Anyone have experience with acquisitions of residential cleaning companies?

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November 15, 2025

by a searcher from Boston University in Irvine, CA, USA

I currently have an LOI out for a small but profitable residential, Airbnb, and small office cleaning company in Southern California. I’m looking to learn from experienced operators in this space what key questions I should be asking when meeting with the seller. The business is already SBA pre‑qualified and has been operating successfully for over 20 years, so my focus is less on the revenue and more on understanding the business itself. Separately, I’d like to gain perspective on the typical pricing structures for these types of services. The company currently operates on an hourly basis, but I want to understand whether the industry standard leans toward flat rate or hourly, along with the pros and cons of each. I’m also interested in how to effectively transition from one structure (hourly) to another (flat rate), and what best practices exist for implementing such a change. Finally, I’m seeking general advice about the industry overall and what you see as the current and future challenges to navigate. Thanks, Vishak
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Reply by a searcher
from Northwestern University in Mexico City, CDMX, Mexico
Hi! Dm Me. I?ve bought 3 of those. Happy to chat
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Reply by a lender
from Cornell University in Los Angeles, CA, USA
Hi Vishak, happy to share what we see on the lending side with these types of deals. Residential and Airbnb cleaning companies are typically strong SBA candidates because the revenue is recurring, customer churn is predictable, and labor is the main operating variable. When you meet with the seller, the key areas to dig into are scheduling efficiency, labor retention, customer concentration, cancellation trends, and the percentage of recurring clients versus one time jobs. These are the items lenders review closely when sizing cash flow. On pricing structure, most operators eventually move toward flat rate pricing because it increases predictability for both the customer and the business. The transition needs to be gradual so you can track profitability by job and avoid margin surprises. A simple approach is to run both hourly and flat rate models side by side for a period of time before fully converting. While retaining and keeping good labor will be the greatest challenge for this type of business, making sure you buy the business at a sensible valuation will be even more important. We have a lot experience financing residential and commercial cleaning companies via the SBA. If you ever need help talking through a deal, I am happy to help. We work with all the major SBA lenders. The bank pays us after your loan closes, so this is a 100 percent free service for you. You can email me directly at redacted or schedule a meeting with me: https://cal.com/francodeguzman/30min. Look forward to chatting!
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