You spent decades building your HVAC business. See what it's worth, privately, before you talk to a single buyer. We run a confidential, competitive process, so your team, your customers, and your competitors never know unless you decide to move forward.
For most owners this is the biggest and most personal decision of their lives. We treat it that way.
Tell us about your company and a senior HVAC advisor will reach out personally to discuss what your business is worth.
What an HVAC company sells for comes down to its size, its recurring revenue, and how it's sold. We've closed 42 HVAC transactions as part of more than $1B in deals; these are the ranges we see.
Recurring revenue is the biggest lever. HVAC companies with 40% or more of revenue from service and maintenance agreements typically command roughly 0.5x to 1.0x higher multiples than businesses that depend on one-time installs. Positioning that revenue is part of how BizDepot lifts your price.
Watch: two HVAC companies, same EBITDA, $3M apart
"Earnings" here doesn't mean your revenue. It means your real take-home profit plus the things you run through the business, your salary, your vehicle, health insurance, one-time costs, added back in. Which version of that number applies depends on your size. Smaller, owner-operated businesses are valued on SDE, seller's discretionary earnings, which is your profit plus your full owner pay and perks. Once earnings pass roughly $1M, buyers switch to EBITDA, profit before interest, taxes, and depreciation, because they assume a manager will run the business. The multiples in the table above are applied to exactly these numbers, a 2x to 3.3x range multiplies your SDE, a 5x to 10x range multiplies your EBITDA, so every dollar of documented earnings is worth a multiple of that dollar at sale. Most owners don't know this number off the top of their head, which is exactly what a free valuation calculates for you.
An example. A residential-heavy HVAC company doing about $6M in revenue with strong recurring service agreements and roughly $1.4M in earnings could be looking at a mid-seven-figure to low-eight-figure sale. Your number depends on your specifics, which is what a free valuation pins down.
What you keep. The number you retire on is what lands in your account after taxes and fees, and that depends on how the deal is structured. Structuring the deal to maximize your net proceeds is a core part of what we do.
See the exact number your multiple gets applied to.
For most HVAC contractors the hardest part of selling isn't the money. It's the people. You want your technicians to keep their jobs, your customers taken care of, and the name on the trucks to stay. So we make that part of the deal, not an afterthought.
In most HVAC sales the team is retained, because a buyer is buying a business that runs. We help you find a buyer who will keep your crew, and how your people are treated is something we negotiate for you.
Many buyers, including private-equity platforms, keep your name and brand in place and run the company as a platform. We help you pick one whose plans fit what you built.
You decide how involved you want to be after the sale. Some owners walk away at close, others stay on for a short transition. It's negotiable, and we work it around your goals.
Not all private equity means what you fear. Many of today's HVAC buyers keep the team, invest in the business, and grow it. Part of our job is steering you toward the right kind of buyer and away from the wrong one.
HVAC contractors get unsolicited offers all the time now, from a local competitor, a private-equity group, or a direct acquirer. Those offers feel easy, but a single buyer has every incentive to pay as little as possible. A competitive process changes the math.
The buyer who called you is welcome to bid. In our process, they just have to bid against everyone else.
Know your number before any buyer names theirs.
BizDepot is a national M&A advisory that sells profitable HVAC businesses. We've closed 42 HVAC transactions as part of more than $1B in total deal volume. Here's what that gets you.
We bring your business to private-equity platforms, strategic acquirers, and search funds actively buying HVAC nationwide, buyers a local sale would never reach.
We market a blind profile. Your team, customers, and competitors don't learn the business is for sale until a vetted buyer signs an NDA.
We know how HVAC companies are valued, where buyers focus, and where value is won or lost, because we've done it 42 times.
Our fee is success-based. You pay nothing up front, and we're paid only when your business sells. If it doesn't sell, you owe us nothing.
You don't have to be ready to sell to find out what your business is worth. Get a free, confidential valuation, keep the number, and decide in your own time. No pressure, no obligation.
HVAC companies are valued on a multiple of recast earnings, but the multiple itself is set by a handful of factors buyers underwrite closely.
