Selling a business in Canada in 2026 typically closes in 60-120 days with a buy-side advisor — vs 9-12 months with a traditional broker. The buyer pays our fee at closing, so Canada owners pay zero. Below: who’s buying in Canada, what they pay, and how to avoid the standard 6-12% broker commission entirely.
Quick Answer
Canadian home-services SMB sales trade at 2.0-3.5x SDE for owner-operator deals, 4-7x EBITDA for lower-middle-market ($1M-$3M EBITDA) targets, and 7-10x+ for platform-scale assets. The Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption was raised to $1.25M for QSBC shares from 25 June 2024 — the headline tax planning opportunity. Active acquirers include Reliance Home Comfort (CK Asset), Enercare (Brookfield), Right Time Group (Gryphon Investors), HomeServe Canada, and US strategics including Rollins, Anticimex, and Aptive (Citation Capital).
Christoph Totter · Managing Partner, CT Acquisitions
Cross-border lower middle market M&A · Updated May 2026
Canadian lower-middle-market home-services M&A is active but priced at a meaningful discount to US comparables. The single most important planning variable is the Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption (LCGE) for Qualified Small Business Corporation (QSBC) shares, which was raised to $1.25 million in June 2024 — with strict 90% active asset, 50% 24-month asset, and 24-month holding-period tests. Owners typically need a 12-24 month pre-sale purification window to qualify.
This guide covers what a Canadian home-services business is worth in 2026 and how to sell it well. We work through current valuation ranges, the LCGE and QSBC mechanics, the capital gains inclusion rate volatility, the asset-vs-share decision, the Section 85 rollover and Section 167 GST election, provincial trade-licensing realities, and the verified named buyers actively acquiring Canadian businesses.
CT Acquisitions runs confidential, buy-side processes. The buyer pays our fee. A Canadian seller pays no commission, no retainer, and signs no exclusivity contract. The free valuation survey takes about three minutes.
Canadian home-services SMB multiples sit in three loose tiers in 2024-2026. Owner-operator deals with $250k-$1M SDE typically trade at 2.0-3.5x SDE. Lower-middle-market deals with $1M-$3M EBITDA, the tuck-in range for PE platforms, trade at 4-7x EBITDA with premiums for over 25% recurring contract revenue, strong second-line management, and clean financials. Platform-scale assets at $3M+ EBITDA trade at 7-10x+. Pest control runs above the median for the sector, typically 6-10x EBITDA on dense recurring routes; roofing without recurring revenue typically prints 4-6x. Canadian deals usually trade at a 0.5-1.5x EBITDA discount to comparable US transactions, driven by a smaller domestic buyer pool, FX translation friction for US acquirers, and provincial trade-licensing re-qualification.
Canadian convention follows the US closely: SDE is standard below roughly CAD $1M earnings or CAD $5M revenue where the buyer is usually an individual, and EBITDA takes over above that threshold where institutional buyers pay a market-rate general manager.
The federal Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption for Qualified Small Business Corporation (QSBC) shares was raised on 25 June 2024 from $1,016,836 to $1.25 million, with indexation resuming in 2026. To qualify, three tests must all be met: at the moment of sale, more than 90% of the FMV of the company’s assets must be used in an active business carried on primarily in Canada; throughout the 24 months before sale, more than 50% of FMV must have been used in active business; and the shares must not have been owned by any unrelated party in the 24 months prior. Excess cash, investment portfolios or non-operating real estate sitting in the operating company can contaminate QSBC status. Most Canadian advisors recommend a ‘purification’ at least 24 months before sale, moving passive assets to a HoldCo via a Section 85 rollover.
The federal capital gains inclusion rate has been politically volatile since the 2024 Budget, when the government proposed raising the rate from 50% to 66.67% on individual gains above $250,000 and on all corporate and trust gains from 25 June 2024. Implementation was formally deferred to 1 January 2026 in January 2025 and has remained a moving target. Sellers should confirm the live inclusion rate with their CPA at the time of transaction; published rates can be out of date within months.
A Section 85 rollover allows tax-deferred transfer of eligible property to a taxable Canadian corporation in exchange for shares, filed jointly on Form T2057, and is the standard tool for pre-sale purification and HoldCo structuring. For asset sales, the Section 167 GST/HST election allows buyer and seller to elect for no GST/HST on the transfer of all or substantially all of a business; without it, a $5M Ontario asset deal carries a $650,000 HST cash-flow hit at closing, refundable later via input tax credits but real working-capital friction.
