The strongest official evidence is Archadeck's 2026 Item 19 disclosure: 40 mature reporting franchisees averaged $204,559 in “Average Revenue less Average Costs of Revenue and Average Operating Expenses adjusted for Owner's Related Expenses” during calendar 2024. This is an average per reporting franchisee business, not per territory, and 17 of the 40 operators held multiple territories. At the same average, a manager-run sensitivity is approximately $97,579 before employer payroll burden, financing principal, and personal income taxes.
- Legal franchisor
- Archadeck Franchisor, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company.
- Disclosure reviewed
- 2026 Archadeck Franchise Disclosure Document, issued January 27, 2026; Item 19, printed pages 38–47; Items 5–7 and 20 also reviewed.
- Official population
- Part 1 covers 40 reporting franchisees operating 69 territories, open full-time for at least 24 months as of December 31, 2024.
- Owner-role benchmark
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Construction Managers, May 2024 median wage of $106,980; used only as a replacement-manager sensitivity.
- Public references
- official Archadeck U.S. franchise website, FTC Franchise Rule, and BLS Construction Managers profile. Checked July 14, 2026.
Average for the mature 2024 reporting cohort after adding back owner-related expenses.
Revenue from completed outdoor remodeling projects; revenue is not owner earnings.
$204,559 divided by compatible average Gross Revenue of $2,024,296.
FDD “Earnings before Interest, Depreciation and Amortization” after owner costs remained in expenses.
Owner salaries, commissions, payroll taxes, healthcare benefits, and other material owner expenses.
The result is per reporting franchisee business and includes multi-territory operators.
What does Archadeck's official earnings figure actually measure?
It measures a combined owner-adjusted economic benefit, not a clean distribution of passive profit. The official 2024 average starts with completed-project Gross Revenue, deducts construction costs and operating expenses, then adds back expenses paid to or for the owner. The resulting $204,559 can contain both residual business earnings and compensation for work performed by an active owner.
The FDD's exact label should remain intact: “Average Revenue less Average Costs of Revenue and Average Operating Expenses adjusted for Owner's Related Expenses.” Archadeck states that the amount does not equal average gross profit and that each reporting business incurred additional costs and expenses not reflected in Part 1. Source: 2026 Archadeck FDD, Item 19, printed pages 40–42.
All values are average calendar-2024 amounts for 40 mature reporting franchisees.
Interpretation: the business averaged only $44,892 after owner-related costs remained in operating expenses. The $204,559 result appears only after adding back $159,667 paid to or for owners.
Source: 2026 Archadeck FDD, Item 19, Part 1, printed pages 40–42. Values reconcile exactly: $2,024,296 − $1,210,459 − $768,945 + $159,667 = $204,559.
How does active ownership versus manager-run operation change the result?
Active ownership can preserve more of the combined $204,559 benefit, but part of that amount may be compensation for the owner's labor. Item 15 permits direct on-site supervision by a Designated Business Manager who can be an employee, while also requiring a separate Office Manager or production coordinator within six months. A manager-run model therefore converts part of the owner-adjusted benefit into payroll expense.
For an illustrative manager-run sensitivity, this analysis subtracts the BLS May 2024 median wage of $106,980 for Construction Managers from the owner-adjusted benefit. The proxy is directionally relevant to project planning, budgeting, subcontractor coordination, and construction supervision, but it does not capture employer payroll taxes, benefits, recruiting costs, or the separate Office Manager requirement. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Construction Managers profile.
Conservative and Upside are explicit 80% and 120% sensitivity cases around the official $204,559 average; they are not FDD-reported performance bands.
Interpretation: at the official Base average, replacing an active owner's management labor with a $106,980 wage proxy reduces the residual from $204,559 to $97,579 before employer taxes and benefits. The owner-operator number includes labor value and is not passive profit.
Sources and formula: 2026 Archadeck FDD, Item 19, printed pages 40–42; BLS Construction Managers, May 2024. Scenario Gross Revenue = 80%/100%/120% × $2,024,296. Estimated owner-operator benefit = scenario Gross Revenue × the compatible same-cohort owner-adjusted margin ($204,559 ÷ $2,024,296). Manager-run residual = estimated owner-operator benefit − $106,980. Rounded only after calculation.
What annual earnings range is defensible for a prospective owner?
The most defensible central comparison is approximately $98,000 of manager-run residual versus $204,559 of combined owner-operator benefit at the official average. The first figure is an independent sensitivity calculation; the second is the official Item 19 average. Neither is an after-tax paycheck, and neither is a per-territory result.
To display uncertainty without pretending the FDD reports an earnings distribution, the analytical spread applies 80%, 100%, and 120% to the official $2,024,296 average Gross Revenue and holds the compatible same-cohort owner-adjusted margin constant. That produces approximately $164,000 to $245,000 of owner-operator benefit, or approximately $57,000 to $138,000 of manager-run residual after the BLS wage proxy. The constant-margin treatment is an explicit scenario assumption; these are sensitivity cases, not probabilities, quartiles, forecasts, or guarantees.
