How Much Does an EXiT Realty Franchise Cost?

For the commercial real estate sales office franchise offered in Wisconsin by Upper Midwest Realty, Inc. d/b/a EXIT Realty Upper Midwest, the 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document lists an Estimated Initial Investment of $60,800 to $209,000. The disclosure uses one combined Item 7 range rather than separate total ranges for rural, low-, medium-, and high-density territories.

The 2025 FDD ties the Initial Franchise Fee to the population and geography of the Protected Territory, while Item 7 ties minimum office size to territory density. These differences affect the cost contract even though Item 7 publishes only one overall investment range.

The 2025 Item 7 estimate includes the Initial Franchise Fee, training travel, premises, insurance, equipment and improvements, deposits and licenses, exterior signage, an automobile allowance and Additional Funds. The chart preserves every official low and high bound for the single office format.

• Additional Funds are already inside the total. The $20,000–$70,000 estimate covers legal expenses, staff salaries, utilities and operating expenses for the first six months. Adding it again would double-count working capital.
• Owner compensation is outside the estimate. The FDD expressly excludes an owner's salary or draw from Additional Funds.
• Premises costs remain location-sensitive. Item 7 uses $12,000–$50,000 for 12 months of leased real property, while its footnote says annual rental costs may be about $12 to $20 or more per square foot and may rise as office size increases within the first three years.
• Computer capacity can expand. Item 11 estimates $500–$1,000 per computer, requires at least one compatible computer and says two to four are likely during the first six months.

The 2025 FDD spreads the startup cost across signing, site development, training, opening and the first six months of operation. The Initial Franchise Fee is the clearest immediate payment; most other Item 7 amounts are paid to landlords, vendors, insurers, government authorities and travel providers as billed or incurred.

1. Before signing or paying the franchisor. The current disclosure document must be furnished at least 14 calendar days before a binding agreement or payment. This timing is also stated in 16 CFR Part 436, the FTC Franchise Rule.

2. At Franchise Agreement signing. Pay the nonrefundable $7,500, $15,000 or $25,000 Initial Franchise Fee to EXIT Realty Upper Midwest. Source: 2025 FDD, Items 5 and 7, printed pages 7 and 10.

3. Before opening and as incurred. Secure the approved office, pay rent or deposits, complete construction or remodeling, obtain insurance and licenses, install the exterior sign and acquire the required equipment. Training travel is paid during training.

4. By the opening deadline. The office must open within 120 days after signing. The FDD says offices typically open in about two to three months, but conversion, construction, financing and seasonal timing can affect the schedule. Failure to open within 120 days may permit the agreement to be declared void without return of the Initial Franchise Fee or other amounts paid. Source: 2025 FDD, Item 11, printed pages 14–15.

5. During the first six months and after opening. Use the included $20,000–$70,000 Additional Funds as needed, then pay monthly, transaction-based and annual Item 6 fees on their disclosed schedules.

The 2025 FDD does not state one conventional royalty percentage for the office. Instead, the continuing cost structure combines a monthly MEMO Software Fee, transaction-side charges, a Regional Development Fee, Annual Memberships and a Company Development Fee based on each Sales Representative's gross commissions, subject to disclosed caps.

The Annual Membership applies to each EXIT Sales Representative and other covered individuals, including equity holders. Item 6 also states that fees and memberships may increase by up to 7% annually. The percentage-based Company Development Fee should not be converted into an annual dollar estimate because the FDD discloses no compatible sales or commission assumption for that calculation.

How does the Transaction Fee change with gross commission per side?

The 2025 FDD uses five Transaction Fee tiers based on the gross commission earned on a transaction side. The fee is paid at closing and remains subject to the $2,700 annual cap per Sales Representative.

No. The 2025 Wisconsin FDD does not disclose a minimum Liquid Capital, Net Worth or Non-Borrowed Funds threshold for this EXIT office offer. That absence does not reduce the Item 7 investment or guarantee that a candidate will qualify.

