Skybank Business Loans, a small-business funding service in Wausau, Wisconsin, explains landscaping equipment financing for Marathon County landscapers and lawn care businesses: mowers, trailers, skid steers, snow plows, and working capital for crews. The county had 49 landscaping services employers in 2023 (CBP).
At a glance
- Landscaping employers, Marathon County, WI
49 (CBP 2023)
- With fewer than five employees
32 (CBP 2023)
- Landscaping and related businesses without employees
150 (Nonemployer Statistics 2024)
Landscaping employers and owner-operators in Marathon County, WI
Landscaping equipment financing serves 49 landscaping services employers in Marathon County in 2023, 32 of them (65.3%) with fewer than five employees and 8 with an address in ZIP 54403 (CBP and ZBP). Nonemployer Statistics counted 150 businesses without paid employees in 2024 under a broader code that includes landscaping (a separate program).
Much of the work runs on machines: mowers, trimmers, trailers, compact loaders and, for snow work, plows and spreaders. Each machine has a resale market, which is what makes it financeable.
Financing landscaping equipment in Marathon County, WI
When landscaping equipment is financed, every payment is tied to a specific mower, trailer or loader. A loan gives ownership with a lien; a lease gives use for a term. Equipment financing compares the two, and the mower, trailer and plow article works through a full fleet request.
Landscape equipment financing for Wausau, WI companies
- Zero-turn and stand-on mowers
- Enclosed and open trailers
- Compact track loaders and skid steers for hardscape
- Plows, spreaders and pushers for snow contracts
- Trucks that pull and carry it all
Landscaping equipment loan for Wausau, WI companies
A landscaping equipment loan is read on the business's deposits, its existing equipment payments and the machine's quote. Partners may ask for a list of maintenance and snow contracts, because signed contracts show where the payments come from.
Landscaping equipment financing explained for Wausau, WI owners
Landscaping equipment financing for a mower and a plow, illustration only, invented figures: a $16,500 zero-turn mower and a $7,800 plow, $24,300 together, financed over 48 months at an assumed annual rate of 10% cost about $616 a month. In this invented example, the owner compares that with the margin on the contracts the two machines will serve.
Snow plow loan for Marathon County, WI owners
A snow plow loan can be part of a truck purchase or a separate equipment loan for the plow, spreader and controller. If the truck is already financed, ask the existing lender whether adding equipment to it affects that loan. Bring the plow quote with installation.
Lawn care business loans for Marathon County, WI businesses
Lawn care business loans beyond equipment cover crew wages and fuel before contracts pay, and buying another route. A line of credit or working capital suits the wage gap; a term loan suits buying a customer list from a retiring owner.
Buying a lawn care route or landscaping business
A route purchase is valued on recurring contracts, their prices, renewal history and the equipment that comes with them. Get the seller's customer list with contract terms, the equipment list and returns. Ask which customers are under signed contracts and which renew year to year.
Payroll and crews in Marathon County, WI landscaping
In landscaping, 65.3% of the county's landscaping employers had fewer than five employees in 2023 (CBP). A small crew's payroll still lands every period, so a credit line drawn against signed contracts can keep wages paid while invoices are outstanding.
Hardscape and installation work: bigger machines, bigger requests
Landscapers who build patios, retaining walls and drainage need compact track loaders, mini excavators, plate compactors and dump trailers, heavier machines than a mowing crew uses. Those requests look more like a contractor's; the contractor page covers used heavy equipment. A partner reading a hardscape request may ask for signed installation contracts and the deposits customers pay up front.
Mixing mowing, installation and snow work gives a business several income lines; show each one separately on the profit and loss statement so the partner can see which work supports which machine.
Questions to answer before financing a landscaping fleet
- Which machines earn every week, and which sit idle part of the year?
- Over the term, which totals more for a machine used part of the year: a lease or ownership?
- Does the truck's payload and towing rating match the trailer and plow you are adding?
- Do your contracts renew automatically, or must each be re-signed?
- How much of the fleet is already financed, and when do those payments end?
Records for a landscaping request
- Three to six months of business bank statements
- The latest filed business tax return
- A year-to-date profit and loss statement
- Equipment quotes
- List of maintenance and snow contracts
- Existing equipment and truck payments
Related: financing for contractors, the industries list and the Wausau, WI data page.
By Skybank Business Loans ยท Updated
