Buying a Franchise Resale in Australia: What You Need to Know
A franchise resale is an existing franchise business — complete with customers, equipment, staff, and a trading history — offered for sale by its current franchisee, not the franchisor. In Australia, service franchise resales from systems like Jim's Group, Hire A Hubby, and Poolwerx appear regularly, priced anywhere from $60,000 for a modest single-territory lawn mowing run up to $600,000 or more for a multi-van operation generating reliable weekly income. They're a sourcing channel most first-time buyers overlook entirely. Whether that's a problem or an opportunity depends on whether you know where to look.
What is a franchise resale exactly?
A franchise resale occurs when an existing franchisee sells their business — not just their equipment, but their established customer base, trading area, and the right to continue operating under the franchise brand. You're buying a going concern. The franchisor doesn't disappear from the transaction; they need to approve you as the incoming franchisee, and you'll sign a new or transferred franchise agreement as part of the settlement.
The critical distinction: a resale is not a new territory. A new territory comes with the brand and the systems, but without existing customers. A resale comes with revenue already running through it. That difference sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised how many buyers conflate the two when they're first exploring the franchise market.
Rule of thumb: A healthy franchise resale should show at minimum 12 months of consistent revenue — ideally three years of verifiable figures before you start negotiating.
Franchise resale vs buying a new territory
When a franchisor sells you a new territory, they're selling you a licence and a system. You start from zero — no customers, no local reputation, just the brand and whatever training the franchisor provides. Some systems (Jim's Group comes to mind) are well-supported enough that a motivated operator can build a solid run within 12 to 18 months. But it's still a startup.
A resale is different. You're paying for the existing business — the route, the recurring clients, the vehicle, the equipment, and in some cases the personal goodwill the outgoing franchisee built in that postcode over years of showing up reliably. You're paying more upfront, but you're also stepping into cash flow from day one — a meaningful difference when you've just written a large cheque and need to start servicing debt from the first month.
One buyer I spoke with recently had been quoted $25,000 for a new Jim's Mowing territory and $145,000 for an established resale nearby. He nearly dismissed the resale as overpriced until he realised it included 115 regular clients, two years of trading history, a fully equipped trailer, and a four-week handover from the existing franchisee. He bought the resale (and didn't regret it, which puts him ahead of most first-time buyers on the regret front).
Franchise resale vs buying an independent trades business
This is the more interesting comparison for most people reading this site.
When you buy an independent plumbing or landscaping business, you're buying something with no brand restrictions. You set your own prices, choose your own suppliers, hire who you like, and sell to whoever you choose when you're done. The brand equity you build is entirely yours.
A franchise resale is the opposite trade-off. You get the franchisor's brand, national marketing, and systems — but in return, you pay ongoing royalties, operate within the franchisor's rules, and when you eventually exit, the franchisor gets to approve your buyer. You don't fully own the customer relationship; the franchisor's brand sits between you and the client.
For buyers coming from a corporate background, the franchise model can feel reassuring — there's a manual for everything, and the support structure is visible. For buyers who want real control over how the business operates, an independent acquisition is almost always the better fit. Neither is wrong; they're just different bets.
Rule of thumb: If the franchise royalties exceed 8% of revenue, model your post-royalty EBITDA carefully before committing. High royalty structures compress margins significantly in price-sensitive, competitive markets like residential cleaning.
This is also worth reading alongside the guide to how to value a small business — because the valuation methodology for a franchise resale differs from an independent business in a few important ways.
Types of service franchise resales in Australia
Most franchise resales relevant to this site's audience fall into a handful of categories.
Jim's Group resales — Australia's largest franchise network, covering mowing, cleaning, pest control, pool care, and more. Single-operator Jim's runs change hands frequently, typically in the $50,000–$200,000 range. Multi-van operations sit higher. Jim's has a structured transfer process and a centralised jobs system that gives buyers a clearer revenue picture than most franchise systems.
Hire A Hubby resales — trades-based handyman franchises. More variable in quality than Jim's. Territory boundaries are less rigorously defined, so it's worth understanding how many active Hire A Hubby technicians operate near your proposed area before buying.
Poolwerx and Swimart resales — pool maintenance and retail. Seasonal revenue patterns in the southern states; stronger recurring income in Queensland and Western Australia. Good businesses for buyers who don't mind the technical learning curve around water chemistry.
Cleaning system resales — Jims Cleaning, Cleantastic, Total Clean. Revenue quality varies widely depending on how much of the book is contract-based commercial versus one-off residential. Ask about client churn before you go any further.
Pest control franchise resales — Pestie, Flick, and others. Strong recurring revenue if the book includes ongoing treatment contracts. Worth checking whether the existing customer agreements survive the change of ownership.
How much does a franchise resale cost in Australia?
Franchise resales are broadly valued using the same EBITDA multiple framework as independent businesses — but with some important adjustments that buyers often miss until they're deep into due diligence.
Royalties reduce your effective EBITDA. A business generating $130,000 in revenue with $90,000 in operating profit before royalties might produce only $70,000–$75,000 after paying 8–10% in royalties and marketing levies. Apply your multiples to the post-royalty figure, not the pre-royalty one.
Remaining franchise agreement term matters. If there are only two or three years left on the current agreement, you're buying into either renegotiation risk with the franchisor or a forced exit event. A shorter remaining term justifies a lower multiple. Three-plus years remaining is the floor I'd want to see as a buyer.