What is your Canadian business actually worth?
CT Acquisitions runs a confidential, buy-side process. No broker commission, no retainer, no exclusivity contract — the buyer pays our fee.
Goodwill in Canada is depreciable post-2017 under CCA Class 14.1 at 5% declining balance, following the repeal of the older Eligible Capital Property regime. Allocation of asset-sale proceeds across categories is a negotiated item that materially affects after-tax outcome.
The Canadian buyer pool combines two Canadian incumbents (Reliance Home Comfort, majority owned by CK Asset Holdings, and Enercare, owned by Brookfield Infrastructure since 2018, with Brookfield reportedly running a sale process for Enercare as of early 2026), one PE-backed Canadian platform (Right Time Group, majority-owned by Gryphon Investors since December 2020 and aggressively acquiring tuck-ins across Ontario, the Prairies, Alberta and BC), and Brookfield’s HomeServe (which acquired DEC Energies in November 2024 to expand its Canadian HVAC, plumbing and electrical footprint). Cross-border US strategics are active: Rollins’s Orkin Canada continues consolidating Canadian pest control, Anticimex has built scale through Poulin’s Pest Control and other tuck-ins, and Aptive Pest Control (majority-acquired by Citation Capital in August 2024) is expanding its Canadian operations. At the larger end, Canadian mid-market PE firms Birch Hill, ONCAP and Novacap are opportunistic in home services for $5M+ EBITDA targets.
Canadian tax law is largely federal, but the provinces differ materially on sales tax (HST vs GST+PST vs QST), trade licensing, and civil law (Quebec). Choose your province:
A Canadian home-services SMB sale in 2026 should centre on three things: LCGE qualification (with a 24-month purification window where needed), the live inclusion-rate status confirmed with a CPA at time of transaction, and a confidential buy-side process that reaches Canadian incumbents (Reliance, Enercare), the PE-backed platform (Right Time/Gryphon), and cross-border US strategics. Valuations sit 0.5-1.5x EBITDA below US comparables; the gap can be narrowed by demonstrating recurring revenue, route density, and management depth.
This guide reflects Canadian market conditions and tax rules as of May 2026. Canadian tax law is currently in flux — the capital gains inclusion rate has been politically volatile since the 2024 Budget. Confirm all rates and qualifying conditions (LCGE, QSBC, Section 85, Section 167) with a Canadian CPA before relying on them in a transaction. Multiples are directional, not a guarantee.
Canadian home-services SMBs typically sell for 2.0-3.5x SDE for owner-operator deals, 4-7x EBITDA for lower-middle-market ($1M-$3M EBITDA) targets, and 7-10x+ for platform-scale assets. Pest control runs above the sector median (6-10x on dense recurring routes). Canadian deals typically trade at a 0.5-1.5x EBITDA discount to comparable US transactions.
The LCGE allows individual Canadian sellers to exempt up to $1.25 million of capital gain on the sale of Qualified Small Business Corporation (QSBC) shares from tax. To qualify, three tests must be met: at sale, more than 90% of company asset FMV used in an active business in Canada; throughout the 24 months prior, more than 50% of FMV used in active business; and the shares not owned by an unrelated party in the 24 months prior. Excess cash or passive investments can contaminate QSBC status; pre-sale purification is usually needed.
Most Canadian sellers prefer a share sale: single layer of tax, capital gain treatment, LCGE eligibility (only available on QSBC share sales), and tail liabilities transfer to buyer. Buyers prefer asset sales for the step-up in tax basis and the ability to cherry-pick assets. A common compromise is a hybrid structure, often involving Section 85 rollovers, which requires 12-24 months of pre-sale planning.
Active Canadian acquirers in 2024-2026 include Reliance Home Comfort (owned by CK Asset Holdings), Enercare (owned by Brookfield Infrastructure, with a sale process reportedly under way in early 2026), Right Time Group of Companies (majority-owned by Gryphon Investors since December 2020), and HomeServe Canada. Cross-border US strategics active in Canada include Rollins’ Orkin Canada, Anticimex, and Aptive Pest Control (Citation Capital). Canadian mid-market PE firms Birch Hill, ONCAP, and Novacap are opportunistic on $5M+ EBITDA targets.
Nothing to the seller. CT Acquisitions is a cross-border buy-side advisor, not a business broker — the buyer pays our fee.
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Use the links below to jump to the Canada-specific page for your vertical. Each carries jurisdiction-specific PE buyer lists, multiples bands, regulator transfer mechanics, and tax-arbitrage notes.