North Carolina Newbie with 8 bay SS

[tylergp]

I have an opportunity to rent an 8-bay SS wash connected to an Oil Change and next to an Auto Parts store with about 50,000 cars passing by daily. It is the only car wash on that side of the highway, and there are 2 other brand-new tunnel washes on the other side. 3 of the 8 bays are operational, and the other 5 "just need to be connected," according to the owner. The drains in the 5 nonworking bays look like they need to be cleaned out, and was thinking of hiring a plumbing company to do that and then service them regularly. The place needs some TLC, a new paint job, and new decals for all bays and vacuums to bring it back to life. I own a vending machine company, so I have knowledge of electronics, and use Nayax and would install Nayax on all machines over time.


Does anyone have tips if I should say yes to the deal or any info or past pricing for drain cleaning? Any info would be helpful!

 

[traveler17]

No plumbers I know clean pits and the pits should be the least of your concerns. Whats the reason the other 3 bays not operating ?? What’s the equipment look like? Is the oil change part of the lease or is it just the Self serve? Most importantly what’s the revenue and how much does he want for his lease??

 

[Dan kamsickas]

What exactly does "just need to be connected" even mean? In my experience, that can be anything from some bad hosing to complete rebuild of the equipment.

Rent? Not a good idea. You'd be better off with a lease with an option to buy. Best case is to buy outright. You're going to be spending a pretty good chunk of cash to get it operational, keep it operational and at the end you own nothing.

 

[tylergp]

No plumbers I know clean pits and the pits should be the least of your concerns. Whats the reason the other 3 bays not operating ?? What’s the equipment look like? Is the oil change part of the lease or is it just the Self serve? Most importantly what’s the revenue and how much does he want for his lease??

Oil change is separate and fully operational. The owner purchased the land/oil change and has no sales records for the car wash. The owner will give me 6 months free rent to get the place back up and running and then asked $2K for rent, all utilities included.

As for the bays, it has a Mark VII Auqaspray system, and the owner said he disconnected the other bays so he didn't have as much to deal with. I was going to have a plumber come look first to make sure he is correct before I signed.

 

[tylergp]

What exactly does "just need to be connected" even mean? In my experience, that can be anything from some bad hosing to complete rebuild of the equipment.

Rent? Not a good idea. You'd be better off with a lease with an option to buy. Best case is to buy outright. You're going to be spending a pretty good chunk of cash to get it operational, keep it operational and at the end you own nothing.

I thought the same too, of asking for a lease-to-own option and want to have a tech look at it all first to see if it really just needs to be connected or is broken.

 

[Dan kamsickas]

I was going to have a plumber come look first to make sure he is correct before I signed.

A plumber is going to know little to nothing about the operation of the car wash equipment. Search for a car wash technician in your area. Preferably, more than one so you can get a couple of opinions.

 

[traveler17]

So think of it this way. Most likely scenario, This guy probably has the place paid for and is bleeding it dry and to lazy or tired to keep the place looking and running the way it should. If the place was busy the other 3 bays would be open .. You’re gonna dump a load of money to fix a place up for the guy and sign a deal for rent when you have zero idea of the income. As Dan said above rent or lease imo is a last resort. If it fails you gave him a nice fresh place and you’re out. Without numbers I’m a hard pass.

 

[MudMoney]

Run not walk away from this deal.

 

[Greg Pack]

I would be cautious. I'd say there's at least a 50/50 chance that you let the owner have it back. That creates a difficult position for you to feel comfortable investing large amounts of money or time in the property. I would at least come up with a contingency plan and get creative. Maybe he would be willing to credit you some of your investment by reducing the rent once it starts or some other similar plan that makes you comfortable spending the money needed.

For it to have a chance to turn around quickly it will need a cosmetic face lift visible from the road. Paint the building, etc.

 

[MEP001]

It sounds like it could be a good deal, but at great risk to you. Six months free rent on a car wash that's probably not making any money isn't worth much. You could spend $10,000 just to get everything working. The traffic count makes it look very appealing, but does it have a bad history? That can take years to recover from. Is it clearly visible from the road, and does it LOOK like a car wash? I would consider this, but not as a rental. Ask for a five year lease with an option to renew.

 

[Car_Wash_Guy]

What exactly does "just need to be connected" even mean? In my experience, that can be anything from some bad hosing to complete rebuild of the equipment.

Rent? Not a good idea. You'd be better off with a lease with an option to buy. Best case is to buy outright. You're going to be spending a pretty good chunk of cash to get it operational, keep it operational and at the end you own nothing.

This. More than likely any equipment upgrades will be considered "leasehold improvements" and will stay with the property.

Good chance you put money into it, build it up, and they don't renew your lease and re-assume operation of it.

 

[Jsshac]

Oil change is separate and fully operational. The owner purchased the land/oil change and has no sales records for the car wash. The owner will give me 6 months free rent to get the place back up and running and then asked $2K for rent, all utilities included.

As for the bays, it has a Mark VII Auqaspray system, and the owner said he disconnected the other bays so he didn't have as much to deal with. I was going to have a plumber come look first to make sure he is correct before I signed.

How long will the rent be fixed at 2k including the utilities? How much do you expect it will cost you to get it up and running? Do you have the disposable income for getting this up and running?

 

[OurTown]

Is this wash closed or open currently? Is the wash on it's own parcel?

 

[Waxman]

I definitely agree that you should have some kind of contract in place stating the specific terms of the agreement. It should also be checked by an attorney for your own protection. Years ago I entered into a handshake deal which went bad. The other party reneged and I was left with nothing. I had put Considerable time and effort and resources in to the project with plans to own it one day. When I got ready to obtain financing, the other party simply stated "oh my lawyer told me I can't do that deal". A year later I received an eviction notice. I was told that none of the big ticket items I had purchased and installed in the building would be able to be removed by law. I was not reimbursed for any of these items. Needless to say, this educated me with regard to contracts in business. Don't let this happen to you…

 

[Mark S]

I do SS repair in the Greensboro, HP and Winston Salem area I just priced re-plumbing a 3 Bay Southern Pride system at $5,100.00 less than 5 miles from my shop. This is a fully operating location owner said he just wants to have all ageing lines replaced. I would not recommend renting a location that is not 100% working if you can not do 100% of the work.