Cliffbank Lenders, a small-business funding service in Merced, California, explains landscaping business loans for Merced County landscapers and lawn care companies: lawn care equipment financing and loans, trucks and trailers, credit lines for installation materials and crews, and the costs of running a landscaping business. It uses Census counts of local firms. Funding partners decide.
| Landscaping services with employees, county (2023) | 46 |
|---|---|
| Share under five on payroll | 67.4% |
| Without employees, county (2024) | 426 |
| Paid employees, county (2023) | 192 |
| Uses to compare | Mowers, trailers, crew payroll |
| Who decides | The funding partner |
Two kinds of landscaping work
Maintenance work, mowing, trimming and cleanup on a route of homes or commercial sites, is billed monthly and is fairly predictable. Installation work, new lawns, irrigation, hardscape and planting, is bid by the job, needs materials bought up front and is paid on completion or in stages. A company growing its installation side may need more working cash than one adding maintenance accounts.
Commercial maintenance contracts with property managers or HOAs may pay 30 days after month-end, so the crew's wages for a full month are carried before the first payment.
Lawn care equipment financing
Zero-turn and stand-on mowers, trimmers and blowers, aerators, trenchers, compact loaders, trailers and trucks suit landscaping equipment financing. A lawn care equipment loan can use the equipment as security. A mower may wear out faster than a loader, so match the term to the machine: a few years for a commercial mower, longer for a compact loader or a trailer. Dealer quotes for used equipment help, and some dealers offer their own manufacturer programs worth comparing.
Business loans for landscaping crews that add a second route can bundle a truck, trailer and mower set. Ask whether one agreement can cover all three, or whether separate ones are cleaner.
Lines of credit for installation jobs
A line of credit covers sod, plants, irrigation parts, pavers and labor on installation jobs, repaid when the customer pays. If install work is a growing share of revenue, a line keeps each job from draining the maintenance cash that pays the routes.
Working capital for landscaping companies
Working capital for landscaping covers the month of wages on a new commercial contract before its first payment, or the materials on a large install. A working capital loan can be sized to that specific gap.
How much does it cost to run a landscaping business per route?
It depends on the mix. A maintenance route's main costs are labor, fuel, equipment payments and replacement, insurance and dump fees. An installation business adds materials, subcontractors and heavier equipment. A simple way to see what a new route or job really costs: list the crew hours, fuel, equipment wear and materials for one month of that work, then compare it with the monthly billing. The gap between when those costs are paid and when the billing is collected is the amount worth financing.
Landscapers in Merced County, CA, counted by the Census
County Business Patterns counted 46 landscaping services with employees in Merced County, CA in 2023, employing 192 people. 31 (67.4%) had fewer than five employees. Nonemployer Statistics counted 426 landscaping businesses without employees in 2024; that is a separate program and year, so it is neither added to nor compared with the employer count.
Related pages: contractors and builders and the janitorial note on the industries page. The county-wide picture sits on the Merced, CA figures page.
What partners usually read for a landscaping company
- Business bank statements
- Maintenance contracts or a route list with monthly billing
- Equipment quotes
- Truck and trailer details if vehicles are included
- Current equipment agreements and their payments
Illustration only: a two-crew company adding a third maintenance crew needs a $14,800 mower set and trailer and about $11,600 in wages for the first month before the new accounts pay. The equipment fits an equipment agreement; the wages fit a small draw on a line.
Mistakes that slow a landscaping request
Route lists without monthly billing amounts, equipment quotes without trailer and truck details, and bank accounts shared between the business and the owner are three problems to avoid. Each makes the business harder to read. A separate business account and a simple route sheet with each customer's monthly charge help with all three.
By Cliffbank Lenders · Updated
