,470 and the smallest reporting territory $3,181. For the 54 businesses under two years old, the average was $1,318,117 and the median $695,361.
What fees does Paul Davis charge?
Paul Davis charges a 4% royalty on sales. The marketing plan costs 0.75% plus $500 a month. A further 0.5% of sales goes into a guarantee fund until it reaches its cap. Paul Davis charges a tiered indemnity fund fee running 0.10% down to 0.04%. On our reading that is 5.46% of an average business, which is $264,062. Paul Davis owners also pay about $8,040 a year of software and review fees, plus estimating charges.
How does the minimum royalty work at Paul Davis?
The minimum is a sales rate a head multiplied by territory population multiplied by the 4% royalty. The rate starts at $1.00 a head in the first full year and climbs to $6.00 from the ninth. At the median reporting territory of 735,826 people, the ninth-year rate implies $4,414,956 of sales and a $176,598 royalty. It is billed annually to the extent actual royalties fall short, and it is adjustable by the consumer price index.
What is the one number to run this business on at Paul Davis?
Paul Davis owners should track gross sales for each person in the territory. The median reporting business does $4.74, the fee schedule asks $6.00 from the ninth year, and the highest-selling business in the system does $19.33. 120 of the 211 reporting territories sit below $6.00 and 65 sit below $3.00.
What does a Paul Davis territory cost?
A Paul Davis territory costs $0.26 for each person, so $130,000 at 500,000 people and $208,000 at the 800,000 ceiling. At least half is due in cash at signing and the balance can be financed over four years at 7%. Fees actually paid in 2025 ranged from $65,370 to $207,614. Veterans qualifying under VetFran get 25% off.
How much does a Paul Davis franchise cost to open?
A Paul Davis franchise costs $298,800 to $804,900 to open for a 500,000-person territory, including $150,000 to $200,000 of working capital for the first three months. A dedicated office in the territory is required, typically 3,000 square feet of office plus 8,000 of industrial at $5,000 to $15,000 a month. A full-sized extended van is required before opening. Working capital of $500,000, or 10% of last year’s sales if greater, is expected at all times.
What has a Paul Davis business sold for?
Thirteen resales closed in 2025 at prices from $1.00 to $8,500,000, a median of 0.48 times the prior twelve months of sales. The median price was $1.29 for each person in the territory. The two highest Paul Davis resale multiples were 2.26 and 2.03 times prior-year sales. Two businesses sold for a single dollar, one of them on $3,148,050 of prior-year sales. A transfer costs $10,000 plus a resale fee of 2.5% of the sale price capped at $40,000.
Which two numbers should run monthly at Paul Davis?
Track sales for each head of population against $4.74 for the system median and against whichever minimum rate applies to your own year. Then track working capital against the greater of $500,000 and 10% of last year’s sales, because it is a covenant as well as a cushion.
- The filing gives no profit figure. The filing reports sales and not earnings, so what an owner keeps is not disclosed.
- The filing breaks out no cost lines. Wages, rent and cost of goods are not broken out, so margin cannot be rebuilt from the document.
Questions worth putting to Paul Davis
These are questions the Paul Davis filing leaves open. An owner or a buyer can put them to Paul Davis directly.
- What do locations at the median spend on wages and rent as a share of sales? The filing reports sales only.
- Which factors does Paul Davis see in its highest-selling locations, such as trade area, years open and size?
- How long does a new location take to reach the average you publish, and what does the build-up look like month by month?
- At what level of sales do the minimum charges stop applying and the percentage take over?
- How many Paul Davis locations closed, were sold, or changed hands last year, and why?
Run your own numbers.
The Franchise Numbers Check runs the same checks on your own numbers. It scores where you stand and compares you with Item 19 of your brand’s FDD. It works out what one location earns and spends, and builds a 13-week cash forecast. Checks whether you are ready to open another one. It is free and it runs in your browser.
Launch the diagnostic →What is your territory earning a head?
We review your unit economics and cash forecast and build your reporting around sales for each head of population, the minimum royalty rate that applies to your year. What the last thirteen resales tell you about the value you are building.
Talk to Averanthe franchise library, all 447 brands · how franchise unit economics work · running the books across several locations · what Averan does for franchise owners
Paul Davis reads against the rest of the restoration group: 1-800 WATER DAMAGE · DRYmedic · PuroClean · Rainbow Restoration · Restoration 1 · ServiceMaster Restore. The restoration guide compares all of them on the same figures.
Questions owners ask next
The figures above raise these, and each one is answered on its own page.
- At what level of sales does a minimum fee stop costing me more than the percentage?It works out the sales level where a minimum fee stops applying.
- How much cash do I fund before a new location covers its own costs?It builds a 13-week forecast for the months before break-even.
- My payroll percentage keeps climbing. Is that a payroll problem?It shows how to tell whether payroll is rising or revenue is falling.
- How much of Item 19 can I rely on?It explains what an Item 19 financial performance representation tells you and what it leaves out.
- What should I be looking at every week?It lists the handful of numbers that move before the P&L does.
Where these figures come from.
Every figure here comes from Paul Davis Restoration, Inc.’s 2026 FDD and is unaudited by us. We are unaffiliated with the brand. Calculations of our own are labeled where they appear, the figures describe past performance at other businesses and are not a projection of yours. This page is an educational summary. It is not an offer to sell a franchise, and it is not financial, legal or tax advice. Paul Davis® is a registered trademark of its owner. How Averan reads a Franchise Disclosure Document.
These figures come from the brand's disclosure. They are not a forecast, an offer to sell a franchise or advice. Source: Paul Davis Restoration, Inc., 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document, issued 23 March 2026.