If the business runs on your relationships and dispatch decisions, a buyer prices in the risk of you leaving. Documented systems and a capable second-in-command protect your value.
Service agreements that renew each year are the single biggest lever on your multiple. Predictable, contracted revenue is worth more than one-time installs.
Skilled, licensed technicians are scarce. A team that operates without the owner, with low turnover and clear roles, removes the key-person risk that otherwise discounts the price.
A wide base of residential and light-commercial accounts is safer than a few large contracts. Concentration is a diligence flag buyers price in immediately.
A book weighted toward ongoing service and repair reads as more durable than one dependent on new construction or large replacement projects. Buyers reward stability.
A clean recast that adds back true owner discretionary expenses, plus a well-maintained fleet, raises the earnings the multiple is applied to.
These are the levers that lift an HVAC company's value, and you don't need them all in place before you talk to us. If you have 12 to 24 months, working on them can add a full turn to your multiple. If you're ready now, we position the strengths you already have.
Grow your maintenance agreements and track renewal rates. Recurring service revenue gives buyers confidence in future cash flow.
Books that clearly show revenue, expenses, add-backs, and true earnings help buyers verify faster and cut diligence delays.
A general manager, lead dispatcher, or senior technician who can run the day-to-day makes the company easier to sell.
A wide mix of residential, service, and light-commercial customers beats revenue tied to one or two major accounts.
Document your team structure, pay plans, licenses, and tenure so buyers can see the strength of the operation.
Standardize pricing, tighten job costing, and cut unnecessary expenses. Small margin gains compound when a multiple is applied.
Not sure which of these matters most for your company?
Get a free valuationFour kinds of buyers are acquiring HVAC companies today. Many of them keep the team and the brand and grow the business. We help you find one whose plans fit yours.
PE-backed platforms are rolling up the trades and paying premium multiples for well-run companies with recurring revenue. Buyer demand is unusually strong right now, and it's pushing multiples up. Markets change, which is why many owners get a valuation now, while they have time to act on it.
Established operators expanding their footprint into your market or service lines.
Funded operators looking for one great business to run themselves.
Multi-location players adding density, crews, and customer books.
We work with established, profitable HVAC companies with more than $2M in annual revenue, from owner-led firms to multi-location regional platforms. If you're thinking about an exit, you're worth a conversation.
BizDepot's job is to bring that buyer universe to your door, confidentially, and make them compete for your business.
From first valuation to funded close, one confidential process, typically about 4 to 7 months.
4–7 months
first call to wired funds
We do everything else
You do three things
Straight answers to the questions HVAC contractors ask us most. Pick a topic.
Most HVAC businesses sell for about 2x to 3.3x SDE at the smaller, owner-operated end, and about 5x to 10x EBITDA once earnings pass roughly $1M, with well-run, recurring-revenue-heavy companies at the top. Your exact number depends on recurring revenue, margins, and owner dependence, and a free, confidential BizDepot valuation gives you a specific range.
Established HVAC companies generally sell for about 5x to 10x EBITDA, with residential and recurring-revenue-heavy businesses at the high end and project-weighted commercial books lower. Multi-location platforms can command more. BizDepot gives you the specific multiple for your business in a free valuation.
SDE (seller's discretionary earnings) is your profit plus your owner pay and perks, used to value smaller businesses. EBITDA is profit before interest, taxes, and depreciation, used for larger companies where a buyer will hire a manager. Which one applies to you changes the multiple range buyers use.
Buyers treat your maintenance and service agreements as your most valuable revenue, because contracted, renewing revenue is predictable and it is the single biggest lever on your multiple. A business with a strong maintenance base can be worth a full turn or two more than a comparable install-heavy company, and BizDepot knows how to document agreement counts and renewal rates so a buyer pays for it.
Grow recurring maintenance contracts, reduce owner dependence, clean up and separate your financials, diversify your customer base so no single account dominates revenue, and protect technician retention. Starting 12 to 24 months out has the biggest impact, but even a few months of cleanup helps, and a free valuation shows you which levers matter most for your business.
Directly. If the business runs on your relationships and decisions, buyers discount for the risk of you leaving. Documented systems, a strong dispatcher or GM, and a team that operates without you protect your multiple.
