Buying a landscaping company in Orlando and Central Florida

• A base of commercial maintenance contracts that renew year after year, spread across several associations and property managers.
• Tight routes: customers clustered so crews spend their day working, not driving between jobs.
• Upgrades, plant replacements and irrigation work sold to existing maintenance customers, which usually earn more than mowing.
• Licensed applicators on staff if the company fertilizes and treats for pests, so that work isn't at risk.
• Crew leaders who stay, and a dependable way to recruit and keep crew members.
• Equipment replaced on a schedule, so mowers and trucks don't all come due at once.
• Account managers, not just the owner, who know the commercial customers and their boards.

• The contract list: customer, monthly value, services, length, renewal date and cancellation terms. Associations put contracts out to bid regularly; ask when each is up next.
• How much rides on a few associations or property managers.
• The profit on each contract, since some large accounts are underpriced.
• Who holds the fertilizer certificates and pest control certification, and whether they'll stay. The pest control license depends on its certified operator, and each fertilizer certificate belongs to the worker who earned it.
• Labor: pay, turnover, how crews are recruited, and whether every worker is properly employed and documented. Florida requires employers with 25 or more employees to check new hires through E-Verify.
• The equipment list with age, condition and any debt.
• Storm cleanup revenue, which can inflate some years.
• Fuel, dump fees and yard waste disposal costs.
• Insurance claims for damaged cars, windows and sprinkler heads, which add up on mowing routes.

• How many maintenance contracts do you have, and how many renewed last year?
• Who are your biggest commercial customers, and when do their contracts come up for bid?
• Do you apply fertilizer or pesticides, and whose licenses cover it?
• How do you price contracts, and when did you last raise prices?
• How long have your crew leaders been with you?
• Beyond maintenance, how much revenue comes from upgrades, irrigation and installation?
• How has hurricane cleanup affected revenue in recent years?

This region covers Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Lake, Sumter and Marion counties: Orlando, Winter Park, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, Sanford, Clermont, Leesburg, Ocala and the large retirement communities of Sumter and Lake counties. Tourism is what the area is best known for, built on the theme parks, the hotels, the vacation rental homes around Kissimmee and the Orange County Convention Center. It's far from the only business. The University of Central Florida and the military simulation and training offices near it support a technology base, and health care is a major employer.

Marion County is horse country, with thoroughbred farms around Ocala, and it has added warehouses and distribution centers along Interstate 75. Retirees in Sumter and Lake create steady demand for medical practices, home care, home maintenance and auto services. The building trades, restaurants, and companies that serve hotels and rental homes do well across the region.

Central Florida is inland, so storm surge isn't the worry it is on the coasts. Hurricanes still bring wind damage and flooding, though: Hurricane Ian flooded neighborhoods in Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties in 2022. Ask whether the business or its customers were affected.

Tourism keeps demand steadier through the year than in markets that depend on winter residents, with busy stretches around school holidays. Hotels, parks and restaurants compete hard for workers, which pushes up wages for any company that hires hourly staff. New homes have spread fast in Osceola, south Lake and southeast Orange counties and around Ocala, so check whether a company's customers are in growing areas or older ones. Traffic on Interstate 4 limits how much ground a service company can cover in a day.