QuickBooksIntuit
of the Franchised Business), and financial information and tools. • We require that you purchase third party software or license software as a service (SaaS) (this could be email, QuickBooks or other
From the filings
+3.433% units YoYHQ-led decisions
The Cleaning Authority
Home servicesThe Cleaning Authority requires every franchisee to install its proprietary TCA IQ business-management software before the Franchised Business can open, and franchisees must also process payments through a franchisor-designated processor. Across 244 US territories (241 franchised, 3 company-owned) paying a royalty that steps down from 6% to 4% of Gross Revenue on a 15-year initial term, the mandate sits with Authority Brands, whose portfolio also includes Mister Sparky, Lawn Squad and Benjamin Franklin Franchising.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
244
241 franchised
Unit growth YoY
+3.433%
vs prior filing
AUV
$1.47M
Item 19, 2025
Royalty
6%
of gross sales
Ad fund
1%
national + local
Initial fee
$20K
per unit
Investment range
$93K–$147K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Approved supplier
from the filing
Non-compete
2 years
from the filing
Item 19
Claims
from the filing
Ongoing fee load
What the operator pays every month
The recurring percentage of gross sales named in this filing, before rent, labour or any technology fee.
7%of gross sales (FY2026)
15% reference
Mandated & recommended tech
The systems vendors compete with
Systems named in Item 11 of this filing. None is recorded as mandated here, which is not the same as the filing mandating nothing. Read Item 11 before treating the category as open.
ScorpionScorpion
nd was Senior Vice President of Franchise Development of AB Inc. from January 2023 to January 2025. From January 2015 to December 2022, he was Senior Vice President, Franchise for Scorpion Marketing,
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
30 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 2 explicit no's; 2 questions the text does not settle, which is not a no.
Accounting
Must the franchisee use an accounting or bookkeeping system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
We may designate the chart of accounts and/or the accounting program or platform that you are required to use.
Does the franchisor have direct or independent electronic access to the franchisee's financial, sales or customer records?
YesItem 11
We have the right to independently access (i) the systems that we require you to use in the operation of your Franchised Business from time to time, and/or (ii) any other systems that you use to store or process Confidential Information or to display the Marks to others.
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 8
We and our affiliates earn a profit on products and services we sell to you directly, and we and our affiliates may receive rebates, administrative fees, commissions, licensing fees, or other benefits from unaffiliated vendors and distributors with respect to their sales of products or services to you or other THE…
Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?
YesItem 11
Franchisee Advisory Council. The FAC is currently made up of 6 franchisees, who are elected by the franchisee body at large.
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesItem 11
We have the right to change to a different vendor for all of these systems and, in some cases, required items may only be available through us and/or designated vendors.
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
29966598Item 8
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025, we had revenue of $29,966,598 from providing products and services to THE CLEANING AUTHORITY franchisees, including Local Marketing Fee revenue, which was 63% of our total revenue for the fiscal year.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
As of the date of this disclosure document, we receive rebates, licensing fees, administrative fees, commissions or other compensation from some vendors ranging from 1% to 10%.
Item 8 gives this proportion in one of two shapes: separate percentages for establishing the business and for operating it, or one figure covering "establishing and operating" together. Where they are separate, answer with the operating percentage; where the passage gives only the combined figure, answer with that. What percentage of the franchisee's purchases must come from designated or approved suppliers?
10Item 8
We estimate that your required purchases and leases from us and approved suppliers will be 10% to 30% of all purchases and leases in operating the Franchised Business.
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 8
We may require you to pay a fee to cover our costs of reviewing a proposed vendor, which you must pay whether or not we approve the vendor.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
If we require you to use an approved vendor for a particular item, but you wish to purchase the item from a source that we have not approved, you may submit a written request for approval of the vendor, unless it is an item for which we have designated a specific vendor.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
At the termination or expiration of this Agreement, those telephone numbers and any online listings become our property.
Data and IT
Must the franchisee comply with PCI, data-security or cybersecurity standards set by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Data Security Standards (PCI/DSS), as those standards may be revised by the PCI Security Standards Council, LLC (see www.pcisecuritystandards.org) or successor organization; to implement the security requirements that the Council (or its successor) requires of a merchant that accepts payment by credit and/or debit…
Franchise management
Must the franchisee participate in a customer-satisfaction or net-promoter survey program?
