Acquidex · Vol. 1 · Q2 2026 · Market-Rate Edition
SMB Market
Intelligence
Tuesday, July 14, 2026
Quarterly · Four-pillar framework
SMB Acquisition Research
Editor's Note
Q2 2026
Acquidex Intelligence is the quarterly research publication for SMB acquisitions across 16 services M&A verticals.
Every vertical is evaluated against the same four-pillar lens — Earnings Quality, Pricing, Fundability, Transferability. Bands and structural conditions are reported uniformly so a finding in HVAC reads the same way as a finding in plumbing, electrical, or pool service. The framework portability is the publication's core analytical claim.
Q2 2026 is the market-rate roll-forward. The first Q1 archive remains permanent, and the Q2 issue adds public-rate calibration where named sources support it — direct BizBuySell tapes where available, and explicitly labeled advisor or adjacent comps where the public market is thinner.
The cross-vertical pattern worth tracking next quarter: market rates are useful only when the source quality is visible. The same multiple can mean a direct closed-deal benchmark in one vertical, an advisor benchmark in another, and an adjacent-comp floor in a third. The Atlas now labels that distinction instead of flattening it.
— Avery Hastings, CPA · Founder, Acquidex
Q2 2026 · Market Read
Cross-vertical synthesis · Authored Atlas data
Recurring revenue durability has emerged as the dominant top-of-band Pricing determinant across services M&A.
The metric varies by sector — HVAC's Comfort Club retention; pest control's route renewal rate; pool service's monthly maintenance density; restoration's TPA program billing — but the structural mechanism is identical: lenders are pricing certainty over scale, and the multiple band rewards verifiable recurrence over verifiable size.
The corollary is visible at the bottom of the band. Verticals where recurring signal is structurally weak — tree care storm work, roofing storm-chasing, electrical project backlog presented as run-rate — compress to lower band regardless of headline SDE. Top quartile placement is no longer about absolute revenue; it's about the proportion of revenue a lender can underwrite as durable.
Current market-rate issues live across the services set
Janitorial · Auto Repair · Garage Door · Appliance Repair · Painting
Q1 retained for comparison · Q2 current
Recurring signal by vertical · Click for full Atlas
Current rows link to published Atlas issues. Q1 reports remain archived for comparison; Q2 reports carry the current market-rate read. Read methodology →
This issue's lead · Q2 2026
AQX-IR-LDM-2026Q2 · 2026-07-14
Laundromat Acquisitions · Industry Atlas
Equipment Age, Lease Runway, and the WDF Labor Lie
US small-business laundromat acquisitions traded in a 2.0×–4.0× SDE band over the trailing twelve months. Equipment age, lease term against the SBA 10-year cliff, and fully-loaded WDF/PUD labor analysis are the structural conditions determining band placement in Q1 2026.
The trailing-12-month SDE multiple band held at 2.0×–4.0×, wider than HVAC, electrical, and other service trades. Dispersion is structural — driven by equipment age and lease runway against the SBA 10-year cliff — not transaction noise.
Utility share of revenue above 30% appeared in 38% of observed deals. Without exception in the sample, this correlated with machines past 10 years of useful life and with deferred capex not priced into the headline multiple. Equipment averaging over 10 years appeared in 34% of deals reviewed.
Methodology Briefs
Formulas and frameworks the publication reasons on top of.
- 01
How to Calculate SDE: Step-by-Step Formula with Add-Back Examples
SDE looks like simple math. The inputs aren't.
10 min read - 02
Small Business Acquisition Risk Analysis Framework: 5 Categories That Determine Deal Quality
A structured approach to acquisition risk analysis — covering earnings quality, owner dependence, customer and supplier concentration, regulatory exposure, and debt serviceability — that applies before LOI, not just in formal due diligence.
13 min read - 03
What Is Normalized SDE? The Difference Between Broker and Lender Earnings
Normalized SDE is the earnings figure left after removing add-backs that don't reflect the business's sustainable cash flow. The broker's version and the lender's version are calculated differently — and the gap between them is often where deals break.
9 min read - 04
How to Analyze Add-Backs: What SBA Lenders Actually Accept
The broker's CIM shows $180K in add-backs. The lender accepts $40K. Here's exactly which add-backs survive underwriting — and which ones come out first, every time.
8 min read - 05
What DSCR Do SBA and Banks Actually Require for SMB Acquisitions? (2026)
Lenders don't care about your 'potential.' They care about the Debt Service Coverage Ratio. Here is the benchmark for 2026.
11 min read
Practitioner Briefs
Operational reads — deal mechanics, SBA process, post-close failure modes.
- 01
What Are Add-Backs in a Business Sale? A CPA's Guide to Which Ones Survive
An add-back restores an expense the buyer will not inherit. Most disputes are not about whether a single item is legitimate — they are about whether the same item appears every year.
9 min read - 02
What Is a Good SDE Multiple? Why the Number Is a Verdict, Not a Bargain
Main Street businesses trade at two to three times earnings while public companies trade in the low teens. The gap is usually described as a discount. Most of it is arithmetic.
9 min read - 03
How to Analyze a Gym or Fitness Business Acquisition
The highest-failure sector in the SBA acquisition file. What to verify before you sign.
9 min read - 04
How to Analyze a Liquor Store Acquisition
The lowest-failure retail category in the SBA file — and the one where a single failure costs the most.
9 min read - 05
How to Analyze a Restaurant Acquisition
The most-financed acquisition in America, and one of the more likely to charge off.
9 min read
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