suggestion
hi bill. does the owner have an idea what rent he'd take, or does he want you to give him an offer? if it's the latter, it's probably cuz he doesn't know what to ask, then he'll take your offer and bump it up some. if he's already told you what he needs for rent, then you need to weigh that against his car count, average ticket, etc. basically, known revenue. then, based on your own experience and what you're willing to "earn" on your investment, you could come up with some forcast of what % increase you think you could increase the revenue (through various improvements). the % increase is probably where you'll make hay, as the owner isn't likely to "give away" the operation based on current numbers. you need to be realistic. will the improvements you plan to make really bring in more folks and/or will current customers be willing to eat a price increase, for you efforts? since you have 2 other locations, i think you know enough already to give yourself a realistic answer. debt service on one place might be a somewhat reasonable comparison to rent on another. what debt service are you comfortable with? personally, most folks would likely be comforatable with far less in rent (or a land lease) than they would owning the property and equipment. one thing i wouldn't so is let the owner share in the revenue increases you hope to bring in. set the rent based on current numbers (which areprobably low), then enjoy the spoils of your improvements, rather than give someone else a piece of your sweat-equity. cheers.