How Much Mobile RV Repair Owners Make: $80k Pay Plus Profit
In the researched assumptions, mobile RV repair owner income starts with a modeled $80,000 annual owner/operator salary, but the business does not produce profit in Year 1 EBITDA is -$145,000 in Year 1, turns positive at $30,000 in Year 2, and reaches $352,000 in Year 3 if volume, pricing, and hiring stay on plan Breakeven is modeled in Month 19, with a $609,000 minimum cash need Actual take-home depends on service volume, billable hours, parts margin, travel efficiency, seasonality, debt, taxes, and how much cash you keep in the business
Owner income$80kNet margin7%Revenue for target pay$454kBusiness difficultyHard
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Estimate owner take-home and target-pay gap from revenue, margin, costs, reserves, and target pay.
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Planning note: Research-based planning estimate only. It is not guaranteed salary, tax advice, or owner distribution advice.
Want the six income drivers?
1
Service Volume
Month 19
More booked calls and billable hours are the fastest path to cover the $10K first-year marketing spend, keep CAC near $150, and reach break-even in Month 19.
2
Overhead Reserves
$609K
The $80K owner salary and $462K annual fixed load keep cash tight, so reserve use has to be controlled until the business clears the $609K minimum cash need.
3
Labor Rates
$120-$140
Raising hourly rates from $120 to $140, plus the $75 to $85 dispatch fee, lifts ticket value without adding truck time.
4
Parts Margin
745%-813%
Parts and supplies move from 15% of revenue in Year 1 to 11% by Year 5, so every point saved drops straight into take-home.
5
Route Density
5%-3%
Fuel cost falls from 5% to 3% as routes get tighter, and fewer dead miles leave more profit on each service call.
6
Service Mix
80%-70%
Shifting from on-site repair toward maintenance and inspections steadies demand, but on-site repair still carries most of the dollars.
Want to see the full forecast for Mobile RV Repair?
Yes—the Mobile RV Repair Financial Model Template shows the dashboard, revenue assumptions, service mix, repair job volume, billable hours, parts margin, vehicle expenses, payroll, owner pay, cash flow, capex, and scenario testing. It also includes charts and tables for revenue, margin, costs, cash runway, and owner distribution planning. Open the model.
Owner income and forecast highlights
$80k owner/operator pay
$609k minimum cash need
Month 19 breakeven
39-month payback
EBITDA path: -$145k to $1204M
What profit margin matters most in mobile RV repair?
For Mobile RV Repair, the margin that matters most is gross margin after parts, fuel, processing fees, and usage-based vehicle maintenance, because that’s what shows what’s left before owner pay and fixed overhead. If you’re comparing startup costs, see What Is The Estimated Cost To Open And Launch Your Mobile Rv Repair Business? Here’s the quick math: the model shows 745% gross margin in Year 1 and 813% by Year 5 as parts and fuel percentages fall. What this hides: call-backs, warranty work, poor parts sourcing, and unpaid drive time can erase take-home fast.
Key margin drivers
Parts and supplies: 15% to 11%
Fuel: 5% to 3%
Processing fees stay at 25%
Vehicle maintenance: 3% to 22%
Margin leaks to watch
Call-backs hit take-home fast
Warranty work adds unpaid labor
Poor parts sourcing raises rework
Unpaid drive time cuts profit
How much revenue does a mobile RV repair business need?
If you want $100k in owner pay, Mobile RV Repair needs about $441k in Year 2 revenue before taxes and debt service; adding a $30k EBITDA cushion pushes that to about $481k. The model’s Year 2 implied revenue is about $454k, which supports about $80k owner pay plus $30k EBITDA. That build assumes about $462k in fixed overhead, $25k in marketing, and roughly $165k in non-owner payroll.
Revenue floor
$441k covers $100k owner pay
$462k fixed overhead drives the base
$25k marketing is already in
$165k payroll supports the model
Upside target
$481k adds a $30k cushion
$454k is the model’s Year 2 revenue
$80k owner pay fits that run rate
$30k EBITDA stays before taxes and debt
Does hiring technicians increase mobile RV repair owner income?
Yes—hiring technicians can raise income in Mobile RV Repair, but only if billable hours stay high and drive time stays tight. The model moves from 1 lead technician in Year 1 to 3 lead technicians and 3 junior technicians by Year 5, while payroll rises from $1,725k to $6,275k. If revenue scales with the team, EBITDA can improve from -$145k to $1204M; if dispatching slips, margins get squeezed fast.
Income can rise
More techs can lift revenue.
Year 5 adds 6 total technicians.
Payroll grows with capacity.
Owner shifts to pricing and cash control.
Margins can fall
Weak dispatching cuts utilization.
Long drive times hurt billable hours.
Quality issues can trigger rework.
Low billable hours reduce profit.
