Owning a boarding/show barn lucrative??

[clanter]

That leaves me with 8K in net profit, almost all of which goes straight to the taxes.

my degree in business is from the dark ages of the 1970s… I believe the 8k would have been consider gross income not profit since not all costs have been assigned (taxes),

another question : " around 9K on the farrier (again, my horses included)"… why is all the farrier cost absorbed by your farm? We always had clients pay that service either directly to farrier or was added to their monthly statement

also it appears most of your labor is free

[candyappy]

Sorry, I don’t buy into the thinking here about boarding being just a break even business. If you have the head to run a business , can handle your costs, finances and employees well it should be a profitable business.

My previous BO seemed to have no problem making a good profit and the care was over the top.

I think the biggest reason boarding barns are not profitable for so many is the fact they have no business running a business in the first place…

[Lucassb]

@candyappy

Sorry, I don’t buy into the thinking here about boarding being just a break even business. If you have the head to run a business , can handle your costs, finances and employees well it should be a profitable business.

My previous BO seemed to have no problem making a good profit and the care was over the top.

I think the biggest reason boarding barns are not profitable for so many is the fact they have no business running a business in the first place…

Just because someone has business training does not mean a market will support the prices needed to turn a profit, I’m afraid. Hence the term, “what the market will bear.”

As many people have posted, the cost basis will vary from one farm (business) to the next. Inherit a beautiful, paid for facility? Well, you’ll still have maintenance and upkeep on that place but your cash flow is likely going to be different than a similar place down the street that is mortgaged to the hilt. One or both facilities might still be able to make a profit, but only if the owner/operator can charge enough to cover their actual, necessary expenses. Some markets support that; others do not.

[Blinky]

@Punkie

I’m willing to be candid for the sake of education. My farm grosses about 42K a year. That is income in the form of boarding, apartment rentals, winter stall rentals, and AirBnB. Out of that, I spend about 8K feeding the whole farm (my horses included), around 9K on the farrier (again, my horses included) another 2K on utilities, 13K in farm maintenance (including part-time help to mow/fix fences, bi-annual spraying, fertilizer, equipment maintenance and repairs, farm diesel, etc.), and an additional 2K on ancillary supplies. That leaves me with 8K in net profit, almost all of which goes straight to the taxes. I have a good business model, do not carry a mortgage, and am fortunate to have other means of income that pay for the rest of my life. So in my case, the farm pays for itself, but I do not turn a dime of net profit!

ETA: I have a graduate degree in business.

But-you are 0 expenses for your own horses as the farm is covering the cost. that’s a win!

We bought property years ago with this same exact thought. The older I get and the more I value my free time to do other non horsey things…I just keep boarding my one show horse.

[OneTwoMany]

@candyappy

Sorry, I don’t buy into the thinking here about boarding being just a break even business. If you have the head to run a business , can handle your costs, finances and employees well it should be a profitable business.

My previous BO seemed to have no problem making a good profit and the care was over the top.

I think the biggest reason boarding barns are not profitable for so many is the fact they have no business running a business in the first place…

Some of us have business degrees or have spent decades in the business world. I really do believe the question of whether boarding is profitable is location dependent.

In our area, which is reasonably “horsey”; close to a major metro area; and close to some top show venues, boarding is a “break even” business. Money is made on training and sales. Or, in some cases retirement board, if you have the land and can provide the specialized services.

When I was in my 20’s, I had a small boarding operation that I operated out of my Mom’s acreage. I had zero mortgage costs and zero land taxes. I didn’t draw a salary and I provided great care. It turned a profit. But if I had paid myself minimum wage and/or paid my share of the land taxes, it would have been in the red. Lots of people (especially the younger ones) enjoy horses enough to do it and break even.

As @Lucassb stated, the market sets the rates. If your market has a lot of operators who don’t need to make a profit, it doesn’t matter how much financial acumen you might have. Boarding will still be a break even business.

ETA that full board (not full service) in our area is at least $800 a month, without a trainer on staff/site.

[Lucassb]

@OneTwoMany

Some of us have business degrees or have spent decades in the business world. I really do believe the question of whether boarding is profitable is location dependent.

In our area, which is reasonably “horsey”; close to a major metro area; and close to some top show venues, boarding is a “break even” business. Money is made on training and sales. Or, in some cases retirement board, if you have the land and can provide the specialized services.

When I was in my 20’s, I had a small boarding operation that I operated out of my Mom’s acreage. I had zero mortgage costs and zero land taxes. I didn’t draw a salary and I provided great care. It turned a profit. But if I had paid myself minimum wage and/or paid my share of the land taxes, it would have been in the red. Lots of people (especially the younger ones) enjoy horses enough to do it and break even.

