Best M&A Advisors for
Plumbing Companies in 2026

How we evaluated plumbing M&A advisors

Private equity firms have expanded their plumbing acquisition programs as they pursue opportunities in a fragmented industry. A public tracker identified 21 PE-backed platforms that completed verifiable plumbing acquisitions between January 2024 and April 2026. With 21 active platforms seeking acquisitions, you may receive unsolicited outreach even when you have not listed your plumbing company for sale.

Salt Creek Advisory created this comparison, and we compete with some of the firms included. We reviewed public firm information, stated client and transaction sizes, service scope, geographic coverage, fee models, and documented plumbing or trades experience. We favored advisors whose published services appear relevant to founder-owned plumbing companies rather than filling the list with firms that primarily handle much larger transactions.

Public information cannot confirm how well an advisor will fit your company. Owners should verify recent deal experience, staffing, fees, buyer outreach methods, and references before signing an engagement agreement.

The three paths to selling a plumbing company

Plumbing owners pursuing an outside sale generally consider a private equity-backed platform. They may instead sell to a strategic acquirer or an individual operator. Each offers a different balance of cash at closing, ongoing involvement, payment risk, and continuity for employees. Buyer selection often becomes part of succession planning when no family member or manager can take over. Gallup found that 52.3% of U.S. employer businesses have owners aged 55 or older, and 74% of employer-business owners expect to sell or transfer ownership eventually. Although those figures cover all industries, they illustrate the succession issue many established plumbing owners face.

A PE-backed platform often suits an owner who wants liquidity but will remain involved after closing. According to published home-services acquisition guidance, home-services PE offers commonly pay 60% to 80% in cash at closing and require sellers to reinvest much of the balance as rollover equity. Rollover equity means you reinvest part of your proceeds in the combined company. Rollover equity can produce another payout when the platform sells, but the seller holds a minority interest that may be difficult to sell. PE buyers may also use earnouts, which make part of the price depend on future performance. Founders commonly stay for one to three years and follow the platform’s reporting and operating requirements.

A strategic buyer often provides a cleaner exit but usually absorbs the seller into its existing operation. A larger plumbing or HVAC company may value your technicians and customer base because they expand its service area. A strategic buyer may offer more cash at closing and require less rollover equity than a private equity-backed platform, although terms vary by buyer and transaction. By integrating your company into an existing operation, a strategic buyer may shorten your transition but reorganize administrative work or replace the company brand.

An individual buyer may offer greater continuity for employees and company culture, although the seller often accepts more payment risk. Individual-buyer structures commonly provide 50% to 70% cash at closing, with the remainder paid through a seller note or earnout. The buyer usually takes over daily management after a transition period. Because seller notes depend on the buyer’s future ability to pay, you should compare payment security and guarantees alongside the headline price.

What to look for in a plumbing M&A advisor

Advisor type. Business brokers typically serve companies below $3 million to $5 million in revenue, while M&A advisors usually work above $5 million. The range between those figures remains a gray area, according to Profitability Partners.

Deal-size fit. Ask about the advisor’s typical ranges for revenue and adjusted EBITDA. An advisor accustomed to much larger transactions may give a smaller plumbing company limited attention.

Fee structure. Compare upfront retainers, monthly fees, success fees, reimbursable expenses, and post-engagement tail provisions. Some trades-focused advisors charge only when a transaction closes, while other firms combine retainers with closing fees.

Sector specialization. Ask which plumbing or home-services transactions the advisor completed during the past two or three years. Recent experience helps an advisor understand buyer criteria and anticipate common operating and diligence concerns.

Buyer-network breadth. Ask each advisor to explain how it will identify individuals, private equity platforms, and strategic acquirers before beginning outreach. Request a preliminary list of plausible buyers and references from comparable sellers rather than relying only on a claimed network size. A preliminary buyer list and references from comparable sellers show whether the advisor has a practical outreach plan for your company.

Comparison at a glance

Salt Creek Advisory

Overview and fit

Salt Creek Advisory is a family-owned M&A advisory firm based in Chicago that serves business owners nationwide. Founders Jack and Connor Pitts remain involved throughout the sale rather than assigning the engagement to junior employees.

The firm generally fits founder-owned plumbing companies seeking direct principal involvement and no upfront retainer. Salt Creek typically advises companies generating about $2 million to $75 million in revenue and at least $500,000 in adjusted EBITDA. Adjusted EBITDA reflects operating profit after reasonable owner-specific adjustments.

