Selling a plumbing business
Most plumbing businesses that sell are priced on owner earnings: half of those sold from 2021 to 2025 went for 1.66 to 3.15 times seller's discretionary earnings. Larger companies are priced on EBITDA, where private deals for HVAC, plumbing and electrical contractors averaged 6.4x in 2024 and 2025. 1,2
What do buyers pay?
Size decides which earnings figure a buyer prices. Smaller companies are priced on seller's discretionary earnings — profit plus the owner's own pay and perks. Larger ones are priced on EBITDA, after a market salary for management. The two multiples are not on the same scale and should never be compared directly.
Smaller companies, on owner earnings: plumbing businesses sold from 2021 to 2025 changed hands at a median of 2.24 times seller's discretionary earnings, and half sold between 1.66 and 3.15 times. The median sale price in 2025 was $837,500. 1
Larger companies, on EBITDA: private middle-market deals for HVAC, plumbing and electrical contractors combined — not plumbing alone — averaged 6.4 times EBITDA in 2024 and 2025, at an average deal value of $54 million. 2
For context across all construction services, deals with disclosed terms from 2018 to 2025 averaged 10.6 times EBITDA when private equity was the buyer and 7.5 times when a strategic buyer was. Those deals skew larger still. 3
Size moves the multiple within the small end as well: the same data puts a plumbing business with more than $2 million of sales above 3 times earnings, and one below $600,000 under 2 times. Why the first size step is the steepest 1
Who buys plumbing businesses?
Three kinds of buyer recur in plumbing acquisitions, and each prices a business differently.
Public holding companies
Listed companies that acquire established, profitable owner-run service businesses.
- Kingsway Financial Services — acquired Southside Plumbing, a commercial and residential plumber in Omaha, Nebraska, in August 2025 4
Private-equity residential service platforms
Sponsor-backed platforms that buy plumbing and drain companies market by market, usually keeping the local brand and the technicians.
- Seacoast Service Partners (White Wolf Capital Group) — acquired GP Plumbing of Cape Coral, Florida, in April 2025 5
- P3 Services (Stellex Capital Management) — added plumbing and septic companies in Texas, Washington, Florida and North Carolina, including Schrader Plumbing of Dallas, announced in March 2025 6
- Liberty Service Partners (NorthCurrent Partners) — partnered with DB's Plumbing and Drain, a family-owned plumber in Woodbridge, Virginia, in June 2026 7
Private-equity specialist and commercial plumbing platforms
Sponsors backing plumbing businesses with a specialty — repiping, lining, commercial construction — as the base of a larger group.
- Repipe Specialists (Gryphon Investors) — acquired A-1 Total Service Plumbing in the Los Angeles area in January 2025 8
- Green Heron Partners — invested in Regency Plumbing Contractors, a commercial plumbing contractor in Houston, Texas, in February 2026 9
What moves the multiple?
Up
- Service, repair and drain work over new construction. A homeowner or property manager who calls back is worth more to a buyer than a builder who rebids every job.
- Maintenance agreements and commercial service contracts — revenue a buyer can count on before the phone rings.
- A master plumber's license, a technician bench and a dispatch process that do not depend on the owner.
- Scale. Each step up in size changes both the multiple and the kind of buyer that will look at the business. Who buys, and how it changes the price
Down
- Dependence on a few builders or general contractors for most of the work.
- The owner as the only license holder and the person every customer asks for.
- High technician turnover, or a crew a buyer would have to rebuild after closing.
What does it cost to sell?
The route sets the fee, and the size of the business mostly sets the route: a marketplace listing, a business broker on commission, or a retained M&A advisor. The ranges for each, with sources, are on what it costs to sell a business.
Griffin’s valuation report is a fixed fee of $20,000 to $50,000 or more, delivered in four to six weeks: the value range, the model that produced it, and the buyers who would pay it, before any decision to go to market.
Sources
- BizBuySell, “Plumbing Business Valuation Multiples & Financial Benchmarks” (sold transactions 2021–2025). Accessed October 3, 2026.
- Founders Advisors, “Home Services Market Update – Summer 2025”, July 2025, citing GF Data private middle-market transactions (NAICS 238220). Accessed October 3, 2026.
- Capstone Partners, “Construction Services M&A Update – February 2026”, 25 February 2026. Accessed October 3, 2026.
- Kingsway Financial Services, “Kingsway Announces Acquisition of Southside Plumbing”, 18 August 2025. Accessed October 3, 2026.
- Seacoast Service Partners, “Seacoast Service Partners Acquires GP Plumbing”, 14 April 2025. Accessed October 3, 2026.
- P3 Services, “P3 Services Accelerates National Expansion with Multiple Strategic Acquisitions Across the U.S. Over the Last Year”, PR Newswire, 4 March 2025. Accessed October 3, 2026.
- Liberty Service Partners, “Liberty Service Partners Welcomes DB’s Plumbing and Drain”, PR Newswire, 4 June 2026. Accessed October 3, 2026.
- Gryphon Investors, “Gryphon Investors-Backed Repipe Specialists Acquires A-1 Total Service Plumbing”, 16 January 2025. Accessed October 3, 2026.
- Green Heron Partners, “Green Heron Partners Announces Strategic Investment in Regency Plumbing Contractors”, PR Newswire, 23 February 2026. Accessed October 3, 2026.