The numbers I have thus far seem to be well within my dwelling coverage, and even after the franchise-chain folks that did the gutting and cleaning of the house have left my house.

Then you have the yearly franchise tax (I only am referring to ca) which is a minimum of $800 here and up depending on your gross receipts (s Corp does not have the gross reciept tax if I am not mistaken).

investment in the stock market which is akin to gambling IMHO, buying a business which comes with its own set of issues...or real estate...and of course...working for someone else...i have a finance background...tried the stock market..got burnt...looked at many businesses/franchises to buy...nothing made the cut....plus it was overwhelming to buy a business...i also have a full time job in San Fran for a large large company and i hate the thought of going to work.. and now tht i have my properties i deal with one property manager...who deals with tenants etc...i love the independence and cannot wait for a few years before i can afford to quit my job...i think it is the prospect of being financially free that gives me an added rush...

Sounds almost like a restriction that franchises have.

Yes I have been looking at flips in my area also.There is a bunch of competition as well but there are always deals.One that looked really good was gone in 3 days in my area.Of course it's the weekend I had a business conference to go to out of town.It seems stuff like that always happens.In what I call BUBBLE MARKETS such as Cali and Nevada many purchasers are speculating on the next ramp up.It's not as much about cash flow as appreciation.Home buyers see it as a way to lock in low rates and when the cycle comes back up do the cash out refi game again tax free.What I am currently looking at for myself is velocity and time.I figure for a residential flip say I made 25,000 profit in 4 months.That comes to 6,250 a month.Now if I closed more commercial real estate transactions then my returns would be greater.I am looking at doing a flip versus say buying a franchised restaurant business.I know the restaurant business.I want to acquire income streams but work on but not in the businesses daily.For me it becomes about allocation of time versus risk and income potential.I would like to acquire some commercial properties for my long term value add portfolio.

Okay so I have been looking at businesses.Many are not distressed but from out of town owners who want to pursue other interests.Sometimes it's people who thought a business would be turn key but didn't know any better.They buy a franchise new at 250k and will sell at 80k with owner finance in place.My ownership restaurant background lets me take advantage of these situations.

Seller says he was considering it but open to other offers.Also says a large retail chain (holiday i--,) has expressed interest in setting up a franchised location there.

If we look at a franchise scenerio..

This involves purchasing land, building an automotive repair facility, obtaining a franchise, having my partner run the franchise for a couple years, and selling the franchise while maintaining ownership of the property.

Property managers are definitely worth it.The key is that they do it full time and do not have other things they are working on distracting them from keeping your property performing.I currently do not own any properties.If I did I would have a property manager.I am fixing to buy a franchise business that cash flows 60,000 a year after expenses.The manager will be there meeting with me once a week.I don't have time to run it day to day to squeeze every last cent out of it.I make a much higher return spending time closing deals for my clients.So how you look at this will really depends on your situation and strategy.My strategy is to work on my businesses but not in them.If I have to work IN multiple revenue streams I can't be all places at once.If I set up automated controls in place I can keep a pulse on all streams and make sure they are performing.