How this goes
Six clear stages, and you can stop after any one of them.
Nothing here obligates you to anything. Most people who call me are a year or two out from selling, and some never sell at all. That is fine. Here is exactly what happens.
A few minutes
Send the basics, or call me
A short form or a phone call, whichever you prefer. I need four things to start: where you run, roughly how many pools, roughly what a typical pool pays you each month, and whether it is residential, commercial, or a mix.
You do not need to dig anything out of a filing cabinet. You do not need a profit and loss statement, a customer list, or a spreadsheet. If your records are a notebook in the truck, say so — I have worked from a notebook in the truck plenty of times.
If there is something unusual about the route — a big account that just left, a tech who does half the stops, a chunk of vacation rentals — tell me. It does not scare me off, and it does change the number.
About 15 minutes
We have one owner-to-owner conversation
I ask how the week actually runs: who cleans which pools, where the long drives are, what customers pay, and what you want life to look like after a sale.
This is not an interrogation and it is not a sales pitch. It is enough context for me to understand the route behind the spreadsheet.
Within 2 business days
I send a valuation and local market read
Within two business days you get a written document with:
- A value range for your route, not a single teaser number, with the low end and the high end explained.
- The multiple I used and why — route density, average ticket, customer tenure, how much of it depends on you personally.
- A read on your market: what routes have been trading for nearby, what the going monthly rate is in your towns, and how your rates compare.
- What I think the route could do under a different operator, which is usually the number nobody has ever shown you.
You keep that document whether we ever do a deal or not. A broker will not produce one for you without a listing agreement signed first.
Your choice
We compare cash and seller financing
You see an all-cash structure beside payments over time. I show the down payment, monthly income, interest, total received, and practical tradeoffs in plain language.
You can choose either, combine them, or decide neither fits.
Plain English
If a number works, I put it in writing
The price, payment structure, timing, included equipment, transition, and important conditions go into a short written agreement. There should be no mystery about what we shook hands on.
If the facts match what you told me, I do not use the closing process to manufacture a lower price.
Usually 30–60 days
Practical diligence, transition, and closing
If the number works, we talk structure. All cash at closing, payments to you over time, or some of each. I will build both so you can see them side by side, because a higher headline price is not always more money in your pocket.
From a handshake to a closing is usually thirty to sixty days, and it is your call when that clock starts. Some owners want out before hurricane season. Some want to run one more winter. Either is fine.
The transition is a real part of the deal, not an afterthought. We agree on how your customers hear about it, whether you ride along for a couple of weeks, and what happens with your tech and your equipment. Nothing gets sprung on anyone.
And if the number does not work: you keep the report and we part as friends. I will check in once a year if you would like me to, and not if you would not.
Before you call
What I need—and what I do not.
Helpful to have
- Rough number of pools and monthly billing
- The towns or counties you cover
- Number of technicians and trucks
- Any large or unusual accounts
- A sense of your preferred timing
Not needed for the first call
- Perfect books or a formal profit-and-loss statement
- A polished website or sales presentation
- Signed customer service agreements
- A cleaned-up route or newly raised rates
- A decision to sell
No last-minute bank problem
How can a deal close without waiting on a bank?
I structure purchases so the closing is not dependent on a new acquisition loan being approved in week nine. Depending on the deal, that can mean cash at closing, a seller-financed note, or a mix of both.
The exact source and structure are disclosed in the written terms before you commit. The important part for you is simple: the deal is built around funds and terms we can actually deliver, not a hopeful application sitting on an underwriter's desk.
Selling to me, or listing it
What the two paths actually cost you.
| Selling to me | Listing with a broker | |
|---|---|---|
| Commission | None. What we agree on is what you get | Typically eight to twelve percent off the top |
| Who you talk to | Me, from the first call to the closing table | A broker, then a buyer you have never met |
| Timeline | Sixty days, or whenever suits you | Six to twelve months is common |
| Financing risk | No bank. Nothing falls apart at the last minute | The buyer's loan has to come through |
| Condition | As it runs. I have already priced the soft accounts | Clean up the books and the billing before it shows |
| Privacy | One quiet conversation | A public listing your customers and your tech can find |
| Getting paid | Lump sum, or monthly income for years. Your choice | One check, and the tax bill that comes with it |
Find out what your route is actually worth.
A real value range, a read on your market, and a straight conversation with the person who would buy it. No cost, no obligation, and nothing gets listed anywhere.