How should the $204,559 figure be interpreted?
Which franchise fees materially affect owner earnings?
The largest recurring franchisor-controlled burden is the tiered Royalty, followed by the National Branding & Marketing Fee and required local advertising. The official $204,559 average already reflects the Item 19 cohort's royalty, national brand marketing, advertising, and other operating expenses, so these amounts should not be subtracted from that figure a second time.
| Recurring item | 2026 FDD requirement | Item 19 average treatment | Owner-earnings implication |
|---|---|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.5% on the first $1 million of calendar-year Gross Sales, declining by tier to 3.5% above $3 million; minimum royalty may apply in specified months. | $121,093 / 6.0% | Official Part 1 recalculated the cohort's royalties under the 2026 FDD schedule. |
| National Branding & Marketing Fee | Currently 1.5% of Gross Sales, capped at $30,000 per calendar year; may increase to 2.5% with notice. | $30,000 / 1.5% | The average mature business reached the current annual cap. |
| Individual Advertising Investment | At least $50,000 per territory annually, generally waived for a calendar year once Gross Sales reach $1 million. | $89,749 / 4.4% | Item 19's advertising line reflects actual cohort spending, not merely the contractual minimum. |
| Digital Marketing Fee | Currently $300 per month, up to $750 per month. | Embedded / not isolated | May sit within marketing or another operating-expense category; do not double count. |
| Technology Fee | Currently $350 per month, up to $500 per month, plus possible extra-license fees. | Embedded / not isolated | Likely included within communications or other operating expenses, but the FDD does not isolate it in Part 1. |
| NGC Contribution | 0.25% of Gross Sales until the account reaches $15,000, then 0.10%. | Not separately identified | Confirm whether and where the reporting cohort classified the contribution. |
Sources: 2026 Archadeck FDD, Items 6 and 19, printed pages 12–17 and 40–42.
How representative is the official owner-adjusted average?
The evidence is strong enough for a High confidence label, but the $204,559 average should not be treated as a typical single-territory result. The 2024 Benchmarking Study was voluntary: 44 of 57 franchisees participated, and Part 1 used 40 mature reporting franchisees operating 69 territories. Seventeen of those 40 held multiple territories.
The mature cohort excludes one submission because of reporting irregularities and excludes businesses not open full-time for at least 24 months. That improves comparability for established operations but removes the ramp-up experience of newer franchisees. The broader 2025 Gross Sales table separately excluded 15 franchisees that began operations during the fiscal period, businesses not operational for the full period, and seven franchisees that ceased active operations during the period.
Item 20 reports no company-owned Archadeck businesses for 2023–2025, so there is no company-operated profit proxy to compare with franchised economics. Item 20 Table 3 reports 112 territories at year-end 2025, while Table 1's franchised row reports 113 and its total row reports 112; a buyer should request clarification of that internal discrepancy. Source: 2026 Archadeck FDD, Item 20, printed pages 48–52.
What should a buyer verify before relying on the earnings figure?
Verify the composition of owner expense and obtain territory-level records. The biggest unresolved issue is how the $159,667 average owner expense divides among salary for labor, payroll taxes, healthcare benefits, discretionary expenses, and distributions or other economic benefits.
- Request the written substantiation for Item 19 and reconcile the $204,559 measure to the underlying income-statement categories.
- Ask for separate single-territory and multi-territory owner-adjusted results; the published Part 1 average combines both.
- Determine whether interest expense, depreciation, amortization, vehicle replacement, equipment replacement, and other capital expenditures are included, excluded, or inconsistently classified.
- Ask current franchisees how many owner hours are required for sales, estimating, project management, subcontractor coordination, and customer service.
- Price both the Designated Business Manager and separate Office Manager or production coordinator in the buyer's local labor market.
- Review Item 20 contacts, including former franchisees and 2025 transfers or terminations, and compare mature operators with newer openings.
- Model financing principal and interest separately from operating earnings; do not convert pre-tax owner benefit into after-tax take-home pay.
The FTC Franchise Rule Compliance Guide explains the disclosure framework, while the FTC Franchise Rule resource page links the governing rule and related materials.
What is the strongest decision-useful earnings conclusion?
Use $204,559 as the official average combined owner-adjusted benefit for the mature 2024 reporting cohort, not as a guaranteed salary, passive profit figure, or per-territory result. At that same average, a manager-run sensitivity produces approximately $97,579 of residual before employer payroll burden, debt principal, and personal income taxes. The most important driver is gross margin after materials and construction labor; the largest unresolved uncertainty is the mix of owner labor compensation and residual business profit inside the $159,667 owner expense add-back. A buyer should verify Item 19 substantiation, territory-level economics, manager and office staffing costs, capital needs, and owner hours through records and franchisee interviews.