Well-Known Residential Landscaping Company, Northern Westchester NY

$1.7M

Revenue

$587K

SDE

3.6x

Multiple

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Full Editorial Writeup

This is an established residential landscaping company serving the affluent communities of northern Westchester County, New York. It positions itself at the high end of the market, catering to homeowners in one of the wealthiest suburban corridors in the country. The business generates roughly $1.7 million in annual revenue and $586,600 in cash flow, implying an operating margin near 35 percent, which is strong for a labor-heavy trade.

Westchester's high-net-worth homeowner base is the core asset here. These are customers who treat professionally maintained grounds as a baseline expectation, not a splurge, and who tend to keep the same crews year after year once trust is established. A recognized brand name in a wealthy, dense geography is a meaningful moat in a fragmented industry dominated by one-truck operators.

The economics point to a recurring maintenance base supplemented by higher-ticket design, installation, and seasonal work. At a 3.58x cash flow multiple the deal is priced in line with quality landscaping comps. The unknowns (years in business, crew structure, mix of recurring maintenance versus one-time projects) are the swing factors on whether this earns a premium.

Why we like it

Earnings quality is the headline: $586,600 of cash flow on $1.7M of revenue is roughly a 35 percent margin, unusually rich for landscaping where labor typically compresses profit. That kind of margin in an affluent market suggests real pricing power rather than low-cost bidding wars.
The moat is geography plus reputation. Serving affluent northern Westchester with a well-known brand creates switching friction, because wealthy homeowners value reliability and referrals over shopping price. In a fragmented trade dominated by informal operators, a recognized name in a dense, high-value zip code is durable.
Recurring maintenance routes give this cash flow a floor. Residential landscape maintenance runs on seasonal contracts and repeat weekly service, so a large share of revenue renews by default rather than being re-won each spring. That predictability is what makes an otherwise seasonal business bankable.
The operator advantage is real for a hands-on buyer. Route density in a single county lets you add design/build, hardscaping, irrigation, and snow work to an existing trusted customer base with minimal customer acquisition cost. Small pricing and mix improvements drop straight to the bottom line.

How to improve it

Nail down and grow the recurring maintenance base. Convert one-time customers onto annual maintenance agreements with auto-renewal and multi-year terms to lock in the route and smooth seasonal cash flow. Contracted revenue also directly raises the exit multiple when you sell.
Add snow and ice management to fill the winter trough. Northern Westchester winters create demand you can serve with your existing customer relationships and some of the same equipment, turning idle Q1 crews into revenue. Bundling snow into annual agreements deepens retention.
Push high-margin design/build and hardscaping to existing clients. Affluent homeowners regularly fund patios, outdoor kitchens, lighting, and irrigation upgrades, and selling into a trusted maintenance base costs almost nothing to acquire. This is the fastest path to raising average revenue per customer.
Systematize crews and route scheduling to reduce owner dependence. Document routes, install crew leaders, and use scheduling/CRM software so the business runs without the seller personally directing daily work. This both protects the current margin and makes the asset resellable.
Implement structured price increases. High-end clients tolerate 5 to 8 percent annual price adjustments when service quality is consistent, and at these margins most of that increase flows to cash flow. Audit the current book for underpriced legacy accounts first.
Build a referral and reputation engine. In wealthy suburban markets word-of-mouth and being the recognized name drive most new work, so formalize a referral incentive and review-generation process. Cheap growth here beats paid marketing on ROI.
Tighten labor productivity tracking. Measure revenue per crew hour and job costing by property so you can prune unprofitable accounts and reprice the rest. In a labor-heavy business, small efficiency gains protect the standout margin.

Diligence notes

Verify the revenue mix between recurring maintenance and one-time projects. A 35 percent margin is attractive, but if it leans heavily on lumpy design/build work the cash flow is far less durable than a recurring maintenance base. Get the customer-by-customer contract and renewal data.
Scrutinize the cash flow quality and owner add-backs. Confirm the $586,600 is defensible after normalizing owner compensation, and understand how much of daily operations the seller personally performs. Heavy owner involvement in sales or crew supervision is a real transition risk.
Investigate labor availability and crew retention. Landscaping lives and dies on reliable field labor, and Westchester is a high-cost market, so confirm wage rates, turnover, H-2B or seasonal labor reliance, and whether key crew leaders stay post-sale. Losing crews at closing can gut the margin.
Confirm customer concentration and stickiness. Ask how many accounts drive the revenue and what churn looks like year to year, because a handful of large estates leaving could impair the business quickly. Reputation is only a moat if the client roster is broad and loyal.
Clarify equipment condition and whether vehicles are included. Establish what trucks, mowers, and equipment convey in the price, their age and maintenance state, and any deferred capex. Undisclosed replacement needs would eat into the returns implied by the 3.58x multiple.
Establish the true age, seasonality, and off-season plan. The listing omits years in business and any winter revenue, so confirm the operating history and how the business covers fixed costs and retains crews through the dormant months in a four-season climate.

Source

Originally listed on Sunbelt Business Brokers. View original listing →