Owning a laundromat?

[Cameron Crosley]

Hello BP community, 

So I know this is random but I have been reading into owning a laundromat as an easy to run business. It looks as though there is a lot of upside potential and not too many negatives. Aside from the start up capital and having employees instead of tenants there seems to be a lot of similarities with real estate. I am particularly interested in the passive cash flow and convenience of not having to be on site daily. Does anyone have any experience know of anyone that has experience with this? It would be great to get some insight!

[Ken Barrett]

I have 3 that I have been running for 6 years.  There are a lot of advantages to other businesses and you have hit on many of the top issues already.

Initial investments can be high.

Never trust an employee to handle the cash. That's your job or a very trusted friend or relative.

Repairs can eat you up if you can't do a lot of the small stuff yourself.

You don't have to have employees. Two of mine are unattended and I have cleaners go in once a day.

But it is a business and if you are serious it will take time to understand th business and  th market before you invest. It's not something that can move and most initial leases are for 10 years.

I have been posting info on my site LaundromatHowTo for a few years. There is also a YouTube channel and PodCast with the same name.

I have done well with Real Estate in SFH but I'm down to one now.