Buying an appliance or equipment repair business in Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay has 130 established appliance and equipment repair businesses 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, 79% have been in business 20 years or more. Most will never be listed for sale, and many of their owners have never been asked.
What it takes to own one
Appliance and equipment repair businesses in Tampa Bay 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.
- Earns about
- $90,000 a year
- Price about
- $216,000
- Your cash
- $30,000
- Could pay you
- up to $51,000 a year
- Earns about
- $212,000 a year
- Price about
- $510,000
- Your cash
- $71,000
- Could pay you
- up to $121,000 a year
- Earns about
- $577,000 a year
- Price about
- $1.4 million
- Your cash
- $194,000
- Could pay you
- up to $327,000 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 2.4 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 | 27 |
| 20 to 29 years | 67 |
| 30 to 39 years | 19 |
| 40 years or more | 17 |
| Estimated yearly revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| Under $1M | 40 |
| $1M to $2M | 8 |
| $2M to $4M | 7 |
| $4M to $8M | 3 |
| County | Companies |
|---|---|
| Pinellas | 45 |
| Hillsborough | 41 |
| Polk | 21 |
| Pasco | 15 |
| Other counties | 8 |
| Town | Companies |
|---|---|
| Tampa | 26 |
| Clearwater | 12 |
| Lakeland | 9 |
| Largo | 5 |
| Saint Petersburg | 5 |
What the best appliance and equipment repair businesses have in common
- Commercial maintenance contracts that renew, with service on a schedule. A restaurant or warehouse that can't run without its equipment rarely shops on price.
- Factory authorizations (approval from equipment makers to service their brands), which bring warranty work, parts access, technical support and training.
- Technicians with deep experience on the equipment the company services, and a plan to train new ones. Experienced technicians are the hardest part of this business to replace.
- Fast response times that customers can count on, which is what keeps maintenance contracts renewing.
- Customers spread across many businesses and homes, not one large account.
- An accurate parts inventory with little obsolete stock.
- Little reliance on low-paying home warranty and other third-party warranty work.
- Dispatch, service history and parts usage tracked in software.
What to check before you buy
- Revenue by type: service calls, shop repair, maintenance contracts, warranty work and parts.
- Maintenance contracts: customers, terms, pricing and renewal history.
- Manufacturer authorizations, and whether they pass to a new owner. Some may require the maker's approval.
- Technician experience, certifications, pay and turnover.
- Parts inventory: count it, check its age, and value it at what it can actually be sold or used for.
- How much revenue comes from the largest customers, especially big commercial accounts.
- How often repairs have to be redone, and warranty claims on the company's own work.
- Vans, tools and diagnostic equipment, including software subscriptions some makers require.
- Pricing: trip charges and labor rates compared with local competitors, and when they last went up.
- Who answers the phone and schedules calls, and how quickly customers get a technician.
Questions to ask the owner
- What kinds of equipment do you service most, and which brands?
- How much of your revenue comes from maintenance contracts, and how many renewed last year?
- Which manufacturers have authorized you, and would those authorizations pass to a new owner?
- How long have your technicians been with you, and how are they trained?
- How much of your work comes from home warranty companies or other third-party warranty programs?
- How do you keep track of parts inventory?
- Which licenses or certifications does your work depend on?
To learn what these companies do, which licenses they need and how ownership works, read our full guide to buying an appliance or equipment repair business in Florida.
Owning a company in Tampa Bay
The local economy
Tampa Bay, as we draw it, runs from Citrus County south through Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough, and east into Polk: Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Brandon, Wesley Chapel, Brooksville, Inverness, Lakeland and Winter Haven. Tampa is the business center, with Port Tampa Bay, Tampa International Airport, the University of South Florida and MacDill Air Force Base, home to the headquarters of U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command. Financial services, insurance and health care employ many people, and the Gulf beaches of Pinellas bring tourists and seasonal residents.
Polk County sits on Interstate 4 between Tampa and Orlando and has become a center for warehouses and distribution, alongside its older citrus and phosphate industries. To the north, Pasco, Hernando and Citrus are more suburban and rural, with many retirees. Home service companies, the building trades, medical practices and auto businesses all have a deep customer base across the region.
What's different about owning a company here
Hurricane Helene's storm surge in September 2024 and Hurricane Milton two weeks later both hit the region hard. Flood zones and insurance costs now matter in any deal near the water. Ask how the business came through those storms, what it claimed, and whether its building sits in a flood zone.
The labor market is deep by Florida standards, though skilled tradespeople can still be hard to find. New homes have pushed north and east into Pasco and eastern Hillsborough, and along Interstate 4 in Polk, bringing demand for services with them. Coastal Pinellas is more seasonal than inland Tampa or Lakeland. The bay itself shapes a service company's territory: crossing a bridge at rush hour can turn a short distance into a long drive, so look at where the customers actually are.