Investment and franchise start-up costs can be extremely high and prohibitive, also vary widely, and rules and requirements can prove draconian in certain instances. Had a friend once looking into a Chic-fil-a franchise, which on the surface appeared to have one of the lowest, more reasonable buy-in costs for a successful franchise operation. But there is a huge religious belief question and hurdle to overcome. So be aware there can be various unknown and unexpected obstacles to face when trying to get started with any franchise.
And buying into an existing, already successfully operating franchise isn't going to be easy, or cheap. If a franchise is successful, why would an owner be looking to sell it? And if a franchise you did somehow come across for sale isn't doing particularly well, just remember it is a franchise, so it's not like you could buy it and suddenly make big changes to the menu, prices, and marketing, if you can make any changes at all under your franchise agreement.
If you do find a franchise you may be interested in investing in, I would strongly recommend trying to independently contact and talk with other owners of that franchise first to learn as much as you can, if at all possible. And that's assuming some current franchise owner will even be inclined to have such an open and honest discussion with you in the first place. Their franchise agreements likely frown on them possibly sharing such operational and franchise information with others, at least on some level.
And the time and effort involved can be grueling and overwhelming. Think twice, as I've never really heard of anyone enthusiastically talk about starting a franchise operation as a great way to ease into their retirement. Good luck regardless.
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