Key Takeaways
Booked calls drive revenue before overhead grows.
Pricing and dispatch fees protect gross profit.
Parts control and route density lift margins.
Reserves matter; breakeven lands around month 19.
Compare low, base, and high mobile RV repair owner income scenarios
Owner income scenarios
Owner income changes fast here because launch year losses, Year 3 scale, and Year 5 staffing growth push cash needs and upside in very different directions.
Low, base, and high cases show how salary and distributions can change as the RV repair shop scales.
Scenario
Low CaseLow case
Base CaseBase case
High CaseHigh case
Launch model
This is the launch-year path where the business is still absorbing startup costs and EBITDA is negative.
This is the modeled scale path where EBITDA turns positive and owner pay can be supported more cleanly.
This is the stronger upside path where a larger team lifts revenue and owner income potential, but management gets harder.
Typical setup
Year 1 demand stays small, with one owner-operator, one lead technician, and half-time dispatch support while cash burn stays high.
By Year 3, the model supports positive EBITDA of $352k, a two-tech setup, and owner pay plus possible distributions after reserves.
By Year 5, the model reaches multi-tech scale with EBITDA of $1.204M, higher payroll, and more moving parts for the owner.
Cost drivers
Negative Year 1 EBITDA
owner salary only
startup capex
fixed overhead
slow customer build
Year 3 EBITDA
growing team
higher rates
more billable hours
reserve policy
Year 5 EBITDA
multi-tech payroll
higher utilization
more marketing spend
management complexity
Owner income rangeBefore owner reserves
$80k salarySalary only
$80k salary + distributionsSalary plus upside
$80k salary + larger distributionsUpside with risk
Best fit
Use this to stress-test the first operating year when cash is tight and owner pay depends on funding.
Use this for a cash-funded operating plan that assumes the business reaches breakeven and starts creating owner upside.
Use this to test the upside case when the shop adds people, volume, and more management risk.
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Planning note: These scenario ranges are researched planning assumptions, not guaranteed earnings, salary promises, tax advice, or distributions.
Mobile RV Repair Core Six Income Drivers
Completed Service Calls And Billable Hours
Completed Calls to Billable Hours
Income here comes from booked RV jobs that turn into paid billable hours. In Year 1, the model assumes 30 billable hours for on-site repair, 20 for preventative maintenance, and 25 for pre-purchase inspection; on-site repair rises to 40 hours by Year 5. Travel time, diagnostics, parts delays, and seasonality cut capacity, so completed calls matter as much as leads.
More completed calls can lift revenue without adding fixed overhead right away, so this driver can improve owner pay before a bigger team is needed. But if payroll grows before utilization does, profit gets thin fast. The core math is billable hours × hourly rate × completed jobs, and missed appointments or long drive times hit cash flow quickly.
Track Utilization Before You Hire
Measure booked jobs converted to billable hours, not just calls answered. Split results by service type, then watch on-site repair, maintenance, and inspections separately, because each uses different capacity and pricing. Tighten dispatch windows, bundle nearby stops, and set parts rules so technicians spend more time billing and less time waiting.
Use utilization as the guardrail. If completed-hour volume is not covering travel and payroll, don’t add headcount yet. Review seasonal demand by month, then test whether the 40-hour on-site repair target is actually reachable before locking in staff. What this hides: callbacks and delays can eat margin even when the invoice looks strong.
Labor Rates, Diagnostic Fees, And Dispatch Charges
Labor Rates And Trip Charges
Pricing is the main shield on gross profit in mobile RV repair because every call includes drive time, truck wear, and diagnosis before the fix. In Year 1, on-site repair is $120/hour, preventative maintenance is $110/hour, pre-purchase inspection is $100/hour, and the dispatch fee is $75, rising to $85 by Year 5.
The key inputs are billable hours, job mix, and minimum trip charges. If rates lag local demand or technician skill, owner pay gets squeezed fast. Low-dollar emergency or remote jobs can eat route capacity, so price the truck, not just the wrench.
Track Rate Realization And Trip Minimums
Watch rate realization (what you actually collect per billed hour) and compare it to posted rates by job type. If the average ticket drifts down, raise the dispatch fee, add a minimum trip charge, or tighten the service radius so weak calls do not crowd out better work. That protects cash flow and keeps owner draws steadier.
Track hours per dispatch weekly.
Flag remote jobs with weak margins.
Test emergency pricing by zip code.
Review discounts by technician.
If customers still book at $120 on-site and $75 dispatch, you have room; if close rates fall hard, the price is too high for that market or service mix. The signal comes from booked jobs, not from wishful thinking.
Average Ticket Size And Repair Mix
Average Ticket Mix
Average ticket is the blend of job types, so revenue per stop rises when more calls include diagnostics, repairs, or add-ons. Using the disclosed Year 1 math, on-site repair is $435 (30 hours × $120 + $75 dispatch), preventative maintenance is $295, and pre-purchase inspection is $325.
