Hello, I currently live in Washington State, and work as an RN. I’m looking to buy a Carwash to build my wealth. I know very little about the business. One of my primary stressors is not understanding what all goes on “under the hood”. There’s a lot of motors, wires, and hoses. I’ve been searching online and have found some info but I’m wondering if there is a specific source that would be good for me to learn that aspect. Also the ones I’m seeing for sale are around 2.5 mill and above. Is there any hope of finding a run down one for under 500k in this area? (I have recently moved here from Louisiana and am not familiar with property prices yet).
Looking to get into the business
- Thread starter AJ519
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Waxman
Super Moderator
what I suggest to everyone in a similar situation to you is to go and get a part-time job working at a car wash to see if you even like the business or if the "under the hood" aspect is something you think you could even handle.
You have to do a lot of things yourself In the self serve car wash business if you want to achieve and maintain profitability.
you haven't told us much about yourself other than your current occupation which doesn't speak much to your skills with mechanical electrical plumbing etc. These are all important aspects of this business and you need to be able to have a working knowledge of "what's under the hood " , especially if you expect a bank to lend you between a half a million and three million dollars . if you're not willing to go get a job part time at a car wash to try and learn the business you should try another part-time gig that's lower stress And less investment. Dog walker maybe?
You have to do a lot of things yourself In the self serve car wash business if you want to achieve and maintain profitability.
you haven't told us much about yourself other than your current occupation which doesn't speak much to your skills with mechanical electrical plumbing etc. These are all important aspects of this business and you need to be able to have a working knowledge of "what's under the hood " , especially if you expect a bank to lend you between a half a million and three million dollars . if you're not willing to go get a job part time at a car wash to try and learn the business you should try another part-time gig that's lower stress And less investment. Dog walker maybe?
I haven’t had much experience in those areas professionally, but I understand basic wiring, I can fix basic plumbing issues, and I’m willing to figure out mechanical issues. I grew up helping my dad with these things.
I’m not against getting a part time job at a car wash, I’ve considered that actually.
And I currently make roughly 200k per year, so dog walking wouldn’t be a good choice for me. I am trying to find ways to build investments. I’ve thought about mini storage but it has a much higher entry cost.
Waxman
Super Moderator
Well another investment idea is multifamily commercial buildings. This is some thing I learned from other members on this forum and I took the leap myself about 10 years ago. It has worked out well for me and it's pretty easy compared to the car wash business.
We live in Western Washington and have been in the car wash business 40 years. Everything in Western Washington is crazy expensive. 2 run down car washes recently sold for $850,000 each. Both are now fenced off, one is being remodeled and the other one no one knows what’s going with it. Most decent car washes are sold by word of mouth. There’s a self-serve car wash for sale for $1.2 million in Tacoma that needs a lot of work. Here’s a link to some car washes that are for sale in Western Washington https://www.crexi.com/properties/1097748/washington-suds-city-car-wash My wife would love to sell our car wash.
MEP001
Well-known member
Almost anything else would be a better investment. A car wash CAN be a good investment, but it's a lot of work, takes a fair amount of time, and with what you'd end up paying on a note it's not very profitable. You really have to know what you're doing, and unless you pay someone to run it for you, forget about any vacations.
I’ve thought about using a VA home loan to buy a duplex and rent out half. I’ll have to look into multi family commercial and see how much start up cash you need. I only have around 120k currently.
MEP001
Well-known member
Banks aren't usually going to loan money on a car wash without at least 30% down. I doubt you'll find a car wash for under a million in your area unless it's shut down and gutted, in which case you'll need another $100k just to get it running.
Yeah that’s what I’ve been seeing. Meanwhile I’ve been watching “car wash chronicles” on YouTube along with other channels and apparently they’ve been buying car washes far cheaper in Arizona, Tennessee etc. For 1.2 million I hope they generate more than the 40-75k annual profit these YouTubers are reporting or else that sounds like a terribly low CAP rate.
