Buying a fire and security company in Treasure Coast

Treasure Coast has 25 established fire and security companies by our count: companies in business at least 15 years that still file with the state every year and aren't part of a larger group. Of those, 56% have been in business 20 years or more, and at least 96% hold a state license. Most will never be listed for sale, and many of their owners have never been asked.

established companies

56%

built over 20+ years

$187k+

a year, earned by the top quarter

96%

hold a state license

What it takes to own one

Fire and security companies in Treasure Coast come in every size. Here's what owning one could look like at three levels, from a solid company to one of the leaders, with a small business loan covering most of the price.

A solid company

Earns about: $80,000 a year
Price about: $235,000
Your cash: $33,000
Could pay you: up to $37,000 a year

A strong company

Top quarter in Treasure Coast

Earns about: $187,000 a year
Price about: $551,000
Your cash: $77,000
Could pay you: up to $87,000 a year

One of the leaders

Top tenth in Treasure Coast

Earns about: $272,000 a year
Price about: $803,000
Your cash: $112,000
Could pay you: up to $127,000 a year

Earnings are owner earnings: profit plus what the owner pays themselves, before loan payments and taxes. They and the prices are our estimates from public records, not the owners' figures, and we value companies like these at about 3.0 times a year's owner earnings. Your cash covers the down payment and closing costs, and what the business could pay you is what's left after the loan payments and the cushion lenders require. The more cash you bring, the further up you can go.

Age, size and location

Revenue is our estimate from public records, grouped into wide ranges.

In business	Companies
Under 20 years	11
20 to 29 years	10
30 to 39 years	4
40 years or more	0

Estimated yearly revenue	Companies
Under $1M	5
$1M to $2M	2
$2M to $4M	1

County	Companies
St. Lucie	10
Martin	8
Indian River	5
Other counties	2

Town	Companies
Stuart	5
Vero Beach	5

What the best fire and security companies have in common

Monitoring and inspection contracts that make up a large share of revenue, with few cancellations. Buyers pay most for this part.
Inspection findings turned into repair jobs, quoted and done before the customer calls someone else.
Commercial customers spread across many buildings and property managers, so losing one doesn't hurt much.
Technicians with the right state credentials and the industry certifications that inspections require.
Monitoring contracts that can pass to a new owner, with a reliable monitoring center behind them.
Careful estimates on project work, and little reliance on one general contractor.
Inspection and service records in software, showing every building's schedule and history.

What to check before you buy

Monitoring accounts and inspection contracts in detail: value, terms and cancellations over three years.
Whether the contracts can be transferred to you. That may depend on whether you buy the company itself or only its assets.
The monitoring center agreement: cost per account, and who owns the customer relationship.
Deficiencies (problems found during inspections) not yet repaired, and any liability if a system failed.
Claims or lawsuits after fires or break-ins.
Who holds each license and certificate, and whether they'll stay.
Background checks and training records for every alarm employee, since gaps are a licensing problem for the company.
Older alarm panels that report over phone lines or cellular networks that carriers have shut down.

Questions to ask the owner

How much of your revenue comes from monitoring and inspections, and how has that grown?
How many monitoring accounts and inspection contracts do you have, and on what terms?
Who monitors your accounts, and could that agreement pass to a new owner?
Whose licenses and certificates does the company work under?
How many problems from recent inspections are still waiting on repairs?
How much of your work is new systems bid through general contractors?
Have you ever been sued after a system didn't work as expected?

To learn what these companies do, which licenses they need and how ownership works, read our full guide to buying a fire and security company in Florida.

Owning a company in Treasure Coast

The local economy

This region covers Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties on the Atlantic coast and Okeechobee and Highlands counties inland: Stuart, Palm City, Port St. Lucie, Fort Pierce, Vero Beach, Sebastian, Okeechobee, Sebring and Avon Park. Port St. Lucie is the largest city and has grown quickly as a suburb within reach of Palm Beach County to the south.

The coast draws retirees and winter residents, and health care, construction, real estate, boating and sport fishing are big parts of the economy. The coast lies in the Indian River citrus district, named for the lagoon. Inland, Okeechobee and Highlands are cattle, dairy and citrus country around Lake Okeechobee and along the ridge near Sebring, with many retirees of their own. Home service companies, the building trades, marine businesses and medical practices find steady customers here.

What's different about owning a company here

The coast is seasonal, with winter residents filling restaurants, golf courses and service schedules, and summer is quieter. Hurricane Nicole came ashore near Vero Beach in November 2022, and the region has a long history of storms, so check insurance, flood zones and how a business came through recent ones.

Water quality in the St. Lucie River and the Indian River Lagoon is a recurring problem, and in a bad year it can hurt fishing, boating and tourism businesses. Inland, distances are longer and the labor pool thinner. A company in Sebring or Okeechobee may be one of very few of its kind nearby, which can mean loyal customers and little competition, but also few people to hire. Most new homes on the coast are going up in and around Port St. Lucie.