Salt Creek runs confidential buyer processes that may include strategic acquirers, private equity firms, family offices, and independent sponsors. Jack and Connor manage buyer outreach and the rest of the transaction through closing. The firm uses technology and AI to research buyers and manage market data during the sale. Jack and Connor compare each offer’s financial terms with its effects on employees and the owner’s post-sale role.

Pros

• Owners work directly with Jack and Connor throughout the engagement.
• We can reach both institutional and individual buyers through targeted outreach.
• We compare each offer’s financial terms with its effects on employees and your legacy.
• Our national coverage makes us relevant to plumbing companies outside Chicago and the Midwest.

Cons

• We serve several industries and do not present ourselves as a plumbing-only advisor.
• A larger plumbing platform or multi-state contractor may prefer an investment bank with more experience in large home-services transactions.
• An owner seeking extensive plumbing-specific transaction benchmarks may prefer one of the trades specialists profiled below.
• Companies below our typical size range may receive better service from a local business broker.

Pricing

Our standard M&A engagements use a 100% success-fee model with no upfront retainer. We receive our advisory fee when a transaction closes, and we set the amount based on the company’s size, expected transaction value, and complexity. Owners should review the full engagement agreement before hiring any advisor.

Good Hope Advisors

Overview and fit

Good Hope Advisors operates as a sell-side M&A advisor for plumbing, HVAC, electrical, roofing, landscaping, and related trades. Founder Eric Seifert previously spent 15 years executing HVAC and trades platform deals on Wall Street, according to the firm’s home services practice page.

The firm best serves trades companies with $2 million to $50 million in revenue, particularly those producing $1 million to $5 million in EBITDA and seeking a sector specialist.

Pros

Good Hope combines trades experience with success-fee pricing and may suit owners who prioritize sector specialization. Salt Creek offers a broader lower-middle-market process. Good Hope was also named to Axial’s Q1 2025 Top 25 Lower Middle Market Investment Banks list and its 2026 Advisor 100.

Good Hope reports more than $500 million in aggregate transaction value and access to hundreds of active buyers. It also reports helping create home-services platforms valued above $10 billion, though that figure covers platforms built from founder-owned companies and does not represent Good Hope’s closed transaction value alone.

Cons

Good Hope focuses heavily on private equity and strategic buyer activity in the trades. Owners seeking a broader individual-buyer process should ask how the firm would approach that buyer group. Good Hope reports its own transaction and buyer-network figures.

Pricing

Good Hope charges a success fee when a transaction closes and does not require an upfront retainer. Owners should request the exact fee schedule, minimum fee, expense policy, and engagement tail before signing.

SF&P Advisors

Overview and fit

SF&P Advisors is a Boca Raton broker-advisor focused on plumbing, HVAC, electrical, mechanical, roofing, and related trades. The firm reports roughly 25 years in business and more than 450 completed transactions, the highest self-reported deal count among the plumbing-focused firms reviewed here. SF&P cites relationships with TurnPoint Services and Service Champions. The firm also names Apex Service Partners.

The firm best serves owners seeking a long-established plumbing and HVAC specialist with substantial reported transaction volume and relationships with large home-services consolidators. Relationships with these home-services consolidators may be especially relevant to owners seeking interest from private equity-backed platforms.

Pros

• CI Web Group reported more than 435 deals and $3.7 billion transacted, which supports the general scale of SF&P’s own figures.
• Axial lists 37 transactions as a partial public sample and previously named SF&P among its Top 20 investment banks.
• The firm concentrates heavily on plumbing and HVAC rather than treating home services as a secondary practice.

Cons

SF&P does not publish a clear minimum transaction size, so smaller owners should confirm that their business will receive appropriate attention. Its website’s transaction totals remain company-reported, although CI Web Group and Axial document a substantial portion of that activity.

Pricing

SF&P does not publicly disclose a standard fee schedule. Owners should request written details covering retainers, success fees, minimum fees, reimbursable expenses, and the agreement’s tail period.

The Advisory Investment Bank

Overview and fit

The Advisory Investment Bank advises founder-led and family-operated companies with $2 million to $100 million in annual revenue. The firm covers plumbing, HVAC, electrical, roofing, and other service industries, while Britehorn Securities, a FINRA and SIPC member, handles securities offerings.

The firm may fit owners who want a sell-side advisor with a disclosed broker-dealer relationship and experience serving essential-services companies.

Pros

The disclosed affiliation identifies the registered broker-dealer responsible for securities offerings. The firm serves a wide company-size range and maintains offices in New York City and San Diego. The firm states that it works only for sellers, which would prevent it from representing a buyer in the same sale process.