Thanks for that. Yeah I’m currently looking at all of my options. Storage seems ideal but I don’t have the near million dollars lying around it seems I need to get into that business. I’ve thought about renting homes, but I figured it would be the same as a car wash with maintenance etc. I do plan to start with a duplex, and see how I feel about it.
Greg Pack
Wash Weenie
Good luck, here in Alabama there are still washes available for under 200K, some even under 100K.
I knew absolutely nothing about car washes when I leased my first one and it's worked out OK. I never thought it would become a full time job though. I would attempt direct contact with wash owners and see if you can find one that might work.
I knew absolutely nothing about car washes when I leased my first one and it's worked out OK. I never thought it would become a full time job though. I would attempt direct contact with wash owners and see if you can find one that might work.
How many hours a week would you say it takes up? I saw online people saying 10, but I can imagine more in the beginning. I currently work 60 hours a week as a healthcare provider, but I could cut those hours back some.
Dan kamsickas
GinSan Technician
You may have some weeks where 10 hours is enough. You'll have some weeks where 60 isn't.
I was hoping I could hire someone to fix major issues. I make around 80 an hour doing what I’m very comfortable with as far as my skill set, so I figure that would be more efficient time wise than trying to fix those complex issues on my own.
MEP001
Well-known member
For a self serve only with no automatic bays, there aren't any really major issues unless it's something like a broken water line under the driveway, which is a major deal. Mine broke February last year, it cost $20,000 to repair, and I was down nearly the whole month.
YouTube channels are NOT the place to get advice. They're "selling" investment knowledge. Chris Atkins makes money off YouTube, and he's sponsored by Monex Group, so he's making good money even before the car wash income. He wants viewers, so of course he's going to tell everybody that owning a car wash is great.
I've run a bunch of washes, and it's a lot of work. You can hire someone to do all the cleaning and repairs, but you'll pay them most of what would have been your income.
YouTube channels are NOT the place to get advice. They're "selling" investment knowledge. Chris Atkins makes money off YouTube, and he's sponsored by Monex Group, so he's making good money even before the car wash income. He wants viewers, so of course he's going to tell everybody that owning a car wash is great.
I've run a bunch of washes, and it's a lot of work. You can hire someone to do all the cleaning and repairs, but you'll pay them most of what would have been your income.
I plan to keep it all self serve to start off with for simplicity sake. I plan to do the cleaning and minor repairs myself but I’m definitely no electrician or mechanic. That makes sense about the YouTube, I know of people in other fields which are basically the same thing. I don’t really care if my first location is extremely profitable, my goal would be something rural, cheap, that would be a learning project, that I could learn the business on. Something nearby that I could be there to fix any issues quickly, with no more than 5 bays, but even 3-5 bays is fine. I guess I’ll start asking around for part time jobs cleaning up car washes to learn the ins and outs. I’m a pretty quick study so I don’t expect it to take long before I feel relatively comfortable. If I can keep ICU patients alive I’m sure I can figure this out.
MEP001
Well-known member
The number of bays will only affect your cleaning time. If that's one of your big issues, rural should be out. They spend the least money and make the biggest messes. Mud will be your enemy.
Electrical on a car wash is usually pretty solid. There's little failure to it, and components are available for most equipment that's 40 years old. If you do have an issue, this forum can help you.
Electrical on a car wash is usually pretty solid. There's little failure to it, and components are available for most equipment that's 40 years old. If you do have an issue, this forum can help you.
Cleaning time is no concern to me. The biggest one is start up cost. I don’t have a ton of start up capital like it sounds many do. These million + car washes are out of my reach for now.
sjb
Active member
I would suggest that you meet with Randy and his Wife, and see if you can structure a buy out with owner financing that would be a win-win for all of you….
In lieu of brokerage fees, You can then buy us all copious amounts of adult beverages at a future car wash show in Vegas!
In lieu of brokerage fees, You can then buy us all copious amounts of adult beverages at a future car wash show in Vegas!
traveler17
Well-known member
You’re seeing self serves for 2.5 and up??