Heretofore, both have been able to "buy out" competitors with FTC approval.

However, this probably wouldn’t have worked because with super high franchise fees the perception of potential franchisees would have been that the fee structure was too uncompetitive, and the result would have been that McDonalds would have had slower growth, and their competitors faster growth.Two other positive results of the McDonalds real estate strategy was (1) franchisees are more locked in since McDonalds is also their landlord (2) McDonalds was able to bypass legislation aimed at franchisors being able sell product at high prices to franchisees and (3) McDonalds benefits from the long term appreciation of real estate prices and inflation.

Assess zoning maps and land available for competitors or expansion in existing locations.2.  

I have been told that they cannot remove it but when I called a competitor while checking in asking if they had rooms, they offered to remove it (Liars).  

Hello, I have seen a few of my competitor's buying, flipping and doing SubTo's, and owner financing.

Some of those local competitors will pay all cash, site unseen, with title issues.This is a numbers game, so find the zip codes/neighborhoods with a lot of market activity (i.e., the most dots on a Zillow map search) and delve deeper to see if it's an area of interest.Lastly, when looking up properties, be mindful of taxes.

@Chris Watson it’s not a race to the bottom if competitors have a purchase price that is much lower or lower ConC goals.

A lot of developers don't want you (or any potential competitors) to know their trade secrets and efficiencies, which they've taken years and maybe decades to master.....

You should also study up on what the homes that sold have in them (your quality level of finishes should match or exceed your competitors if you want top dollar).

High margins, large moats, high debt rates discourage new competitors. 3. real estate.