If Year 1 mix is 80% repair and 20% maintenance, the simple blended ticket is about $407 per call before parts. By Year 5, the mix shifts toward more maintenance, so the ticket gets less top-heavy. That matters because owner pay comes after labor, travel, and overhead. Mix is the margin lever.
Raise Ticket Mix
Track ticket by job type, not just monthly revenue. Watch repair share, maintenance share, inspection share, dispatch fee collected, and add-on rate. If lower-ticket jobs start crowding out repair calls, use minimum trip rules or bundle maintenance pricing so the route still covers drive time and technician hours.
Test pricing and scheduling together. Push higher-value diagnostics into each visit, bundle maintenance with inspections, and forecast owner draw from the mix you can actually book. A few low-dollar calls can fill the calendar but still leave profit thin. More high-value calls usually mean better cash flow.
Travel Efficiency And Route Density
Route Density
Travel time is a capacity cost, not just a fuel line. In Year 1, vehicle fuel is modeled at 5% of revenue, then 3% by Year 5, so the real win is more billable hours per route. A long one-off call can still look good on the invoice but weak after deadhead time, so owner pay depends on route density, not just ticket size.
The model also shows usage-based vehicle maintenance moving from 3% to 22% of revenue, so miles can hit margin and cash flow twice. The key inputs are service radius, stop count, drive minutes, and trip fees. Campground clusters, storage-lot calls, and tight dispatch windows let one technician spread travel over more paid work.
Batch Nearby Stops
Track drive minutes per paid hour, jobs per route, and fuel plus maintenance per mile. If deadhead time keeps rising, cash gets trapped in the truck instead of the owner's draw. Set a service radius, batch nearby stops, and make the dispatch fee cover the trip, not just the gasoline.
Set a minimum trip fee.
Batch campground and storage calls.
Reject low-density one-offs.
Review miles before scheduling.
Dispatch discipline matters as much as fuel price. A route that fills the day with close stops protects gross margin, while a remote call can drain time and still leave the owner with less take-home cash. The clean rule is simple: if the job cannot support the drive, price it higher or move it to a denser day.
Fixed Overhead, Reserves, And Reinvestment
Fixed Overhead and Reserves
Owner pay should come after fixed overhead, reserves, and reinvestment. Here, fixed overhead is $3,850/month: $1,500 rent, $800 insurance, $400 software, $200 utilities, $500 professional services, $150 marketing tools, and $300 training. That base is the cash hurdle before any draw.
Here’s the quick math: $143k of capex sits in service vehicles, tools, diagnostic software, office equipment, website, inventory, and vehicle branding. With a $609k minimum cash need and breakeven in Month 19, reserves must cover repairs, parts buys, slow seasons, and payroll timing. Profitable does not always mean distributable.
Protect Owner Pay
Track cash, not just profit. Hold owner draws until reserves can absorb at least one rough month of repairs, parts, and payroll timing. If cash gets tight after inventory buys or vehicle repair, slow reinvestment before you raise pay.
Track monthly overhead versus revenue.
Separate reserve cash from operating cash.
Plan capex by month.
Set draw after reserve target.
If the business cannot replace a truck tire, buy parts, and still cover pay, the draw is too high. That keeps the business alive through weak weeks and stops profitable months from creating cash stress.
Parts Markup And Gross Margin Control
Parts Markup And Gross Margin Control
Parts revenue is separate from labor, so the owner makes more when markup covers freight, spoilage, and the time tied up in ordering. In this model, parts and supplies are 15% of revenue in Year 1 and improve to 11% by Year 5, which helps variable cost fall from 255% to 187% and gross margin rise from 745% to 813% as modeled.
The catch is cash flow. Stocking common parts can speed jobs and raise billable output, but slow-moving inventory traps cash, and warranty parts, wrong orders, and call-backs quietly cut the effective margin. Here’s the quick math: if parts are not tracked by job, the owner can think a month looked strong while job-level profit and take-home pay were actually thinner.
Track Parts By Job, Not Just By Month
Use job-level tracking for parts sold, parts cost, markup, warranty replacements, and returns. That tells you which repair types really pay, which parts sit too long, and where cash gets trapped in stock. The owner should also watch inventory turns, because every extra shelf full of slow parts is cash not available for payroll, taxes, or owner draw.
Match parts to each repair order
Log warranty and call-back cost
Set markup by part class
Limit slow movers on the truck
Test stocked parts against downtime saved. If a part helps finish the job same day, it can protect labor revenue; if it sits for weeks, it drags on cash and margin. The goal is simple: keep common parts on hand, price them to cover handling, and stop treating parts like a flat monthly average.
