Newbie -- help needed where to start : restaurant property in CA

[Aaron Kaplan]

Hello BP nation, I am just starting on my journey into REI and I already have a good conundrum.... My mother in law, who speaks very good Cantonese, but very poor English, owns a property in CA where a fast food franchise sits. She evidently has had a few franchisees along the way and most recently (at least a few years maybe more) the franchisee is paying rent but without an active current contract. (!) Supposedly disputes both ways are to whom pays for certain upgrades -- ADA stuff inside vs outside, parking lot paving... Anyway it's a total mess and they fact my MIL can't speak English compounds the issue. She has been getting supposedly only 4K/month and lots of late payments from recent the current franchisee... I suspect this is well under current market value but who knows.. I believe the property is already fully paid off as well... it is a main passive income stream for MIL and we (wife and I) want to make sure she maximizes the throughput of that passive income. Do I start w real estate attorney ? What about appraiser ? Realtor whom specializes in commercial property? Would like to know expected rent for this east bay property, and to to nail down this franchisee on paying fully and on time or boot his butt to the curb. Any/all help or suggestions welcome. Are there websites that can predict expected rental returns for commercial real estate or comps just like browsing Trulia or Zillow ? Thx in advance.

[Jo-Ann Lapin]

You have to find a local commercial agent in that area that knows all the market rents. Not sure exactly where the subject is. You are welcome to  pm me and we can speak further