Cons

The firm reports maintaining profiles on more than 4,500 private equity and strategic buyers, along with typical closing timelines of 90 to 120 days. Independent sources have not verified those figures. Published testimonials also represent client marketing claims rather than reliable deal benchmarks.

Pricing

The firm states that compensation is entirely success-based, with no upfront fee or retainer. Owners should confirm the success-fee percentage and any additional obligations, including reimbursable expenses and the post-engagement tail.

Main Street Wealth

Overview and fit

Main Street Wealth advises owners across plumbing, HVAC, roofing, pest control, landscaping, and pool services. The firm reports more than 100 completed deals and publishes trade-specific EBITDA multiples.

The firm best serves owners seeking published plumbing valuation benchmarks and guidance on private equity deal structures.

Pros

Main Street Wealth publishes a 5.5x to 8.8x EBITDA range for plumbing companies. Its materials also discuss how platform deals divide the price between cash at closing and minority rollover equity. They explain when an owner may continue leading the company.

Cons

The published range may not apply to smaller owner-operated companies. Smaller owner-operated businesses often trade based on seller’s discretionary earnings, or SDE, rather than EBITDA and may receive lower multiples. Owners should ask which completed plumbing transactions support the stated range and how company size affects it.

Pricing

Main Street Wealth markets a success-fee model without an upfront retainer. Owners should confirm the fee percentage, minimum fee, exclusivity period, and post-termination tail before signing an engagement.

Ridgefield Partners

Overview and fit

Ridgefield Partners advises residential and commercial service companies on sell-side and buy-side M&A. The firm also handles valuation and financing work, as well as post-transaction integration. Ridgefield has offices in Denver and Seattle. It also has an office in Portland.

Ridgefield best suits owners who want broad corporate finance support and do not require a plumbing specialist.

Pros

The firm covers several building-services subsectors, which may help when a plumbing company also provides HVAC or construction services such as ductwork. Its wider service menu can also support financing and integration questions that fall outside a standard sale process.

Cons

Plumbing represents one subsector within a broader practice that includes roofing and facility maintenance. Ridgefield also advises commercial construction companies. Ridgefield does not publish a plumbing-specific deal count or typical client-size range, so owners should verify recent experience with comparable contractors.

Pricing

Ridgefield does not publicly disclose its fee structure. Owners should ask about retainers, success fees, expense reimbursement, and post-closing service charges before signing an engagement.

Three Sixty Seven Advisors

Overview and fit

Three Sixty Seven Advisors provides sell-side and buy-side M&A services as well as corporate debt advice. Its home-services practice covers plumbing, HVAC, electrical, roofing, and several other contractor categories.

The firm best serves owners who prefer broad corporate finance experience over deep plumbing specialization.

Pros

The firm can support transactions that require debt advice or involve buyers across several industries. Its broader sector coverage may suit a plumbing company with related service lines.

Cons

Three Sixty Seven publishes limited detail about its plumbing work and does not disclose a plumbing-specific deal count or client-size range. Owners should ask about recent comparable transactions and buyer relationships, along with any minimum financial requirements.

Pricing

Three Sixty Seven does not publish its fee structure. Owners should confirm any upfront retainer, monthly fees, success fee, minimum fee, and post-engagement tail before signing.

How to choose from the shortlist

Select two or three firms whose published company-size ranges, sector experience, and services match your situation. Give each advisor the same financial information and details about your operations and preferred post-sale role. You can then compare their recommendations on equal terms.

Then request a proposed buyer list, recent references from similar plumbing or trades clients, a sample timeline, and a complete written fee schedule. Compare each firm’s expected valuation with how much of the price is paid at closing or later. Review its confidentiality procedures and staffing, along with contract terms such as the post-engagement tail. Each firm’s response shows whether it can support its marketing claims with a credible plan for your company.

Choose the advisor that can support its claims

Prioritize relevant recent experience and senior attention over reported network size or transaction count. The advisor should also explain its buyer strategy and offer engagement terms that fit your company and goals.

Salt Creek may fit founder-owned plumbing companies with roughly $2 million to $75 million in revenue and at least $500,000 of adjusted EBITDA that want direct access to Jack and Connor Pitts and a standard success-fee engagement with no upfront retainer. Larger contractors or owners seeking deeper home-services specialization may prefer a sector-focused investment bank.

Compare each advisor’s references and outreach plan, then review its fees and deal-structure advice. You can then start a confidential conversation with Jack and Connor or use the free preliminary valuation tool.