New Again Houses review: a regulated house-flipping franchise, with fees that bite into margins
Founded in 2008 by former college coach Matt Lavinder in Bristol, Tennessee, New Again Houses franchises a system for buying and renovating older homes. Because it’s a franchise, its costs and results are disclosed in a federally required document. We reviewed what it shows.
As a franchise, New Again Houses offers far more disclosure than any coaching program: a Franchise Disclosure Document with costs, earnings data and no reported material litigation, plus steady unit growth. The trade-off is cost: a $50,000 fee, $124,000 to $216,000 to start, and royalties and brand fees taken from gross home sales, which can consume a large share of a flip’s profit.
Who is Matt Lavinder?
Matt Lavinder (sometimes misspelled Lavender) is a former college coach who founded New Again Houses in Bristol, Tennessee, in 2008 as a local business buying and renovating older homes. The company began franchising in 2018 through New Again Franchising, Inc.
How the franchise works
New Again Houses is not a coaching program. Franchisees license the brand and system for buying, renovating and reselling older homes in their territory, and receive initial online training covering the business, plus ongoing support. Because it is sold as a franchise, it must provide prospective buyers a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) under FTC rules, including fees, litigation and, where disclosed, earnings information.
What it costs
- Initial franchise fee: $50,000, per the 2026 FDD (earlier filings showed $42,500 and $45,000).
- Total initial investment: $123,700 to $216,200, including advertising, insurance, software and down payments on properties.
- Royalty: 2.25% of gross sales.
- Brand or advertising fund: reported at 2.4% by one franchise database.
- Renewal and transfer fees: $5,000 and $10,000.
Fees versus flip margins
Royalties are charged on gross sales, meaning the sale price of each home, not the profit. If combined royalty and brand fees total about 4.65%, a home sold for $300,000 would generate roughly $14,000 in fees regardless of how much the flip earned. Flip profits are often a modest share of the sale price, so prospective franchisees should model fees against realistic profit per house, not revenue.
What the FDD shows
| Item | Source | Status | What we found |
|---|---|---|---|
| Material litigation | FDD Item 3, per franchise databases | None disclosed | No material litigation reported |
| Unit count and closures | 2026 FDD, per franchise databases | Disclosed | 53 to 54 outlets; none ceased operations in the latest reported year |
| Earnings data | FDD Item 19 | Disclosed | Quartile gross profit data; one database reported average gross revenue of about $1.45 million for 2024 |
| Overall franchise grade | Third-party databases | Mixed | Graded C on disclosure honesty by one site and D overall by another |
What franchisees say
We found no published franchisee reviews on franchise review sites. The FDD lists current and former franchisees, whom prospective buyers can contact directly, the most reliable way to learn about real results. We found no lawsuits or regulatory actions involving New Again Houses or Matt Lavinder.
Strengths and concerns
Strengths
- Federally required disclosure through an FDD.
- No material litigation disclosed.
- Steady unit growth with no recent closures.
- Earnings data provided in Item 19.
Concerns
- A significant upfront investment and a rising franchise fee.
- Fees charged on gross sales rather than profit.
- Mixed third-party franchise grades.
- No public franchisee reviews.
Who it suits
Good fit: people who want to run a full-time house-flipping business with an established system, brand and support, and have the capital.
Think carefully: anyone who could learn flipping through cheaper education and keep all of their sales revenue.
Questions to ask before buying a franchise
- What is the median profit per house among franchisees, after all fees?
- What do current and former franchisees listed in the FDD say?
- How is my territory protected?
- Have a franchise attorney review the FDD and agreement.
What would change our verdict
- Profit-based rather than revenue-based fees;
- published franchisee satisfaction data.
What we couldn’t verify
- Franchisee profit after fees.
- Franchisee satisfaction.
- The full current FDD, which we reviewed through franchise databases.
Verdict history
October 15, 2026 · Initial review · Mixed (7.4)
Sources
- New Again Houses franchise review 2026 (VetMyFranchise)
- New Again Houses franchise: the real numbers (Franchise Validate)
- New Again Houses scorecard (FranDeals)
- New Again Houses franchise FDD, costs and fees (Franchise Payback)
- New Again Houses franchise FDD, profits and costs (SharpSheets)
- New Again Houses franchise cost and reviews (Franchise Verdict)
About this review
Investors Verdict is independent. We have no affiliate, referral or business relationship with New Again Houses, New Again Franchising or Matt Lavinder or any company mentioned, and no payment of any kind affects our verdicts.
This review is based on public records, court filings, news reports, company materials and published sources as of the date shown. Claims and allegations are attributed to their source. Verdicts and scores are our opinion based on the facts disclosed above, using our published review method. This review is not financial, legal or investment advice.