Similar businesses sell at 1.4x to 5.0x SDE. Compare live listings and connect with sellers.
National transaction benchmarks for service business businesses.
Under $500K
$500K to $2M
Over $2M
A variety of factors can cause businesses to trade outside this range, including earnings quality, operational transferability, key-person risk, growth trajectory, and geography, so a listing priced above or below the typical multiple usually reflects real differences in the underlying business.
Cofounder & CEO
Key diligence, valuation, financing, and transition considerations for buyers evaluating service business acquisitions.
A pest-control, cleaning, or landscaping firm with recurring agreements is worth far more than one living on one-off jobs; get the contracted share and the renewal rate.
A few large accounts can carry — and walk with — the business; review the top customers, contract lengths, and cancellation terms.
In many service businesses the owner is the salesperson and the trusted contact; understand who holds the customers and the transition plan.
These are labor-heavy; understand staffing, turnover, wage pressure, and whether key crews stay.
Pest control, security, legal, and waste businesses carry licenses and obligations that may be tied to the owner — and some, like dry cleaners, carry environmental exposure.
Low-capital service businesses are easy to dress up; scrutinize owner add-backs, vehicle and equipment condition, and whether the margins hold.
Answers to common buyer questions for this market.
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