NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Many Americans now consider buying franchises after retiring from their primary careers. Buyer beware: not all franchises are created equal.

"Even retirees who like retirement often want to keep active and involved," says Steve Hockett, president of FranChoice, a franchise-business broker. "They want a blend of work and leisure, and that often means owning a manager-run unit."

Hockett says a franchisee will often have to "roll up his sleeves the first year or two" to get the business off the ground. But after that, it gets easier and hours more flexible.

Some franchises, however, are better fits than others.

Older franchise buyers have different financial considerations than younger ones. They may have a greater net worth, for example, but be more averse to risk. Time horizons, by definition, are shorter for retired peope than for the young.

Here's a roster of five companies that may suit many a retiree's requirements.

A good franchise opportunity for those seeking a second career is in the field of personal fitness training.

At Fitness Together, most owners had been personal trainers in the past, according to company spokesman Scott Wendrych, but some are older people seeking new careers.

Clients receive individualized diet and nutrition advice, as well as one-on-one training in the privacy of their own suite. Most prefer to get in and out in under an hour. Sessions cost from $45 to $70 each.

"Our average client is 35 to 55 years old, but a fair number are older ones looking to improve their posture or maintain their health," says Wendrych.

Fitness Together offers a week-long franchise school for new owners, help in selecting locations and setting up the sites, which run from about 1,000 to 2,200 square feet, and ongoing support.

"My target demographic for franchisees is people starting a second career," says Fred Harms, vice president of franchise development for the Handyman Connection, which specializes in providing a variety of home repair services. He says he has former attorneys, building construction managers, information technologists, and human resource supervisors opting to buy his franchises.

Harms says Baby Boomer franchise owners interact well with their clients, who tend to be about equally divided among young, middle-aged, and older homeowners.

The Handyman Connection franchises provide a service increasingly hard to come by these days: taking the kinds of small jobs most contractors shun. If you've ever tried to have a one of these done you know how frustrating it can be to get reliable, reasonably priced help.

"You call up contractors for a small job and they'll give you the 'go-away' price," says Harms. But that's Handyman Connection's niche. Some 95 percent of its jobs run between $150 and $3,000.

The franchise owner generates business with advertising and promotion; connects homeowner and the right craftsman; and ensures customer satisfaction. The handymen are independent and they negotiate prices for jobs directly with the customers.

"With some craftsmen, the majority of their work comes from our company," says Harms.

Retirees from corporate backgrounds can often make a smooth transition to this business if they have good organizational and people skills.

Many retirees and older Americans pursuing a second career that combines vocation with avocation, in the game of golf.

One possibility is Pro Golf, which has more than 140 golf-equipment stores throughout the United States and Canada. Franchise owners include former accountants, engineers, and military officers, according to Jeff Griffith, director of franchise operations.

"The big factor is whether they're willing to follow a system," he says. "Many of the more experienced, older owners are used to that; they tend to do very well. Ones who buck the system, don't."

Pro Golf has been in business for 40 years and has put together a tried-and-true formula for success. The stores are mostly located in strip malls and are open 7 days a week. They typically have two or three employees and feature a complete line of golf equipment.

Most of us view hypnosis as a parlor trick, in which a crafty mesmerist gets subjects to bark like a dog. But it can actually be a useful tool for those seeking self-improvement to lose weight, for instance, or to stop smoking.

Positive Changes CEO Keith Alessis says many of his franchise owners are people who have already have had successful careers and now are looking for something meaningful to do.

"There are fewer young gunners looking to build up a multiple-franchise empire," he adds. Most are content to run a single location.

Like many other franchises attractive to older owners, there's even a golf component. The company has teamed up with a PGA pro, Bobby Lopez, to use hypnosis to help golfers improve their swing; they call it Hypno-Golf™.

This treatment costs $600 to $800. It consists of: a video taping of the client's swing; uploading it to a PGA pro who analyses and critiques it; and working with the client to correct it through visualization and concentration.

A one-year weight-loss treatment costs about $1,500 and a nine-week anti-smoking program, $600 to $800.

Action International provides hands-on business coaching to small- and medium-size companies. They specifically seek franchiseecandidates with extensive corporate backgrounds, including lots of training and teaching.

This may be a perfect franchise for retirees with mentoring experience. Not only can they make their own schedule, but they can make it quite undemanding – franchisees may only work ten hours a week or less – and it can be lucrative. Coaches usually work on a retainer basis, charging $1,500 to $2,000 a month on a one-year contract, according to Rich Bernstein, U.S. sales manager for Action.

Action doesn't try to connect franchise owners to their own industries.

"We just look for people who have been mentors," he says, "because they love this – they already are coaches." They are just as likely to come out of a manufacturing background, say, and wind up coaching transmission-repair business owners.

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Bernstein says there are many reasons for consultants to join a franchise operation, rather than winging it on their own, but the main one is the support Action provides. Every time a franchisee picks up a client in a new industry for them, they can access to an archive of 10,000 case studies.

Plus, the 600 other franchise owners are available to answer questions from colleagues and discuss the best way to get things done.

Especially attractive to retirees is that everyday expenses are very low; there's no inventory, storefront, or employee costs to worry about.