Home Services
1-800 Water Damage Franchise
A water damage restoration, mold remediation, and fire/smoke cleanup franchise under BELFOR Franchise Group -- the franchising arm of BELFOR, one of the largest property restoration companies in North America.
Disclosed in the FDD's litigation section (Item 3)
In January 2024 the franchisor sued a former franchisee for breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and trademark infringement, alleging the franchisee kept operating a competing business under its former 1-800 Water Damage business profiles after termination; the parties reached a confidential settlement in December 2025 requiring a lump-sum payment to the franchisor. California DFPI itself shows no action on file.
Every franchisor has to file a document called an FDD before they can legally sell you a franchise. Buried in it are the two things a sales rep won't volunteer: what you'll actually spend to open, and whether existing locations are opening or closing. That's what's below, pulled straight from 1-800 Water Damage's own filing.
What it costs to open
From the filing's investment breakdown -- not a "starting at" number a sales rep quoted you.
Franchise fee
$59,000
Total to open
$142,903–$312,398
Ongoing royalty
10% of gross sales
What you'd actually spend, over time
The upfront cost is only part of it. Plug in what you expect a location to bring in, and see the real total once royalties over a few years are added on top.
Defaulted to a rough home services industry average, not a figure from 1-800 Water Damage's own FDD -- change it to your own estimate.
Total cost of ownership over 5 years
$442,903 – $612,398
Startup investment
$142,903–$312,398
Royalty per year (10%)
$60,000
Total royalty, 5yr
$300,000
When would you break even?
Revenue alone doesn't tell you this -- it depends on what's left after rent, labor, and everything else. 1-800 Water Damage's FDD doesn't disclose a reliable profit figure (most franchisors don't), so this starts from a typical home services profit margin (~15%) and applies it to the revenue you entered above -- adjust the percentage to your own realistic estimate.
Defaulted to a general home services industry benchmark, not a figure from 1-800 Water Damage's own filing -- this is a starting point to adjust, not a promise about what franchisees actually make.
At that profit, you'd break even in about
1.6–3.5 years
Weigh that payback period against what you already know: 1-800 Water Damage is currently losing locations. A long payback period on a shrinking brand is a very different bet than the same payback period on a growing one.
Is 1-800 Water Damage actually growing?
Franchisors have to report, every year, how many locations opened, closed, or changed hands. Most franchise sites never show you this. Here it is:
Locations opened vs. closed, by year
ShrinkingFrom Item 20 of 1-800 Water Damage's FDD, the section franchisors use to disclose real openings and closings.
| Year | Franchised units, start | Franchised units, end | Net change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 167 | 178 | +11 |
| 2024 | 178 | 175 | -3 |
| 2025 | 175 | 160 | -15 |
Most recent year (2025): lost 15 franchised units, ending the year at 160 total.
What you're actually signing up for
The cost and growth numbers above are only part of the picture. These three FDD items are the ones a prospective franchisee tends to weigh most heavily once they're past the sticker price.
Training & ongoing support (Item 11)
Training runs in two tracks: a self-guided "Jumpstart" business-startup program (completed within 2 months of signing), then a required Business Manager and Technical Operations Training Program (within 4 months) totaling about 80 hours of classroom business/sales/marketing/software training plus roughly 32 hours classroom + 39 hours on-the-job technical (safety, equipment, chemicals, restoration standards) training, held at HQ in Ann Arbor, MI or virtually. After training, a roughly 90-day "Transitional Period" has the franchisee observe live customer service calls before running solo.
Territory protection (Item 12)
Territory is sized to roughly 350,000 people and defined by zip codes (using third-party demographic data). Protections only cover advertising and office location -- no other 1-800 Water Damage franchisee may advertise or open an office in your zip codes. But there is NO protection on actually servicing customers there: other franchisees or company-owned stores can accept jobs inside your Territory without restriction, a real, easy-to-miss gap between "your territory" and "your customers."
Renewal & termination terms (Item 17)
Shorter initial term than most franchises in this dataset: 5 years, with two additional 5-year renewal terms available (no renewal fee for the first renewal). Payment defaults get a 15-day cure period; some defaults have no cure at all. Disputes go to the franchisor's President first for informal resolution, then binding AAA arbitration in Ann Arbor, Michigan -- a real travel/venue burden for an out-of-state franchisee. Receiving 3+ default notices for similar violations within any 2-year period becomes its own separate, non-curable default.
How 1-800 Water Damage compares to other Home Services franchises
Across the 11 home services franchises we've hand-verified so far, the typical range to open runs $168,982–$317,036, with royalties averaging around 7.4% of gross sales (based on the 7 of them that charge a flat %-of-revenue royalty).
$258,100–$480,500 · 7% royalty
Pool Scouts$96,662–$133,787 · 8% royalty
PuroClean$108,503–$152,618 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
1-800-GOT-JUNK?$182,300–$303,500 · 8% royalty
Re-Bath$275,875–$606,925 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
Two Men and a Truck$146,950–$512,450 · 6% royalty
Mr. Rooter$152,900–$298,675 · 6% royalty
Servpro$263,305–$385,570 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
Mosquito Joe$150,155–$191,575 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
Weed Man$81,150–$109,400 · 7% royalty
1-800 Water Damage Franchise FAQ
How much does it cost to franchise a 1-800 Water Damage?
Based on 1-800 Water Damage's own FDD, total initial investment to open one location runs $142,903–$312,398, including the $59,000 franchise fee. California DFPI Registration Renewal, filed 4/2/2026. FDD issuance date March 30, 2026.
What is the 1-800 Water Damage franchise fee and royalty rate?
The initial franchise fee is $59,000, and the ongoing royalty is 10% of gross sales, per the filing on record.
Is the 1-800 Water Damage franchise growing or shrinking?
Shrinking. Across 2023–2025, 1-800 Water Damage lost a net 7 franchised locations, per its own annual FDD filings.
Keep going
- 1-800 Water Damage and Two Men and a Truck are both home services franchises; 1-800 Water Damage's total investment starts about $4,047 lower than Two Men and a Truck's. Two Men and a Truck Franchise
- 1-800 Water Damage and Mosquito Joe are both home services franchises; 1-800 Water Damage's total investment starts about $7,252 lower than Mosquito Joe's. Mosquito Joe Franchise
Where this came from: California DFPI Registration Renewal, filed 4/2/2026. FDD issuance date March 30, 2026. You can pull the same filing yourself from the California DFPI's public franchise search. Filed 2026-03-30. None of this is investment advice -- get the franchisor's current FDD and talk to a real attorney or accountant before you sign anything.
If you see a different unit count elsewhere: franchisors only have to refile their FDD annually, so the numbers here can run 6–18 months behind a franchisor's own real-time marketing claims -- which often aren't independently verified, and sometimes count signed-but-not-yet-open locations. A gap isn't necessarily an error on either side; it's two different snapshots in time from two different sources.