Goldglen Finance helps Bozeman, MT and Gallatin County, MT plumbing and HVAC contractors compare equipment financing, working capital and lines of credit for vans, parts and payroll, and term loans for buying a shop. County Business Patterns counted 111 such employers in Gallatin County, MT in 2023. Partners decide.
At a glance
- Plumbers and HVAC shops with payroll, Gallatin County, MT
111 (NAICS 238220, CBP 2023)
- Employees in the trade
930 (CBP 2023)
- Trade payroll
$69.8 million (CBP 2023)
- Payroll businesses of this kind in ZIP 59715
17 (ZBP 2023)
Gallatin County, MT Plumbers and HVAC Shops in the CBP Count
Plumbing, heating and air conditioning contractors (NAICS 238220) counted 111 employer establishments in Gallatin County, MT in 2023, with 930 employees and $69.8 million in payroll; 62.2% had fewer than five employees (CBP). Nonemployer Statistics separately counted 69 such contractors without paid employees in 2024. ZIP 59715 held 17 of the employer establishments (ZBP 2023).
Average payroll per employee in this trade was about $75,045 in 2023, our arithmetic from the CBP payroll and employee counts, which shows how much a single technician hire adds to monthly costs.
How to buy a plumbing business for a Gallatin County, MT business
Buying a plumbing business starts with what makes it worth buying: service agreements, a customer list with repeat work, trained technicians who will stay, vans and stock, and the business's reputation. The seller's tax returns and job history show what that is worth in revenue.
- Review three years of returns and revenue by type of work (service, new construction, maintenance agreements).
- List the vans, equipment and parts stock that transfer, with their condition.
- Confirm which technicians and licenses stay with the business.
- Agree price and structure, including any seller note.
- Request funding with the letter of intent and the seller's records.
Plumbing contractor business loans for Gallatin County, MT businesses
Plumbing contractor business loans fund the costs a shop carries every day: service vans, tools and camera equipment, parts stock, and payroll for technicians while new-construction jobs wait for draws. A partner reads the shop's deposits, receivables and the split between service work (paid soon after the job) and construction work (paid on draws).
Shops that do both have two cash patterns. A line of credit covers the construction side's lag, while the service side's steady deposits support the payments.
HVAC business financing: what Bozeman, MT owners should know
HVAC business financing has one cost that plumbing shops carry less of: equipment inventory. Furnaces, condensers, heat pumps and air handlers are expensive, and a contractor may buy them ahead of installation. Inventory financing or a line of credit can carry that stock; equipment financing covers the vans, recovery machines and tools.
HVAC contractors who offer their customers financing for new systems are arranging consumer credit for the homeowner, which is separate from the contractor's own business funding.
Business loans for plumbing contractors serving Gallatin County, MT
For plumbing contractors serving Gallatin County, MT, the request depends on the work mix. A residential service shop's request reads on its deposits and service agreements. A commercial contractor's request reads on its contracts, draw schedules and retainage, like other construction trades. Name which kind the business is, and the partner can read it correctly.
More on construction draws and retainage is on the construction page , and the electrical trade, with similar cash patterns, is on the electrical contractors page .
Working capital for HVAC business in Bozeman, MT
Working capital for an HVAC business covers payroll, parts and equipment bought for installations before the customer or general contractor pays. Illustration only, invented figures: a contractor installs a $14,500 system, paying $7,800 for the equipment and $2,600 in labor before invoicing. If the customer pays in 30 days, $10,400 is out for that month, by our arithmetic. Five installs in a month put $52,000 out.
A working capital loan sized to that cycle, or a line drawn for each batch of installs, covers the gap.
Working capital for plumbing contractors for Gallatin County, MT businesses
Working capital for plumbing contractors in Gallatin County, MT is sized from the receivables. A partner looks at how much is owed, by whom and how long it has been outstanding. Construction receivables with retainage take longer to collect than service invoices, and a request that separates the two reads clearly.
The working capital page covers payroll gaps in detail, and the Montana contractor registration guide explains the registration record a partner may check.
Service Agreements and Recurring Revenue for a Bozeman, MT Shop
Maintenance agreements, such as annual furnace tune-ups, backflow testing or drain service plans, turn one-time customers into recurring revenue. For a funding request, they matter twice: the recurring billing shows up as steady deposits, and the agreement count is part of what a buyer pays for when a shop is sold.
Illustration only, invented figures: a shop holds 420 maintenance agreements at $189 a year each, $79,380 in recurring revenue, by our arithmetic. A partner can read that figure against the shop's total deposits to see how much of the business renews on its own, and a buyer can weigh it when setting a price.
Keep the agreement list current, with renewal dates, so the figure can be shown rather than estimated.
Records a Partner Reads for a Bozeman, MT Plumbing or HVAC Shop
- Business bank statements and receivables aging.
- Revenue split by service, construction and maintenance agreements.
- Van and equipment quotes, and a list of financed vehicles.
- Business tax returns for two years.
- For a purchase: the seller's records and the letter of intent.
County figures are on the Bozeman, MT page , and all trades on the industry pages .
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