Guide · Buying, expanding, opening
You want to add a plow, a salter and snow contracts so the crew works in January. What finances it?
By Alex Makowski Published
The plow, the spreader and a truck to carry them finance as equipment through the dealer or an equipment lender over two to five years, applied for in late summer while the statements are strongest. The salt bought in October, the insurance rider and the crew's standby pay before the first invoice are working capital, funded in one to three business days. Seasonal contracts paid up front are the cheapest financing in snow; sell those first.
In this guide
- 01Why snow changes the whole financing picture
- 02The equipment, in August
- 03The salt, the rider and the standby pay: working capital
- 04Contracts paid up front are the best money you will get
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01
Why snow changes the whole financing picture
A landscaping company without a winter operation deposits almost nothing from December to March, and every funding application it makes in spring is read against that trough. A company with snow contracts deposits in January, keeps the crew, and reads to a funder as a year-round business. That is worth more than the plowing revenue itself: it changes the price of every dollar the company borrows in March.
02
The equipment, in August
A commercial plow, a tailgate or V-box spreader, and a truck heavy enough to carry them are assets, and dealers and equipment lenders finance them over two to five years with the equipment as security. Apply in August or September, against July's statements, when the offer will be the largest and the price the lowest; the same application in November is read against a fading fall and a dealer that has sold its stock.
Used plows and spreaders from a dealer finance readily. A used truck finances as a vehicle. A private-sale plow of unknown hours is a gamble that lenders shorten the term on and that hydraulics tend to punish.
Application to funded
03
The salt, the rider and the standby pay: working capital
Bulk salt is bought and paid for in October and spread from December on; the liability insurance rider for snow work is due before the first storm; and the crew is on standby pay for storms that have not yet happened. None of that is an asset, and a working capital loan or advance on the summer's deposits funds it in one to three business days. Borrow the salt pile and a month of standby, not a round number.
04
Contracts paid up front are the best money you will get
A seasonal snow contract billed at the start of the season — a fixed price for unlimited pushes from November to March, paid in October or in monthly installments — is customers financing the winter. Commercial properties, HOAs and property managers sign them routinely because they want a fixed cost. Per-push contracts pay after each storm on net-30, which is the gap the working capital above covers. Sell as many seasonal contracts as the crew can serve before buying a single ton of salt.
Written by
Alex Makowski, Owner
Alex Makowski owns and runs Business Loans for America and has been placing funding for U.S. small businesses since 2021. Businesses he has worked with have secured $50M+ in financing across 1,200+ placements. He writes and reviews every guide on this site.
FAQ
Related questions.
- Will a lender finance a plow for a company that has never done snow?
- The plow is the security, so yes, usually, with a down payment and a shorter term. Signed snow contracts in hand turn a speculative purchase into a scheduled one and improve the offer.
- Should I subcontract snow instead of buying equipment?
- For a first winter, subcontracting your contracts to an established operator keeps the customer relationship and the cash without the equipment. It also gives up most of the margin. Many companies do a first winter that way and buy the plow for the second.
- Does a snow operation make the spring application easier?
- Yes. December through February deposits from snow work are the difference between a funder reading a seasonal business and reading a year-round one, and the spring offer follows.
Guides
More on buying, expanding, opening
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The retailer is borrowing your cash interest-free. Price that into the deal, then fund the gap deliberately.
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Apply in August on summer statements. A September application reads the same store smaller.
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The SBA and the franchisor's lenders fund the opening. Fast money has one honest job: the ramp.
Bulk discount, borrowed money
Do the arithmetic in dollars over the months the stock takes to sell. Sometimes yes. Often no.
Bonding capacity
Sureties size a single job at roughly ten times adjusted working capital. A bank line helps. A cash advance hurts.
Sources
- U.S. Small Business Administration — LoansFederal loan programmes, eligibility and what the SBA does and does not guarantee.
- IRS Publication 946 — How to Depreciate PropertyThe Section 179 deduction and depreciation limits, from the authority that sets them.
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