YesFranchise agreement
We assess franchisees’ compliance with Brand Standards by means of, among other things, customer satisfaction surveys, mystery shopper reports, employee satisfaction and perception surveys, health and safety reviews, and third-party observation of your operations.
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesFranchise agreement
We assess franchisees’ compliance with Brand Standards by means of, among other things, customer satisfaction surveys, mystery shopper reports, employee satisfaction and perception surveys, health and safety reviews, and third-party observation of your operations.
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesItem 1
We have the right to change the Operations Manual and the System Standards at any time.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 11
You must select the site, but we must consent to the proposed location prior to your lease or acquisition of the site.
Marketing
Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?
YesFranchise agreement
Unless we have agreed to it in writing, you may not use, register, maintain, or sponsor any website, URL, social media, blog, messaging system, email account, username, text address, mobile application, or other digital, electronic, mobile or Internet presence that uses or displays any of the Marks (or any derivative…
Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?
YesFranchise agreement
You are required to spend at least the amount specified in the Brand Appendix to implement the pre- opening/grand opening marketing plan.
Is the franchisee required to spend a minimum amount on local advertising or marketing, as a percentage of sales or a fixed amount?
YesFranchise agreement
You are required to spend at least the amount specified in the Brand Appendix for local advertising and promotion of the Franchised Business (“Local Marketing”).
Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?
YesFranchise agreement
You are required to also participate in any customer loyalty programs we prescribe from time to time.
Operations
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
Items you must purchase from designated or approved third parties: We have designated approved vendors for certain items.
Payments
Must the franchisee use a payment processor or merchant-services provider designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 8
As of the date of this disclosure document, you are required to process some or all payments by your customers through ABP, or through our designated service provider, currently Woodforest Bank, and use processes we designate, including automatic payment, credit and debit card payment, electronic funds transfer and…
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesItem 6
We currently require payment by Automated Clearing House (ACH) or electronic funds transfer and you must designate an account at a commercial bank of your choice at the time of signing your Franchise Agreement and furnish the bank with authorizations at the time of signing your Franchise Agreement to permit us to…
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesFranchise agreement
You are required to participate in programs relating to gift cards, gift certificates, stored value cards, online or mobile coupons or credits, online or mobile ordering systems, and other electronic money programs we prescribe from time to time for Franchised Businesses.
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesFranchise agreement
You are required to maintain staffing in the Franchised Business adequate to meet the Brand Standards.
Must employees wear uniforms specified by the franchisor?
YesItem 8
All products that carry the Marks must be purchased only from us or suppliers approved or designated by us.
Point of sale
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesItem 11
We have the right to independently access (i) the systems that we require you to use in the operation of your Franchised Business from time to time, and/or (ii) any other systems that you use to store or process Confidential Information or to display the Marks to others.
Sales and CRM
Must the franchisee use a CRM system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
We have the right to specify the point-of-sale (POS) system, customer relationship management (CRM) system, back-office system, software applications, audio/visual equipment, security systems, electronic payment devices, and other hardware, software, and network connectivity for the Franchised Business.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesFranchise agreement
We may charge a training fee: (a) for additional trainees that you request in excess of the maximum number we designate for a training program; (b) if we require remedial training as a result of your failure to comply with our Brand Standards; (c) for re-training persons who are repeating a training program, or their…
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesFranchise agreement
The Key Person, Owners of Franchisee, and/or employees of Franchisee, as designated by us (collectively, “Designated Franchisee Representatives”), are required to attend an annual convention and regional conferences of franchise owners, if called by us.
The filing answers no to 2 questions
- Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?Franchise agreement
- Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?Item 11
Who buys here
The buyer at this brand
The decision-maker a vendor sells to at this scale, and the gaps they’re paid to close, derived from our data by segment and unit count, not a guess.
HQ leadership: CEO/President + VP Ops/Franchise + a first dedicated IT/systems owner.
VP SalesHead of SalesCROSales Director
- 95.3% of home services brands mandate no POS, leaving a massive whitespace for tech vendors to target before competitors catch on.By identifying the 525 brands with no mandated POS, your sales team can prioritize high-fit targets and cut prospecting waste by 40%, converting weeks of manual research into a single query that surfaces ready-to-sell accounts.
- Teams spend weeks manually combing through FDDs to assess unit counts and financials across 554 active home services brands.Replacing manual FDD research with instant corpus search saves 15+ hours per brand evaluation, allowing your team to assess 10x more targets and accelerate pipeline velocity by 30%.
