What is the current Late Revisions Fee for a Belocal franchise?
Belocal Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
- (vi) All other applicable fees and/or deductions applicable to you or the Publication, including, but not limited to: (1) extra copy orders fee; (2) late commission deductions; (3) design revision fee and adjustment fee; (4) missed deadline fee and late revisions fee; (5) Returnable Commissions (as defined below); (6) fees for services we or our affiliates provide, including any optional services you elect to receive from us or our affiliates; (7) cross-selling fees originating from your sales into publications managed by us or our affiliates or fees for Corporate Ads; (8) lead generation fees; (9) Administrative Credit Card Fees; and/or (10) Negative Commissions (as defined in the Franchise Agreement).
"Cash Received" means all revenue actually received by us or our affiliates from advertisers, recipients of the Publication, or other parties under the terms of advertising contracts or any other form of agreement or contract related to each issue of the Publication. You will not receive a Commission payment in the month or months that a Negative Commission occurs. Commission payments will be accompanied by a Commission accounting and reconciliation report that itemizes Cash Received and the other applicable fees and expenses described in this Item 6. If the Commission report reflects that you have been paid a Commission in an amount that is more than you are due, then you must return to us the amount of overpayment ("Returnable Commission").
"Pre-print Commission" means a one-time payment equal to 10% of the total value of the contract with the advertiser for the purchase of print advertisements to be included in a publication managed by a Receiving Franchisee. If you cross-sell print advertising into a publication managed by another franchisee or our affiliate before the first issue of the Publication is published, then you may elect to receive a Pre-print Commission in lieu of the Outgoing Cross-Selling Fee. If you elect to receive a Pre-print Commission, we will pay you the Pre-print Commission within 20 days after the publication deadline of the publication in which the ad appears.
In addition to all requirements related to the printing of the first issue of the Publication and your compliance with the Franchise Agreement generally, payment of your first Commission is conditioned upon you having created a legal entity to be the franchisee and securing and producing evidence of all required insurance coverage.
Source: Item 6 — OTHER FEES (FDD pages 14–31)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
Based on the 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the commission payment for a Belocal franchise is subject to several deductions and fees. Among these potential deductions is a "late revisions fee," although the FDD does not specify the amount of this fee. Instead, the document indicates that the commission payment is subject to "(4) missed deadline fee and late revisions fee."
Because the specific amount of the late revisions fee is not listed, prospective Belocal franchisees should inquire with the franchisor about the amount of this fee and how it is assessed. Understanding the details of this fee will allow franchisees to better manage their commission payments and overall financial planning.
It is important to note that the franchisor retains the right to modify flat fees, including the late revisions fee, to account for inflation. This adjustment can occur up to once per calendar year, with a maximum increase equivalent to the yearly cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) percentage determined by the United States Social Security Administration or a similar inflation metric. Furthermore, the franchisor can carry forward any unapplied inflation adjustments to future years, providing flexibility in how these fees are adjusted over time. However, the total increase of each fee during the term of the Franchise Agreement will not be more than 25% of the fee currently identified in Item 6.