Start with a valuation and exit strategy, then a financial recast and CIM, confidential introductions to vetted buyers, a private buyer auction, diligence, and a funded close. BizDepot runs all of it for you, confidentially.
Typically about four to seven months from first call to wired funds. Well-prepared companies with clean books move faster; complex or multi-entity deals can take longer.
A recast rebuilds your tax-return or P&L numbers into the true earnings a buyer underwrites, adding back owner salary, perks, one-time costs, and discretionary expenses. It's usually the single fastest way to raise the earnings your multiple gets applied to.
A confidential information memorandum, the professional deal book buyers receive after signing an NDA. It presents your financials, operations, team, and growth story the way sophisticated buyers expect to see them.
An IOI (indication of interest) is a buyer's preliminary, non-binding price range. An LOI (letter of intent) is the serious, negotiated offer you sign before diligence. We use competing IOIs to drive the strongest possible LOI.
For companies with real earnings, an M&A advisor runs a competitive, confidential process to institutional and strategic buyers, while a typical advisor lists the business and waits. The difference shows up in the final price and terms.
Private-equity platforms, strategic acquirers, search funds and individual operators, and larger regional companies. Private equity is the most active buyer of well-run HVAC companies today, and BizDepot brings that buyer universe to you.
Yes. PE-backed platforms are consolidating the trades and paying premium multiples for companies with recurring revenue and stable teams. That demand is a major reason multiples are elevated.
A strategy where one backed platform acquires many HVAC companies and combines them into a larger regional or national business. Roll-ups often keep local brands and teams in place, and they're among the most competitive bidders for quality companies.
When demand is high and your numbers are strong, and both are true for many owners right now. The other half of the answer is personal: the best exits start 12 to 24 months before the owner needs to leave, which is why a free valuation early costs you nothing and tells you where you stand.
No. We market your business as a blind profile and reveal its identity only to vetted buyers who've signed an NDA. Your team and market never know unless and until a deal closes. Confidentiality is the core of how BizDepot works, and we contact only you, never your team or customers.
In most HVAC sales the team is retained. Buyers are acquiring a running business, and skilled technicians are a big part of what they're paying for. How your people are treated is a term we negotiate on your behalf.
No. Your post-sale role is negotiable. Some owners transition out over a few months; others stay in a reduced role by choice. We build the deal around your goals.
Very often, yes. Many acquirers, including PE platforms, keep strong local brands in place. If keeping your name on the trucks matters to you, we make it part of the buyer selection.
You can often keep a stake. Majority recapitalizations let you take significant money off the table while retaining equity in the next stage of growth, a structure many PE buyers actively prefer.
Our fee is success-based, a percentage of the sale price paid only at closing. There are no upfront costs, and your advisor confirms the exact terms before you engage.
It depends on how the deal is structured, asset versus stock sale, allocation, and your tax situation. Maximizing your net proceeds, not just the headline price, is a core part of how we negotiate, and we coordinate with your CPA before you sign anything.
In an asset sale the buyer purchases the business's assets and contracts; in a stock sale they purchase the entity itself. The structure changes your taxes, your liabilities, and sometimes license transfers, so it's negotiated carefully as part of the deal.
License requirements vary by state. Buyers typically qualify through their own license, a qualifying employee, or a transition arrangement with you. We flag licensing early so it never delays a close.
BizDepot is a national M&A advisory that has sold businesses since 2003, with more than $1B in transactions and 530+ successful exits firm-wide. We work on success fees only, so we're paid when you are. Meet the advisory team that runs these deals.
Yes. BizDepot is a national M&A advisory and represents HVAC owners across the United States. Wherever your business is, you get the same confidential, competitive process and the same national buyer network.
You can, and some owners do, usually to the one buyer who approached them. The trade-off is a single-buyer negotiation with no competition and no market check on price. A competitive process exists precisely to answer the question you can't answer alone: what would someone else have paid?
Buyer demand is high and multiples are elevated. See your number before you decide anything. No one finds out you're exploring a sale.
ConfidentialNo upfront feesNo obligation
