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Renting out space for food truck
I got someone interested in leasing space in one part of the parking lot of a commercial property than I own. He wants to run a food truck there. I had never thought about this until this person (who I don't know) approached me about this. The property I own has several units and they usually have people in there only on certain days/hours of the week (most are occupied by small ministries). I am wondering, is it a good idea to rent out some part of the parking lot (preferably a part not used by cars) for this? Any downside with doing this? Any general idea on how much I should be charging?
Anyone here that rents space to food trucks?
Without seeing a location, I would think this is ok if you own the lot and its not taking anyones spot.
I know most people charge about a 10% of the money made for the "parking fee" around here.
Originally posted by @Pinaki M.:
@Joe M. Could you elaborate a bit on "most people charge 10% of the money made for the parking fee"?
Also, I am not sure what the parking fees are. Any way to (kind of) convert the rate for the building to the rate for parking/food truck operation?
Again this is just what I heard from a few people around here. Businesses will allow food trucks to operate on their property for 10% of the income made during that time.
I have heard percentages as high as 30% in high volume areas. But for that 30% you need to have a electric hook up usually for them. SO if you have no amenities like electric or parking lot lights you might get 10%. The percent is an honor situation they pay you the percent on how much they sold. One week they sell 5k at 10% you get $500.00. Or you could do a sliding scale from 1k to 5k 20%, from 5k to 10k 15% or something like that. It is free money don't waste it and you also need to make sure they have the correct health inspections and fire inspections and their own insurance and it has to say it is good on your property. IE> If there is an issue and someone gets hurt you can be sued if you don't have insurance or if theirs does not cover you.
It is a pain, but after getting set up it is free money for parking lot space you do not use.
Make sure the local government is okay with it being set up on the property also because if it is zoned residential you can not have a business on it. SO make sure you know all the hoops to jump through.
(I had a friend who had food trucks there was a giant garage sale in a wealthy area and he put his truck on a corner of land that someone said he could , he called the health and fire department got permits for that weekend had his insurance with him. Then about 1/2 way through the first day someone came in and decided he could not be there and was ticketed and the homeowner was fined. )
Dot your I's on this one.
IF you like the post vote for it.
@Michele B. How do I know how much they had in sales? Any better way than just taking their word for it?
Originally posted by @Pinaki M.:
@Michele B. How do I know how much they had in sales? Any better way than just taking their word for it?
I would think they will be honest with you. They usually are. If they make great money they will want to stay. I think asking for a month amount would make them stay....
@Pinaki M. You might want to visit your local planning office and just ask if there are any restrictions. Our local planning commission passed rules on 'food truck parks' such as they have to provide restrooms. It's not really clear what is a food truck park and what is just a parking lot. Also, think about the liability you're taking on.
@Pinaki M. Did you end up leasing a part of the parking lot to the food truck? I'm in a similar situation and was wondering how you draft a lease for it. Any feed back based on your experience so far would be appreciated. Do/Don'ts.
i ensure the mobile food vendors requesting to locate on the property are self sufficient, meaning they do not require any utilities (power/phone, etc.). Properties i allow them to locate at are on properties with parking lots, so i check a free online marketplace for the current rental rate (lease) of properties with improvements like parking lots next to commercial developments. In my case, the average was $0.15 per square foot. One food truck estimated to use about 1,000 square feet, at minimum i could charge $150. Take into consideration if it is a prime location or if you have an anchor tenant that drives in lots of traffic then you can increase your rent/fee. Dont forget if you are providing common area maintenance, if your paying parking lot lights or annual parking lot maintenance then they should be paying a portion of their share of that cost. Each lease will probably be different but you can tailor it to each vendors needs yet you want to reduce the liability and ensure proper permits and insurance is obtained.
Would you think it would be better to just charge a monthly fee, week, day interested of 20%
Quote from @Jesse Gonzales:
I have space for rent for food trucks if you need please call me 210-940-7969 it is located in San Antonio Texas on the corner of future drive and Vance Jackson road
Quote from @Michelle Backman:
Would you think it would be better to just charge a monthly fee, week, day interested of 20%
We've been doing a percentage based sale system for about 12 years. It works out with the fluctation of sales. When it's busy rent is higher, when slower it's lower.
-Michael, Tampa Bay Food Trucks
Food Truck Booking Agency