Buying a Pool Route and What to Check Before You Pay
A due diligence checklist for buying a pool route, with the records to request, how to test the numbers and the legal and tax questions for your pros.
When you buy a route, you buy a list of customers who never agreed to work with you. Most of them can leave after the next visit. That is why the checks below matter more than the asking price.
Law, licensing and taxes for a route purchase differ by state. Have a local attorney and an accountant review the deal before you sign, and check your state's rules for who may perform pool service.
What you are buying
- A list of customers with addresses, prices and frequency.
- Possibly equipment, a truck or chemical inventory. Itemize these separately from the customers.
- The seller's goodwill: introductions and transition help.
- Sometimes a whole business entity with its own debts and obligations. Ask the attorney whether you are buying assets or the company.
Records to request
| Record | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Customer list with address, price, frequency and start date | Who is on the route and how long they have stayed |
| 12 months of invoices or payment records | Whether the revenue exists |
| Bank deposits for the same months | Whether deposits match invoices |
| Payment method per account (autopay, check, cash) | Collection risk |
| Signed agreements, if any | What customers actually agreed to |
| Route map and day-by-day schedule | Density and drive time |
| Chemical and equipment costs | The real cost to serve |
| Notes on problem pools, gates and dogs | Hidden work |
| Open complaints or disputes | Risk you would inherit |
Verify before you trust
- Match a sample of invoices to bank deposits.
- Drive the route in order with a stopwatch. Record on-site time and drive time at each stop and compare them with what the seller told you.
- Map every account. Count stops by day and look for far-off outliers. Route density explains why that matters.
- Look for accounts with old low prices. They may have room to raise. Raising right after a sale can push them out, so wait.
- Ask why the seller is selling.
- Ask how long the seller will help with introductions, and get that in writing.
Run the numbers with your costs
The seller's profit figure uses the seller's costs. Yours are different. Use your own cost per route hour and your own chemical costs, and read valuing a pool route for the payback method.
Then test churn. Say a route lists 40 accounts at $170 a month each. Those are example numbers.
| Accounts that leave | Accounts left | Monthly revenue |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 40 | $6,800 |
| 5 | 35 | $5,950 |
| 10 | 30 | $5,100 |
Make the price work at the worst level you can live with. The seller's list shows the best case. Pick your own scenarios, since nobody can tell you the right share to expect.
Structure the payment
Ask your attorney about ways to tie part of the price to customers who stay, such as installments or a holdback. Whether those terms are enforceable and how they should be written depends on your state, so get professional help on the wording.
Plan the transition
- Have the seller introduce you by call, letter or both before your first visit.
- Get gate codes, pool notes and equipment details in writing, and store them securely.
- Keep the same service day and rough time for the first month where you can.
- Photograph equipment and surfaces on the first visit so existing problems are documented as existing.
- Send your own agreement. Pool service contract lists what to decide.
Questions for the seller
- Why are you selling, and when do you want to close?
- Which accounts have complained, paused or asked about price in the past year?
- Which pools take extra time, and why?
- Which equipment problems do you already know about?
- Who else has a key, a code or a standing arrangement with a customer?
- Which supplier do you buy from, and what do you pay?
- Will you stay on for introductions, and for how long?
Write down the answers and ask for the important ones in the purchase agreement.
Your first 90 days
- Week 1. Visit every account, photograph equipment, confirm gate access and record notes.
- Weeks 2 to 4. Time every stop and compare with what the seller told you. Hold off on repricing.
- Month 2. Review profit by account with your own costs and flag the problem pools.
- Month 3. Decide which accounts to reprice, hand off or drop, following the notice terms in your agreement.
Red flags
- The seller cannot produce payment records.
- Revenue is mostly cash with few matching deposits.
- The seller does not want you to meet customers.
- You are pushed to sign before you can drive the route.
- Many accounts sit unusually far apart.
- The route needs more days than you can cover, and you have not priced the extra help.
Mistakes people make
- Paying for the list without driving the route.
- Valuing revenue you cannot fit into your week.
- Ignoring the first three months, when the risk of losing accounts is highest.
- Skipping the professional review because the deal feels small relative to the purchase price.
Run the final figures through the route profit calculator with your own costs before you make an offer.
Common questions
What should I ask for before buying a pool route?
Ask for a customer list with prices and start dates, 12 months of invoices and payment records, matching bank deposits, any signed agreements and a route schedule. Then drive the route yourself with a timer.
Do customers stay when a route is sold?
Some stay and some leave, and you cannot know the share in advance. Model your own numbers at several levels of loss and make sure the price still works at the worst one you can accept.
Do I need a lawyer to buy a route?
Ask one. Purchase agreements, non-compete terms, licensing and tax treatment vary by state, and a local attorney and accountant can check them before you sign.