Unbranded Gas Station & C-Store, Ontario CA (Business Only, Leased Site)

$540K

SDE

5.6x

Multiple

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Full Editorial Writeup

This is an unbranded gas station and convenience store in Ontario, California (San Bernardino County), selling as a business-only deal on a leased site. The listing cites roughly 150,000 gallons of monthly fuel volume at a 35 cent pool margin, plus about $80,000 to $85,000 in monthly c-store sales at a 42% markup. There is no lotto and no beer/wine license yet, which the seller frames as upside, and there is extra income of about $1,500 per week from U-Haul rentals that is stated as not even included in the quoted profit.

The operator has a 15-year lease with an $8,900 monthly rent (including NNN), which is low relative to typical fuel-retail leases, and the site sits next to a brand-new McDonald's that should drive incremental traffic. The equipment is described as new tanks and four MPDs, and being unbranded with no fuel supply contract means the buyer keeps flexibility on jobber sourcing and margin. The lot is 22,000 sq ft with a 1,500 to 1,800 sq ft store.

The asking price has moved around in the copy (headline says a $500,000 drop, body still shows $3,400,000, and the field shows $3,000,000), which itself is a signal to nail down the real number. EBITDA is stated at $540,000 against a $3.0M ask, a 5.56x multiple that is rich for a leased, business-only fuel operation. Reason for sale is a partnership dispute, and an SBA loan is reportedly pre-approved with 30% down.

Why we like it

The economics are simple and cash-generative: roughly 150,000 monthly gallons at a 35 cent pool margin plus a c-store doing $80k to $85k monthly at 42% markup, with a claimed $40k per month net profit before U-Haul income. Fuel and c-store staples are consumption businesses that people keep buying through downturns, which anchors the earnings base.
Rent is genuinely low at $8,900 per month including NNN on a 15-year lease with renewal options, which is unusual and materially reduces fixed-cost risk versus most leased fuel sites. A long, cheap lease is the single most important variable in a business-only gas deal and this one screens favorably on paper.
Being unbranded with no fuel supply contract gives the buyer full control over jobber sourcing and pricing, avoiding the volume commitments and margin haircuts that branded imaging agreements impose. That flexibility is worth real money and lets a sharp operator chase the best rack price.
Clear, checkable upside exists: no lotto and no beer/wine are in place today, both high-margin traffic drivers, plus $1,500 per week of U-Haul income that is excluded from the stated profit. New tanks and four MPDs also mean low near-term capex on the fuel infrastructure.

How to improve it

Pursue the beer and wine license and add lotto immediately, since both drive inside sales and repeat foot traffic at high margins. In California an ABC off-sale license and lottery terminal are the fastest levers to lift the c-store contribution above the current $80k to $85k monthly.
Renegotiate or competitively bid the fuel supply now that there is no contract, capturing the best rack price and any jobber rebates or credit-card fee programs. Even a one or two cent per gallon improvement on 150,000 gallons monthly is $1,800 to $3,600 of pure margin per month.
Optimize the c-store mix toward high-margin categories: fresh food, coffee, tobacco alternatives, and grab-and-go, leveraging the brand-new McDonald's next door that is pulling extra traffic. Reset planograms and vendor terms to push blended markup above the current 42%.
Formalize and expand the U-Haul relationship and add other rental or ancillary revenue (air, vacuum, ATM, propane exchange) to layer on high-margin income. The $1,500 per week U-Haul income is currently excluded from stated profit and can likely be grown with better placement and signage.
Install a modern POS and back-office system to get real gallon, inside-sales, and shrink data, since the listing discloses no verified financials or revenue. Tightening inventory controls and cutting shrink typically recovers one to three points of c-store margin within the first quarter.
Extend or lock the lease term and renewal options in writing before close, and confirm rent escalators. The value of this deal lives almost entirely in the lease, so securing long-dated, favorable terms directly protects the purchase price.

Diligence notes

Reconcile the conflicting price and profit figures: the headline claims a $500k drop, the body still shows $3,400,000, and the field shows $3,000,000, while gross revenue is not disclosed. Demand three years of tax returns, fuel purchase invoices, POS reports, and bank statements to verify the $540k EBITDA and $40k monthly net before making any offer.
Scrutinize the lease as the core asset: confirm the actual remaining term, all renewal options, rent escalations, whether $8,900 truly includes all NNN, and any landlord consent required to assign. A business-only fuel deal with a weak or short lease is not worth 5.56x, so the lease terms make or break this valuation.
Get a Phase I and Phase II environmental assessment on the underground storage tanks despite the 'new tanks' claim, and confirm tank age, warranty, monitoring compliance, and who bears remediation liability under the lease. UST contamination can create seven-figure exposure and is the classic hidden risk in fuel retail.
Understand the partnership dispute driving the sale, since it can affect title, ability to convey clean assets, and whether both partners will sign. Confirm there are no liens, litigation, or ownership disputes that could stall an SBA closing.
Independently verify the fuel margin assumptions: a 35 cent 'pool margin' on 150,000 gallons should be stress-tested against actual credit-card fees, freight, and price volatility, since street margins compress fast. Also confirm the c-store 42% markup net of shrink, spoilage, and promotions rather than gross list markup.
Validate the SBA pre-approval terms independently, including the 30% down requirement, the lender's view on a leased business-only fuel deal, and whether the appraisal will support a $3.0M value with no real estate. Lender underwriting on the lease and environmental risk may differ materially from the seller's framing.

Source

Originally listed on BizBuySell. View original listing →