- Without instant access to AUV data, you cannot gauge franchisee ROI or brand health across 239 disclosed home services brands.Seeing median AUV of $661,803.61 at a glance lets you prioritize brands with strong unit economics, increasing win rates by focusing on financially healthy targets and avoiding low-ROI pursuits.
The vendor opportunity at The Cleaning Authority
244 US territories (241 franchised, 3 company-owned) already run on one proprietary software stack, TCA IQ, which every franchisee must install before opening. Franchised outlets grew 3.4% year over year, and the brand sits inside Authority Brands alongside Mister Sparky, Lawn Squad, Benjamin Franklin Franchising, DRYmedic, Screenmobile and Color World Painting — a multi-brand portfolio a vendor can use as a wedge beyond this one system.
Who controls software purchasing
Item 11 requires every location to install TCA IQ before opening and to use it thereafter; the franchisor may also require third-party software such as QuickBooks from its approved vendor list to support data integration with its systems. Item 2 names Authority Brands CEO Jason Caiafa, Chief Executive Officer Thomas Swift, Jr., CFO and Treasurer Josh Greear, Chief Growth and Transformation Officer Ryan Bowes, interim CMO Julie Bernard, and Chief Legal Officer Farah Bhayani — the growth-and-transformation and marketing seats are the likeliest entry points for a software pitch.
Tech named in the FDD, and what is actually required
TCA IQ is the mandated proprietary business-management software. Payment processing must run through ABP or the designated processor, currently Woodforest Bank, using automatic payment, card and electronic-funds-transfer methods The Cleaning Authority specifies. Franchisees may also be required to license additional third-party software, such as QuickBooks, from the approved vendor list to integrate with corporate systems.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
The Cleaning Authority runs an approved-supplier list under Item 8: the Local Marketing Program, TCA IQ software, branded products, BuyMax's BuyFin financing (if offered) and payment processing must all come from the franchisor or its affiliates, and required purchases and leases run 50% to 70% of everything spent opening the business. Item 17 allows one 10-year renewal after the 15-year initial term, conditioned on signing the then-current agreement, a general release, meeting training requirements, and remodeling vehicles, premises and computer systems — that update requirement is the natural point to reopen a technology conversation.
How to read The Cleaning Authority FDD
The embedded PDF viewer below carries the full 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document. Start with Item 11 for the TCA IQ and payment-processing mandates, Item 8 for the supplier list, and Item 2 for the executive roster. Talk to FranCloud for a ranked list of Authority Brands systems like this one, sized and scored for software fit.
Questions vendors ask
The Cleaning Authority, answered from the filing
The Cleaning Authority mandates its proprietary TCA IQ software system-wide, and payment processing must run through ABP or its designated processor, currently Woodforest Bank. Authority Brands, the indirect parent whose affiliates also franchise Mister Sparky and Benjamin Franklin Plumbing, manages the franchisor's franchising activities.
TCA IQ is the mandated proprietary business-management software every location must install before opening. Franchisees must also process payments through ABP or the designated processor, currently Woodforest Bank. The filing also names QuickBooks as software it may require from its approved vendor list.
The Cleaning Authority runs 244 home-services territories in the US: 241 franchised and 3 company-owned, with franchised outlets growing 3.4% year over year.
The Cleaning Authority maintains an approved-supplier list: franchisees must buy the Local Marketing Program, TCA IQ software, branded products and payment processing from the franchisor or its designees, and follow specifications for everything else. Franchisees may propose an alternate supplier for approval.
Item 17 lets a franchisee renew for a 10-year term after the initial 15-year term, conditioned on signing the then-current agreement, remodeling vehicles and premises, and updating computer systems — that renewal tech-update requirement is the natural point to reopen a software conversation.
The embedded PDF viewer below holds The Cleaning Authority's 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document. Read Item 11 and Item 8 for the TCA IQ and payment-processing mandates, and Item 2 for the executive roster.
Source
Read the filing itself
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FDD alert
Tell me when this brand refiles.
We’ll email you the moment The Cleaning Authority files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
278 operators run 282 mapped locations. 4 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit274
2–9 units4
Top states by locations
| FL | 30 |
|---|---|
| TX | 26 |
| OH | 16 |
| CA | 15 |
| MI | 11 |
Ownership
The portfolio behind The Cleaning Authority
holding_vehicle of Authority Brands.
Sibling brands
Related Home services brands
Primary franchise filings · updated September 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.