All Forum Posts by: Jordan Berry

@Michael Jones I'm in LA in lower rent areas for sure. But I'm seeing close to a 30% cash on cash return, unleveraged. And as business improves, expenses rise at a much slower pace since there are high fixed costs but relatively low variable costs. So I'm seeing closer to a 70% return on the new business I'm bringing in.

I was just curious if anyone else is buying retail space with laundromats. I'm a multi-laundromat and have greatly benefited from the cash flow laundromats can bring and the potential equity gains you can achieve by owning the real estate the laundromat is on. Anyone else going this route? I'd be curious to know how it's going for you.

@Julian Hendrix I sent you a message with the website :)

@Sam Wilson I own a couple and would love to connect. I run a website with some info and resources for free (no email required). DM me if you're interested in checking it out. But otherwise I would love to connect either way.

How is the laundromat business treating you so far?

@Jonathan Wildy I have one that has been like that for me, too. But I'm in Los Angeles. That one has been frustrating for me from day 1. But what has kept me going is that cash flow light at the end of the financing tunnel haha. But hang tough with it. Nothing wrong with a slow build. You're light years ahead of most people by just trying to build something. Let me know if I can help with that 'mat in any way. I have a little laundromat website with a bunch of info and free resources (no email) if you think that might help anything. You can message me for the address if you're interested. Awesome work man!

@Jonathan Wildy I can't help much in terms of building costs, sorry. I just saw you own a laundromat! I own a couple, too! Probably not on this thread, but I'd love to hear about your experience with yours sometime!

I think @Amy A. had it right. Check out the local laundromats to see what they are charging. You can probably charge a little more for the convenience. But @Jeremy A. has a good point. It adds a layer of complexity to your rental. You just need to decide if it is worth it. I own laundromats and I can tell you that people don't treat the machines kindly. I also have friends who have apartments with laundries and they can be a source of conflict between tenants, a magnet for non-residents to use/vandalize, and do require upkeep and maintenance. All that said, it still could be well worth it if you manage it properly. Good luck!

@Sam Wilson how's your laundromat going so far?

@Kyle M. I see you didn't get an answer to your question so I thought I'd shoot you a response really quick. Laundromats should yield you a net profit of somewhere around 20-30+% cash on cash. That number can definitely go higher if you find a laundromat with some upside potential and buy it for what it is currently worth. 

Let me know if you have any other questions. I'm a multi-store owner in Southern California and would be glad to help! 

@Cameron Crosley I can give you some insight on those questions. I'm a multi-store owner in Southern California and I run a little website for laundromat owners and prospective owners called laundromatresource.com. You can find out some of the answers to your questions there.

As for attended vs. unattended, it really depends. I own both. It depends on the size of the store. If it's too small it won't support an attendant. If it's in a rough area, you will probably need an attendant to keep an eye on things. The main benefits of unattended stores are that you're not paying full time employees to be there at all times and you're not having to hire and train employees that are trustworthy and willing to work for a relatively low wage. The main benefits of attended stores are that someone is there keeping the place clean at all times (ideally), someone is watching your equipment so people don't abuse it, someone is there to help customers when there is a problem with a machine, and you can offer other services to supplement the laundromat, like a fluff and fold service or a small store.

Verifying the financials is the trickiest part of buying a laundromat because it is an all cash business. Typically you would go through a series of coin collections with the current owner over a period of 4+ weeks and taking water meter readings during each collection. Then, you compare the actual income vs. the stated income and the actual water usage vs. past water bills. If they are both in the ballpark then you have a decent idea of what the laundromat is making each month. I would also recommend observing the laundromat at different times to get a feel for how many customers are coming through each day.

I don't think that you will actually learn too much from working for free for a laundry owner. The main thing they would have you do is to clean the store for them and you won't learn much about how to run a laundromat from doing that. I would recommend doing some research on sites like mine, the coin laundry association, and any others that are providing information to help you learn. It's not a very complicated business, so you can learn it fairly quickly.

Feel free to reach out with any other questions, either on here or through my website. I'd love to help!