Who is responsible for selecting a site for a Counselor Realty office?
Counselor_Realty Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
You must select a site for your Office within 180 days after you sign this Agreement. After you notify us of a proposed site for your Office, we will have 30 days to review the site and to notify you whether or not we consent to your operation of the Business at that site. If we reject the site you propose, you will have an additional 60 days to locate a site that is acceptable to us. If you fail to do so, this Agreement will automatically terminate and we will refund your Initial Franchise Fee, less our expenses associated with reviewing the proposed site(s). After we consent to an Office site you propose (if at all), you must open your Business at that site within six months. If you fail to do so, this Agreement will automatically terminate and your Initial Franchise Fee will not be refunded. We may, in our sole discretion, grant extensions of the deadlines described above. Our consent to a site is not a guarantee or assurance as to the availability, suitability or prospects of an Office or Business.
Source: Item 5 — INITIAL FEES (FDD page 9)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Counselor Realty's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the franchisee is responsible for selecting a site for their office. The franchisee has 180 days after signing the Franchise Agreement to select a site. Once the franchisee proposes a site, Counselor Realty has 30 days to review and either approve or reject it.
If Counselor Realty rejects the initial site, the franchisee has an additional 60 days to find an acceptable location. Failure to do so can result in the termination of the Franchise Agreement, though Counselor Realty may grant extensions at its discretion. If a site is approved, the franchisee must open their Counselor Realty business within six months, or the agreement may be terminated, and the initial franchise fee will not be refunded.
Counselor Realty's consent to a site does not guarantee its availability, suitability, or the success of the business. This means that while Counselor Realty reviews the site, the ultimate responsibility for choosing a viable location rests with the franchisee, who also bears the risk if the location proves unsuccessful. This is a fairly standard arrangement in franchising, where the franchisee typically handles site selection while the franchisor retains approval rights to protect brand consistency and viability.