[joesmiley]

1.) Is now a good time to start a business? I realize the economy is bad but I can get lower rents because of it being bad, as well as get better employees because there are so many to choose from needing jobs right now.

2.) I was thinking about opening a computer repair store. Is this a good location for my business? Across street from Home Depot and Adjacent to Sonic Fast Food - las vegas commercial real estate for sale - backpage.com

3.) Does anyone have an existing computer repair store they want to sell?

4.) How do you determine the value of an already existing business? Is there a formula?

[Daddys///M3]

Originally Posted by joesmiley

1.) Is now a good time to start a business? I realize the economy is bad but I can get lower rents because of it being bad, as well as get better employees because there are so many to choose from needing jobs right now.

I would say that if you have an existing book of business through years of industry experience and are highly capitalized then yes, now would be a great time to start a business especailly if you can lock in a long term lease at today's attractive office space lease rates.

2.) I was thinking about opening a computer repair store. Is this a good location for my business? Across street from Home Depot and Adjacent to Sonic Fast Food - las vegas commercial real estate for sale - backpage.com

To be honest with you, I'm not so sure that location matters much with a computer repair business. I would imagine that most of your business will be outcall anyway, with the main office being used for bigger jobs (after you diagnose the problem of course) and the daily operations. That is a nice location though.

3.) Does anyone have an existing computer repair store they want to sell?

Can't help you with that one.

4.) How do you determine the value of an already existing business? Is there a formula?

I'm no expert but I believe that most businesses base their value on annual revenue, and the model is 2-3x's annual revenue. I personally would not trust any business listing that shows otherwise. In otherwords, if the business creates an annual revenue of $500,000, and an annual net profit of $150,000, why are you selling it for $300,000? Of course there are exceptions to this, the main ones being retirement and illness. You may want to get a business broker's opinion on this though, and I would definitely work with one on actually buying an existing business.

Now, on to financing (which I actually know something about). Expect to put at least 30% down on your business if you plan on financing it using an SBA loan. Expect to show not only that the business currently is profitable, but that you can maintain profitability through your relevant and extensive experience as it relates to not only the industry that the business you want to purchase is a part of, but some kind of relevant management experience as well. Good luck.

[Jonotastic]

Originally Posted by joesmiley

1.) Is now a good time to start a business? I realize the economy is bad but I can get lower rents because of it being bad, as well as get better employees because there are so many to choose from needing jobs right now.

2.) I was thinking about opening a computer repair store. Is this a good location for my business? Across street from Home Depot and Adjacent to Sonic Fast Food - las vegas commercial real estate for sale - backpage.com

3.) Does anyone have an existing computer repair store they want to sell?

4.) How do you determine the value of an already existing business? Is there a formula?

(I do not live in Las Vegas, but my family and I have owned numerous businesses from a coffee shop, night club, hotel and recently a restaurant)

1. I do not think it is a good time to start a business. You won't have a problem finding employees, but the economy is really hurting businesses. All our vendors say they have never seen business so bad. Many consumers don't have the money anymore. The ONLY benefit I see buying in today's market is if the LAND is included with the business. If the business comes with the land, you can look at it as an investment. When you lease the land or building after 10 years if you aren't making money, you can end up getting nothing for it. If you are loosing money, I know people who are willing to basically give their business away for free or just want you to assume the rest of their loan because they can't pay the bills, yet alone pay for the lease. In the meantime they have put countless money into their business, renovations, decorations, appliances etc. If it's leased, you aren't going to get that money back when you sell the business. One of my family members recently bought a Quizno's. She has been loosing around $1000-$2000 per month, but she can't just close the store because she has a lease contract. You have to be very careful with leases.
2. I'm not a local

3. I'm not a local

4. It makes a huge difference once again whether the business comes with land or is leased. If it comes with the land, you should see a net return around 15% or more. If it is leased, you should see a net return around 30% or more. There are little formulas, but you really have to look at each business individually. Don't trust everything when you see financial statements. Ask to see tax returns. Make sure the expenses look realistic. If you are looking at a restaurant and the financial statements show payroll as only 10% of revenue, you have to question that.

Good luck!

[KonaKat]

Originally Posted by joesmiley

1.) Is now a good time to start a business? I realize the economy is bad but I can get lower rents because of it being bad, as well as get better employees because there are so many to choose from needing jobs right now.

I believe for your particular business, that this is possibly a good time for you to start. Good service and especially computer repair/support is a service in demand from the home computer user to offices. However, the caveat I offer is this: Start small with what you can personally handle by yourself. Do not try to "grow" too fast. Rent a small space that will suit your needs. You should be able to negotiate a decent lease with the climate that exists now.
Spend your money wisely and borrow as little as possible. I had a service business (entirely different industry but still, no actual product just a service) and never borrowed one single dollar or charged anything. In the black from day One and ended up selling the business 5 years later for a nice price. I hired employees as I needed to, which was 7 by the time I sold.

2.) I was thinking about opening a computer repair store. Is this a good location for my business? Across street from Home Depot and Adjacent to Sonic Fast Food - las vegas commercial real estate for sale - backpage.com

Location is not too important other than easily found, safe area as possible, etc.

3.) Does anyone have an existing computer repair store they want to sell?

4.) How do you determine the value of an already existing business? Is there a formula?

Business valuations are done by specialized professionals and are not cheap. Remember you buy the debt as well as the inventory, and one cannot "buy" clients. I'd vote for starting your own business.

When you write your business plan, do not forget to have an exit strategy. I did not think of this and when suddenly, we were faced with a major move due to my husband's job, I really didn't know what to do for awhile! It meant many many hours writing a manual, cross training employees (because I still was the only one that knew how to do certain things), and then training my buyer and helping her obtain the necessary specialized state license. It all turned out well though.

Also spend time deciding on your business name. You want it to have a positive sound to it and not be cutesy. Not "Karl's Komputer Repair" or some such idiotic spelling like that! (pet peeve of mine)

Best wishes and keep us updated!!