Low Voltage Wiring Break-Even Analysis: About $53K/Month

Break-Even Metric Cards

Fixed costs $36.4K/mo Overhead plus payroll

Contribution margin 70.5% After variable spend

Break-even revenue $51.6K/mo Monthly revenue target

Break-even timing Month 7 First break-even month

Break-Even Calculator

Break-even calculator

Test monthly revenue against variable costs and fixed overhead for a low voltage wiring installation business.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Top-line sales set how much margin is left for overhead. $ Slim month Peak month Variable expenses These are direct costs that rise with each job, like materials and subcontract labor. $ Light direct Heavy direct

Money available to cover fixed costs $164,131 $223,917 revenue - $59,786 variable expenses

Margin ratio

73%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly overhead the business has to cover before profit. $ Light overhead Heavy overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which low voltage wiring expenses are fixed, and which move with sales?

Cost classification

Break-even is reliable only when stable overhead is kept separate from job-linked spend. In the first year, that means treating rent, insurance, leases, and staffing steps differently from materials, subcontract labor, fuel, and install supplies.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Warehouse and Office Rent	Fixed	Include $4,500/month in monthly overhead before testing job volume.	Allocating rent to each project and hiding the monthly floor.
General Liability Insurance	Fixed	Include $850/month as required overhead across Month 1 through Month 60.	Dropping insurance from break-even because it is not tied to a specific job.
Vehicle Lease Payments	Fixed	Include $2,200/month as fleet overhead, separate from fuel and maintenance usage.	Blending leases with mileage spend and overstating variable margin.
Technician Payroll	Semi-fixed	Model staffing in steps: first-year staffing includes two lead technicians at $65,000 each and two junior technicians at $45,000 each.	Treating salaried field labor as fully variable with revenue.
Project Coordinator Payroll	Semi-fixed	Add the role as capacity overhead at 0.5 full-time equivalent in the first year, starting in Month 6.	Forgetting midyear hires when testing Month 7 break-even.
Raw Materials and Components	Variable	Apply 18.0% of first-year revenue, then lower it to 16.0% by the mature year.	Treating pass-through materials as profit instead of margin-bearing revenue.
Subcontracted Specialized Labor	Variable	Apply 5.0% of first-year revenue and reduce it as in-house capacity grows.	Leaving subcontract labor in overhead and overstating contribution margin.
Fuel and Vehicle Maintenance	Semi-variable	Model at 4.0% of first-year revenue, then review with route density and service usage.	Treating all vehicle spend as fixed after separating lease payments.

How does break-even move from a lean launch crew to a fuller low-voltage wiring team?

Scenario table

As technician hours rise, revenue grows faster than variable costs because materials are partly passed through and subcontracting falls. Fixed overhead also rises, so break-even only improves when utilization stays high.

Planning view only; these figures are assumptions, not guarantees.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean launch crew	$59.4k	$17.5k	$40.5k	70.5%	$1.3k	Break-even lands in Month 7, so the launch cushion is thin.
Base operating crew	$138.5k	$38.9k	$68.1k	71.9%	$31.4k	This matches the model's Month 7 break-even and gives a usable cushion after ramp.
Fuller crew buildout	$223.9k	$59.8k	$86.2k	73.3%	$77.9k	This has the widest cushion if billed hours stay high and pass-through stays clean.

What breaks the break-even plan for a low voltage wiring installer?

Stress test

The plan has only a small cushion, so a 10% revenue miss, a $5,000 fixed-cost bump, or a 5-point margin drop can push it back toward loss. Rework, delayed change orders, fuel spikes, a slow pipeline, and equipment financing before utilization are the main warnings.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$594,000	$45,000 cushion	Thin headroom before any slip.
Revenue shortfall	Revenue falls 10% to about $575,000.	$594,000	$19,000 gap	A small sales miss wipes out most of the cushion.
Fixed-cost pressure	Fixed spend rises $5,000.	$644,000	$5,000 gap	One extra overhead step nearly breaks even.
Margin pressure	Variable expense rate rises from 29.5% to 34.5%.	$624,000	$15,000 cushion	Rework or fuel inflation eats the cushion fast.
Combined pressure	Revenue falls 10%, variable expense rises 3 points, and fixed spend adds $2,000.	$672,000	$33,000 gap	This turns a small profit into a clear loss.

Can the first crew cover break-even before you lease another vehicle?

Founder checklist

Before you hire, lease, stock, or add a vehicle, make sure booked work, pricing, and crew load can support Year 1 economics. The model points to a Month 7 break-even and a 19-month payback, but only if demand and fixed costs stay in line.

1Booked Work≈$59.4K/mo

Confirm signed jobs and pipeline can cover about $59.4K in monthly Year 1 revenue before you add more overhead.

2Fixed Load≈$47.2K/mo

Keep rent, insurance, vehicles, software, utilities, dues, and Year 1 staffing near this level until lead flow proves out.

3Job Margin70.5% CM

Verify each revenue dollar keeps about 70.5 cents after raw materials, subcontracted labor, fuel, and consumables, so price jobs still fund the month.

4Crew Load18.5 hrs

Only add a helper when schedule gaps, rework, and callbacks are under control, because the first crew has to carry the active customer load.

5Cash Need$783K

Protect the Month 2 cash need, since early capex and staffing ramp can drain reserves before revenue catches up.

6Lead Cost$450 CAC

Track marketing at about $1,000 a month in Year 1 and make sure CAC stays near $450 before you scale outreach or add more vehicles.