Could a Lawn Care Biz With $1M+ EBITDA Be Offloading Discreetly?

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🌱 Could a Lawn Care Biz With $1M+ EBITDA Be Offloading Discreetly?

Behind the Hedge: A Whisper Listing with Deep Roots and Fat Margins

In the quiet corridors of the deal world, whispers often say more than listings. And right now, the hum is about a high-performing, high-margin lawn care operation exploring a potential exit—quietly, but seriously.

This isn’t a scrappy solo crew with a mower. It’s a well-oiled business generating $1M+ in EBITDA, backed by recurring revenue, commercial contracts, and scale-ready systems.

🌿 The Lay of the Land

  • Based in the Southeastern U.S. with year-round revenue flow
  • Family-owned, 15+ years in business, strong operational systems
  • Client mix: 65% commercial (HOAs, campuses), 35% residential
  • 1500+ active accounts with multi-year maintenance contracts
  • Digitized scheduling, dispatch, invoicing—no paper trails
  • Lean FT team + seasonal crews with recruiting and retention systems

💰 Revenue Snapshot (Rumored)

Gross Revenue $4.5M – $6.2M
Adjusted EBITDA $1M – $1.4M
Recurring Revenue 75%+ via monthly contracts
Client Retention 85%+
Fleet 25–30 vehicles/trailers
Employees (Peak) ~60 incl. part-time crew

🕵️‍♂️ Why the Quiet?

This is a proactive whisper—not a reactive panic.

  • Ownership is approaching retirement or life-stage transition
  • No heirs interested in taking the reins
  • Business is too big to run passively, but still privately held

Sources say ownership is open to structured transitions and valuation exploration under NDA.

🧩 What Makes It Attractive?

  • Recurring Services: Mowing, cleanups, irrigation = predictable cash flow
  • Commercial Contracts: Multi-year HOAs and commercial clients add stability
  • Route Optimization: GPS-zoned routing boosts crew productivity and margins
  • Tech-Enabled Ops: Full CRM, dispatch, and fleet tracking stack in place
  • Brand Strength: Dominant in local search, 4.8+ star average, high referral rate

🔧 Growth Levers for the Next Owner

  1. Geographic Expansion: Add neighboring territories or metro areas
  2. Roll-Ups: Acquire smaller crews for routes, talent, and client base
  3. Ancillary Services: Add hardscaping, tree care, pest/fert, snow removal
  4. Real Estate: Sale-leaseback or include owned dispatch yard in the deal

📊 Valuation Talk

Buyer Type EBITDA Multiple Valuation Range

Owner-Operator 3.5x – 4.5x $3.5M – $6M
Strategic Buyer 5x – 6.5x $5M – $9M+
PE / Family Office 6x – 8x (if scalable) $6.5M – $11M+

🚨 Red Flags to Vet

  • Labor Dependence: Can they retain and incentivize top crew leaders?
  • CapEx Timing: What’s the replacement schedule for trucks/equipment?
  • Client Concentration: Are revenues overly dependent on a few big accounts?
  • Licensing: Check compliance for pesticide/fert usage, irrigation, waste hauling

💼 Who Should Be Looking

  • 🛠️ Blue-collar entrepreneurs or tradesmen seeking a scalable, proven business
  • 👔 Corporate operators or searchers seeking stable cash flow + ops upside
  • 🌿 Lawn care roll-up platforms looking for a 7-figure anchor deal
  • 🏘️ Multi-unit service operators wanting to enter landscaping
  • 📊 Family offices seeking low-CapEx, high-margin recurring-revenue assets

🔐 Final Word

This deal represents everything that Main Street M&A is quietly built on: strong fundamentals, steady demand, and systems that scale.

If you’re looking to buy an off-market, cash-flowing service business with $1M+ in EBITDA and real operational depth—this might be your only look.

📍 Status: Unlisted. Inquiries welcome under NDA. Conversations described as “exploratory but real.”

For curated, no-hype alerts like this one—keep your radar dialed in.

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