As @Lucassb stated, the market sets the rates. If your market has a lot of operators who don’t need to make a profit, it doesn’t matter how much financial acumen you might have. Boarding will still be a break even business.

ETA that full board (not full service) in our area is at least $800 a month, without a trainer on staff/site.

Excellent points.

In our area, full board (not full service) is between $1200-1500/mo. You would think at those prices, people would be making a profit. However, given land, labor and other costs - most just break even.

Land here that is appropriate for horses and convenient to customer areas goes for around $100K/acre. Good help is close to $20/hr and if you want to retain people, most facilities must offer housing. The popular boarding facilities here offer four board fenced paddocks, spacious fully matted stalls with generous bedding, fly systems and fans, (shavings here $5/bag or $275 for a load of bulk, quality hay min. $13-15/bale,) outdoor and covered or indoor arenas with lights and often mirrors, jumps and other equipment (think arena watering systems, high end drag,) nice tack rooms (often climate controlled,) parking for trailers and the list goes on. Of course, in addition to mortgage costs, you have taxes, insurance, maintenance etc. It is a very expensive undertaking.

[ClearRound]

We have been running a smaller size boarding operation for approximately 4 years outside of Aiken. Its a wonderful professional facility/property. Luckily we did not have to finance. I would suggest one thing: think about what your long term goals are. I want to ride on the bigger circuits and work with younger horses to develop them into jumpers for myself ( selling the ones that don’t work for me after they get some show experience). I love my facility and my boarders, it does cut into riding and showing (especially being able to travel to shows farther away) as we do most of the work ourselves. I love our barn family, but it can be difficult to find full time help when the job is essentially part time with a smaller facility. Is it profitable, yes it can be, but also consider the trade offs ( are you really achieving your riding/horse/training goals). We recently made the decision to downsize our business and operation. I would encourage you to spend time at different facilities. See how each functions and what individuals would have done differently if given the opportunity.

[mpsbarnmanager]

@RyanAtlas

I have been riding for 16 years. I have grown up competeing in jumpers, but have recently started a serious career with my OTTB in three day eventing under a wonderful trainer in Atlanta, GA. That said I am incredibly passionate about horses, and not just the showing side. Everything horse I love. I am constantly reading wanting to know more, learning, experiencing new situations, and so on. Plus add on my time learning from my 16 years of riding. With that being said I’m doing all the right things ensuring I have a secure future. I’m attending college and getting my degree in business management, essentially making sure I can have horses in my life. It’s sad, but true!

My question is though can you make money owning a boarding/ show barn? I have the idea of working in a field with my degree for roughly ten years, saving money, then pursuing my dreams. I also wanted to hire a great trainer who has been there done that, let them live on property and maybe bring their horse to sweeten the deal?? I personally want to train to a level I know I can, and then push them along to the other trainer.

I have also thought about getting my certificate in equine massage therapy/ chiropractic care to help with income. I know this is something in my life that will make me undoubtedly happy, but I don want to be in debt up to my eyeballs. So is it feasible to be comfortable and own a boarding/ show barn??

Sorry for long post, just want advice and opinions on this matter.

Not really. Not unless you are very high end with a client base so large you are always full with a wait list. And unless you are a BTN, probably gonna be hard. Ask me how I know. I do ok if I’m full, but it’s easy to loose a few and start loosing money. I don’t think I’d do it again.

[fordtraktor]

I agree with the others. I board horses to offset some of the expense of building the facility I need for my own riding goals.

I don’t think the under 5 or over 20 parameters makes sense. In reality, I’ve found that the magic number is however many you can handle on your own (mostly). When you start having regular employees, it becomes unfeasible until the business can support a FTE. That’s the part of it that does make sense…there’s definitely a donut hole there.

For me and for my dad who runs a boarding business in another state, that number is around 12. More than that and it is too much, especially given I have a professional job.

I also do a lot to create efficiency. Auto waterers everywhere, Nibble nets to reduce hay waste, etc. That stuff is an investment up front but it quickly pays off compared to hiring someone to do it the slow way. But you have to have the capital to invest in those improvements and it isn’t cheap.

I am an amateur and want to stay that way (ran a lesson business in my 20s, never again!) but to actually make a profit, I have a couple of sales horses. Sometimes that works out, sometimes it doesn’t but it is certainly my intent to make money on them! That reduces my boarder numbers. My personal horses are for sale for the right number at any time. My kids’ horse, no!