Property Maintenance Break-Even Analysis: About $65k Per Month

Fixed costs $47.8K Recurring base

Contribution margin 74.5% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $64.1K Monthly target

Break-even timing Month 9 Ramp to break-even

Break-even calculator

Use this calculator to test monthly revenue, variable expenses, and fixed costs against break-even.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Revenue is the pool that covers variable costs and then fixed overhead. $ Slow month Busy month Variable expenses These rise with each job, including direct labor, subcontractors, materials, and sales costs. $ Light costs Heavy costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $59,600 $80,000 revenue - $20,400 variable expenses

Margin ratio

74%

Covers fixed costs

$716 short

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly cost base that contribution margin must cover. $ Lean team Bigger team

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which property maintenance expenses stay fixed, and which move with sales?

Cost classification

Break-even is only reliable if monthly overhead is separated from job-linked costs. Treat hourly labor, subcontractors, and materials as variable, or Month 9 break-even can look stronger than the model supports.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Office Rent	Fixed	Include $3,500 per month in fixed overhead.	Spreading rent across jobs and understating baseline overhead.
Utilities (Office & Depot)	Semi-variable	Start with the $500 monthly base, then review usage as crews and depot activity grow.	Assuming the whole bill stays flat at higher service volume.
Vehicle Fleet Lease & Maintenance	Semi-fixed	Include $2,500 per month until capacity requires another vehicle step-up.	Modeling fleet expense as fully variable with each customer.
Software Subscriptions (CRM, Accounting, FSM)	Semi-fixed	Use $1,200 per month, then step it up when users, dispatch volume, or modules expand.	Keeping software flat after headcount and customer count scale.
Subcontractor Fees	Variable	Apply the first-year 8.0% of revenue rate to jobs needing outside trade capacity.	Treating subcontractors like fixed overhead instead of job-linked delivery expense.
Direct Labor Wages (Hourly Staff)	Variable	Apply the first-year 6.0% of revenue rate for hourly field work tied to billable hours.	Counting hourly labor as fixed payroll and overstating contribution margin.
Maintenance Materials & Supplies	Variable	Apply the first-year 3.0% of revenue rate because supplies rise with completed work.	Forgetting small parts, consumables, and job materials in break-even math.
Payment Processing Fees	Variable	Apply the 1.5% of revenue rate to customer payments.	Leaving card fees below the contribution margin line.

How does break-even change from a lean setup to a base team and a full property maintenance model?

Scenario table

As staffing grows, fixed costs rise faster than the margin gain, so the break-even sales target climbs from about $65.3k to $97.8k a month. The mix gets better, but added technicians, account support, marketing, and admin still push the target up.

Planning assumptions only; actual break-even will move with job mix, labor use, and collection timing.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean launch team	$65,300	$16,652	$48,650	74.5%	$0	Low overhead keeps the target manageable, but the cushion is thin.
Base operating team	$79,653	$19,191	$60,317	75.8%	$0	This is the middle ground; break-even holds, but steady monthly sales are still required.
Full operating model	$97,847	$22,113	$75,733	77.4%	$0	Margin improves, yet the larger team lifts the revenue target again.

What pressure pushes this property maintenance plan back below break-even?

Stress test

The plan breaks first when work volume slips, then when labor, fuel, or subcontractor costs rise. A 10% revenue miss turns the month negative, and a 10% overhead hike or 5-point margin drop pushes break-even well above the base case.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$65,300	$0 cushion	At plan, the business only clears fixed overhead.
Revenue shortfall	Revenue falls 10% to about $58,800.	$65,300	$6,500 gap	A 10% miss drops the month below break-even.
Fixed-cost pressure	Monthly fixed overhead rises 10% to $53,515.	$71,800	$6,500 gap	Overhead creep adds about $6.5k of monthly revenue need.
Margin pressure	Variable expense pressure cuts contribution margin to 69.5%.	$70,000	$4,700 gap	Higher labor, supplies, or subcontractors lift break-even fast.
Combined pressure	Overhead rises 10% and contribution margin falls to 69.5%.	$77,000	$11,700 gap	Churn, weather delays, fuel, and subcontractor spikes can break coverage.

What should a property maintenance founder verify before signing the lease and hiring the crew?

Founder checklist

Before you sign a lease, hire more crew, or buy extra vans, make sure signed recurring contracts can carry the model’s Year 1 cost load. Break-even is about $65.3K in monthly revenue, and cash needs bottom out at $502K in Month 9.

1Revenue Load$65.3K/mo

Year 1 fixed costs are about $48.7K a month, and variable costs take 25.5% of sales, so you need about $65.3K a month in booked work to clear break-even.

2Price Mix$350/$750/$1,200

Check that your booked mix can move beyond the $350 Bronze tier into the $750 Silver and $1,200 Gold tiers, or the same crew time will not cover the fixed load.

3Billable Use5 hrs

Confirm the average active customer can produce about 5 billable hours a month in Year 1, because lower use per account makes dispatch and payroll miss the mark.

4Field SetupPre-launch

Secure material and subcontractor accounts, then prove insurance and dispatch before field work starts, because a blocked job or late route handoff turns booked revenue into idle time.

5Staffing Ramp7 FTE

Hold the Year 1 staffing base at 7 FTE until utilization proves the work is there, since payroll already runs about $38.8K a month before any extra hires.

6Cash Cushion$502K

Keep at least the model’s $502K minimum cash through Month 9 before adding more crew or equipment, because launch capex totals $263K and payback takes 26 months.