Liquid Capital

No minimum amount is stated in the reviewed 2025 FDD.

Net Worth

No minimum amount is stated in the reviewed 2025 FDD.

Personal Guarantee

If the franchisee is an entity, its equity holders must execute a Personal Guaranty; a spouse may also be required in a community- or marital-property state. Source: Item 15, printed page 22.

Franchisor Financing

Item 10 states that EXIT and EXIT Realty Upper Midwest do not offer direct or indirect financing and do not guarantee a note, lease or other financial obligation.

Third-party borrowing, if available, would therefore be separate from the disclosed franchise arrangement. Approval, collateral, repayment terms and the amount of non-borrowed cash required are not supplied by Item 10 and should not be inferred from the $60,800 low end.

The 2025 FDD adds several contingent obligations outside the ordinary startup schedule. These amounts matter when a franchise is renewed, transferred, paid late, audited, relocated, upgraded or otherwise changed.

• Major transfer: 10% of the then-current Initial Franchise Fee, capped at 25% of the Initial Franchise Fee originally paid. A minor transfer of less than 50% is $500. A transfer to an entity controlled by the same person has no fee. Source: Item 6, printed pages 8–10.
• Late payment: a 5% late fee if a payment is more than 30 days late, plus interest beginning after 30 days at prime plus 5% or the highest lawful contract rate, whichever is lower.
• Audit reimbursement: if an audit finds a willful underpayment or an underpayment above 5% of the amount actually due, the franchisee must reimburse audit costs, including travel, lodging, meals, professional fees and salaries.
• Training cancellation: $500 for failing to attend or cancelling with less than 30 days' notice; Item 11 states $1,000 when cancellation occurs with less than 10 days' notice.
• Technical assistance: requested post-opening technical services may be charged at EXIT Realty Upper Midwest's then-current rates, plus related travel and living expenses.
• Technology and brand changes: EXIT may require hardware or software upgrades for MEMO compatibility, and a franchisee must modify or discontinue a trademark at its own expense when directed.
• Relocation and additional offices: relocation requires prior written consent. An additional office inside the same Protected Territory does not require another franchise fee, but premises, equipment, signage and operating costs remain the franchisee's responsibility.

The 2025 Item 7 range is decision-useful only after the proposed Protected Territory, premises plan and fee schedule are matched to the actual Franchise Agreement. The following checks address the main unresolved cost variables in this specific FDD.

• Obtain the current disclosure package. Confirm that the issuance date, state addenda and fee schedule remain current and that any material amendment has been included.
• Resolve the density classification. Get the Protected Territory population, distance tests, Initial Franchise Fee tier and required office size in writing, including how “low density” is treated.
• Reconcile training travel. Ask how the separate Training Expenses row differs from the initial-training travel included in Additional Funds.
• Price the premises obligation. Confirm square footage, lease term, deposits, tenant improvements, sign standards and the expected office expansion tied to Sales Representative quotas.
• Model fees by headcount and transaction side. Annual Memberships and multiple capped fees apply per Sales Representative or covered individual, so the office's staffing plan changes the continuing obligation.
• Separate startup money from personal living costs. The six-month Additional Funds amount excludes an owner's salary or draw.
• Confirm funding independently. Item 10 offers no franchisor financing or guarantee, and the FDD states no liquid-capital or net-worth minimum.

The verified 2025 starting range is $60,800 to $209,000 for one Wisconsin EXIT real estate sales office, including a territory-based $7,500 to $25,000 Initial Franchise Fee and $20,000 to $70,000 of Additional Funds for six months. The largest uncertainties are leased premises, Additional Funds, territory classification and the office's number of Sales Representatives. After opening, the cost structure is driven less by one royalty rate than by monthly software, transaction-side fees, per-person memberships and a commission-based Company Development Fee. The most important unresolved point is not the arithmetic of the official total; it is how the proposed territory, office size, staffing plan and overlapping training-travel descriptions apply to the buyer's actual agreement.