Western Oregon Waste Collection & Recycling, 30+ Year Residential and Commercial Hauler

Full Editorial Writeup

This is a family-owned residential and commercial waste collection and recycling operation serving a 60-mile rural corridor in western Oregon. The current family bought the business in 1991 when it ran three days a week with a single employee. Today it runs three to four routes per day, five days a week, servicing over 3,200 stops weekly with a fleet of four side loaders, four rear loaders, and three drop box trucks and a team of roughly ten. Residential pickup is handled with semi-automated side loaders and roll carts, commercial with rear loaders and containers, and bulk hauling with drop box trucks.

What makes this deal interesting is the moat. The company operates in an exclusive, scenic rural service area, is not subject to license or franchise fees, and faces no state-mandated recycling requirements. That combination of a defined geography, a loyal customer base built over three decades, and the ability to set regular rate adjustments based on cost of service and profitability targets gives the operator real pricing power that most small haulers lack.

On $1.74M of revenue the business throws off $527K of owner cash flow and $458K of EBITDA, both strong margins for a route-based hauling operation. Seasonal contracts with the U.S. Forest Service, the county, and campground management companies add recurring government and institutional revenue on top of the core residential and commercial base. The asking price of $2.9M puts it at 5.5x cash flow, with real estate (the 1.65-acre office/shop property valued at $550K) available separately and not included in that figure.