Financing gas stations are difficult, complicated and subsequently most conventional banks and lenders don’t consider financing a gas station or convenience store properties. Why?1)Gas stations, convenience store and car wash business is a “cash business” and no business owner would declare the cash in the tax returns. Therefore, it is impossible to verify cash flow and determine the debt to service ratio for the loan2)Gas station properties have environmental risks. The ones that are clean have a higher risk of environmental problems in future3)If the lenders take over the gas station properties through foreclosure, they are not able to run the business. Unlike income producing properties such as apartment buildings, the lenders can’t get a property manager to manage the gas station.4)There are other issues such as low fuel margins, restrict dealer or franchise contract that makes the lender uncomfortable in evaluating gas station financingThere are few lenders that would consider financing gas stations and they mostly use SBA loans to finance the property since the federal government guarantees major portion of the loan. Even with the government guarantee, the lenders are very conservative in underwriting the transaction. To be honest with you, if you have found a gas station property to purchase, financing is possible but would be a pain so be ready.There are niche lenders specializing in gas stations and convenience store financing [http://easysbaloan.com/small-business-loan-programs/special-purpose-lending/convenient-store-commercial-property-loans-financing/].Some would go as high as 80% loan to value of the property and they use the real estate, business and equipments as collateral in underwriting the property. Underwriter looks at the tax returns, income statements and sponsors’ credit and experience to analyze the credit worthiness of the transaction.
When choosing a Mexican retirement lifestyle, we do so at least partly because of the tourist-type activities we’ll be able to enjoy; but we all know that in day to day life, having nearby conveniences counts for at least just as much.This is why one Mexican retirement community in Playa del Carmen, La Escondida, has chosen its location next to one of the city’s two new malls. The mall is a comfortable walk away from La Escondida, and offers a variety of features that will make day to day life for residents convenient. These features include:
A large Walmart-like store called Soriana. The store is very well organized, easy to use, and has a large variety of food and household items similar to what you find in the U.S. Prices are comparable to that of Walmart, and sometimes better.
A club store, like Costco, called City Club. Membership fees are accessible, and some very good deals can be found on large-ticket purchases and large packages.
An Office Max provides a large variety of office and computer supplies.
A large-screen movie theater. Most of the movies are American and they are played English with Spanish subtitles for the local Mexicans.
A new bowling alley. Construction has just begun. It is in a separate building beside the Office Max. This is Playa del Carmen’s first bowling alley!
2 cafes. The concept of high-quality coffee and excellent cakes and cookies is like Starbucks, but unlike Starbucks, they give you real cups! It’s better environmentally, and it doesn’t make customers feel like they’re busy and on the run.
A food court with a few options in Mexican food, like tacos and quesadillas, and American fast food as well.
3 banks, including Scotiabank.Having close access to banks within walking distance from home in a nice area of the city is convenient and comfortable.
Many little shops, including material stores, nicknack shops, and a number of stores for clothing, shoes, jewelry and appliances.
A Sam’s Club is located right across an intersection from the mall, about 200 yards away. Beside the Sam’s there are also 2 restaurants which serve a variety of typical Mexican food (not spicy!) and some North American style dishes as well. Prices are accessible, at about $8 or $9 a dish.While most of these features could be found throughout other parts of town, it’s convenient that they are located within walking distance, and all in the same place, with air conditioning!The choice of location for La Escondida next to this mall is combined with a series of on-site features to ensure that residents can enjoy their retirement lifestyle within the small community. While there are also services to make going out to other parts of the city and nearby attractions easy, it won’t be necessary to go out just to find basic services or day to day enjoyment.TOPMexicoRealEstate.com; Mexico’s Leading Network of Specialists for Finding and Purchasing Mexican Properties Safely
The answer to this question is No! It isn’t possible for you to do difficult home repairs, without the experience. The only problem that I have with inexperienced people doing any home repairs is that they need to get more information, before they actually do any difficult home repairs.This will save the homeowner a lot of money in the long run, especially if the home repair doesn’t hold up or is done incorrectly. One of the biggest problems with home repairs that aren’t done right, is the problems that they can create in the future.An example of this would be fixing an electrical outlet improperly, only to find out later that an electrical fire started in your house, because the wires weren’t attached properly. This obviously wouldn’t be a good thing and something like this could have easily been eliminated, if the person doing the repairs had acquired enough experience to actually do them.Here’s a small list of house repairs that I would stay away from, especially if you don’t understand the basics of these types of repairs. Electrical, heating, air-conditioning and plumbing should be left for the professionals.Attempting to do these types of home repairs, could create safety problems for your home and possible damage later on, if they weren’t done properly. Like the electrical outlet problem above, could you imagine hooking up a water pipe incorrectly, only to find out later that it has flooded most of your home.Some electrical and heating units use natural gas, propane and high-voltage electricity and these things can be extremely hazardous to your health, especially if you don’t know what you’re doing.Leave the tougher home repairs to the professionals, unless you really want to spend the time educating yourself about them. Even if you are armed with the knowledge to attack these repairs, make sure that you follow every possible safety precaution that you can.