Transfer fees are an additional acquisition cost. Most franchisors charge a transfer fee ranging from $5,000 to $30,000 to approve the incoming franchisee. This doesn't appear in the asking price, so budget for it separately.
Training costs have a time component. Some franchisors require you to complete their induction program even if you're an experienced operator. That has a real opportunity cost even when the training itself is nominally free.
For a Jim's Mowing resale in a major metro area with 80 to 100 established clients, $120,000–$180,000 is a realistic current range. For a larger multi-van cleaning operation turning over $800,000 annually, you might see asking prices of $350,000–$500,000.
How to find franchise resales in Australia
This is the practical question — the Module 3 work. Franchise resales surface through several channels, and the best deals rarely appear through the most obvious one.
SEEK Business and Businesses for Sale — the main business-for-sale marketplaces list franchise resales alongside independent businesses. Filter by "franchise" and your state. Listings are often vague about the specific system, requiring an enquiry to get the detail you actually need.
Franchise system websites — Jim's Group, Hire A Hubby, and most major networks have dedicated resale or "territories for sale" pages on their own sites. These often list resales that never make it to the broader marketplaces. Worth bookmarking and checking monthly if you're targeting a specific system.
Franchise brokers — specialist brokers who deal only in franchise resales. They tend to have existing relationships with franchisors and hear about resales months before they're formally listed. Finding two or three in your state is worth the effort; the guide to business broker fees in Australia explains what you'd typically pay and how the commission structure works.
Contacting franchisors directly — call or email the national franchise development team and ask whether any resales are coming up in your preferred area or state. Franchisors often know six to twelve months ahead of time that a franchisee is planning to exit. They'd rather have a pre-qualified buyer lined up than run a public listing process (which can unsettle remaining franchisees in the network). This is a genuinely underused channel.
Other franchisees in the network — if you're serious about a particular system, introduce yourself to franchisees operating in adjacent territories. They often know who's thinking of leaving before anyone else does. This warm-introduction approach consistently surfaces the best deals before they're formally listed — which is exactly how off-market sourcing works across the whole business-buying market (see finding off-market businesses for sale in Australia for the broader playbook).
Deal sourcing for franchise resales — and for the broader acquisition search — is covered in depth in Module 3 of the Playbook.
The franchisor approval process
Unlike buying an independent business, a franchise resale requires the franchisor's formal approval of you as the incoming franchisee. The process typically involves an application, a background and financial assessment, an interview with the development team, and a mandatory training or induction period — even if you arrive with relevant experience.
The approval process adds time to the transaction. Budget for four to eight additional weeks compared to a straightforward independent purchase. It also means a deal can fall over late in the process if the franchisor declines you — rare, but it happens, and usually to buyers who didn't get informal confirmation of franchisor support early in negotiations.
Get that informal confirmation before you're deep into your due diligence process. You don't want to spend three weeks verifying financials and negotiating price only to discover the franchisor won't approve the transfer.
Want the full due diligence checklist for buying any business in Australia? Grab it free at /resources/due-diligence-checklist-buying-business-australia
Red flags before you sign
A few things that should slow you down or stop you entirely.
The incumbent's reason for leaving. Retirement and health are genuine exit reasons. "Not making enough money" is a signal to scrutinise the financials harder than you planned.
Pending renewal negotiations. If the franchise agreement is due for renewal and the new terms aren't yet agreed, you're buying uncertainty. Understand the likely renewal terms — including any royalty increases — before you make an offer.
Territory disputes. Some franchise systems have poorly defined territories or have added new franchisees in areas that were previously exclusive to one operator. Ask the franchisor directly whether the territory boundary is formal and enforceable.
Royalty arrears. If the outgoing franchisee owes the franchisor money, this can complicate the transfer. Confirm directly with the franchisor — in writing — that the account is in good standing before you exchange contracts.
Customer concentration. A residential mowing run with 100 small weekly clients is resilient. A commercial cleaning contract where three clients represent 70% of revenue is fragile — and the same customer concentration rules that apply to independent businesses apply here, just as hard.
FAQ
What is the most profitable franchise to own in Australia? Profitability depends on territory, local competition, and the operator's effort. Service franchises — pest control, pool maintenance, cleaning — with recurring contract revenue and low asset intensity tend to produce the strongest returns relative to the investment required.
How much does it cost to buy a franchise resale in Australia? Service franchise resales typically range from $50,000 for a small single-operator run up to $500,000 or more for a larger staffed operation. Add franchisor transfer fees ($5,000–$30,000) and working capital requirements on top of the purchase price.
Is it profitable to buy a franchise? A well-chosen franchise resale with established revenue can generate solid returns. The catch is that royalties (typically 6–12% of revenue) and marketing levies reduce margins relative to an equivalent independent business. Model the post-royalty profit carefully before committing.
What are two risks of buying a franchise? Franchisor relationship risk — they can change the rules, raise fees, or decline to renew your agreement — and limited exit flexibility. When you eventually sell, you can only sell to a franchisor-approved buyer, which reduces your pool of potential purchasers.
If this is your first time thinking seriously about buying a business, how to buy a small business in Australia walks through the full process from initial search to settlement day.
For the financing side — including whether a bank will lend against a franchise resale (they typically will, and often more readily than against an independent business) — financing a business purchase in Australia covers that separately.
For ongoing research, deal analysis, and real examples from my own acquisition search, the place to be is The Leveraged Worker newsletter — subscribe at /blog and get practical content in your inbox each week, not the polished highlights-reel version.