Kitestone Capital Group, a small-business funding service in Hyannis, MA, helps Barnstable County plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors compare equipment financing, lines of credit and inventory financing for vans, parts and install equipment. Requests go to funding partners, who review them and make their own decision.
| Plumbing and HVAC employers, 2023 | 205 (NAICS 238220, CBP) |
|---|---|
| Paid employees | 1,444 (2023) |
| Share under 5 employees | 70.7% |
| No-employee businesses, 2024 | 286 (NAICS 23822, NES) |
| Funding types to compare | Equipment financing, line of credit |
| Decision by | The funding partner |
Two Businesses in One: Service and Installation
Plumbing and HVAC companies can run two cash cycles at once. Service calls follow a short cycle: a repair, a part, an invoice. Installations follow a long one: a boiler, a heat pump system or a full rough-in, with equipment ordered up front and payment tied to completion or to a builder's draw. The installation side is where funding pressure builds.
Plumbing contractor business loans can follow that split: equipment and vans for the service side, working capital or a line for the installation side.
Service Vans and Tools
A stocked service van is the shop's main asset. Equipment financing covers the van, the upfit and major tools such as drain cameras, jetters, pipe threaders and refrigerant recovery machines. Plumbing equipment financing typically uses the vehicle or tool as security, with a term matched to its working life.
Parts Stock and Install Equipment
Fittings, valves, water heaters and condensers sit on the shelf or the truck until a job uses them. Inventory financing can fund bulk purchases, which some suppliers discount. For equipment ordered per job, a line of credit pays the distributor and is repaid when the install is billed.
Illustrative arithmetic: an HVAC contractor installing two heat pump systems a week, with $7,500 of equipment per system ordered ten days before the customer pays, carries about $15,000 to $22,500 of equipment at any time. Bring that number, not a guess, to the first call.
Bridging a Big Rough-In for Plumbers
When the gap is payroll rather than parts, for example a large new-construction rough-in billed in stages, a working capital loan with a fixed end date can bridge it. HVAC business loans for growth, such as adding a second crew, may be better as a term loan.
What Partners Review for Trade Contractors
- Statements that separate service-call money from install money
- A schedule of open installs and when they will be billed
- Supplier statements for parts and equipment
- Any loans still running on vans or tools
- Tax returns and entity information
Partners decide case by case; no cutoff is published. A clear split between service and install income helps them understand the business.
Service Agreements and Recurring Income
Maintenance agreements for boilers, furnaces and heat pumps give HVAC companies recurring income that partners value, because it repeats whether or not new installs come in. If you sell service plans, bring a count of active agreements and what they bill each year. It strengthens a line of credit request and helps show that a new van will be kept busy.
For plumbing shops, repeat commercial customers such as property managers play a similar role. A list of regular accounts and their typical monthly billing is worth including.
Barnstable County, MA Plumbing and Heating Firms Counted
| Industry (NAICS 2017) | Employer establishments, county, 2023 | Under 5 employees | Paid employees | ZIP 02601 employer establishments | No-employee businesses, county, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plumbing, heating and AC contractors (238220) | 205 | 70.7% | 1,444 | 15 | 286 (NAICS 23822; broader code) |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 (county employer counts and employees), U.S. Census Bureau, ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023 (ZIP 02601), U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics 2024 (businesses without employees, NAICS 2022 codes). The programs differ in year and coverage, so the columns are not added together.
Barnstable County, MA had 205 plumbing, heating and air-conditioning employer establishments in 2023, employing 1,444 people, an average of about seven per establishment (our arithmetic from U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023). Separately, 286 businesses at the broader NAICS 23822 level had no employees in 2024 (U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics 2024). ZIP 02601 counted 15 of these employers (U.S. Census Bureau, ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023).
Related Trades and Pages
See the contractor funding page for builders, the electrical contractor page for a neighboring trade, and all industries. Local figures are on the Hyannis, MA page.
By Kitestone Capital Group · Updated