Many prospective business buyers, who may be very sophisticated in other aspects of acquiring a business, are unaware that in certain circumstances they may use some or all of their IRA, 401k, 403b, or other tax-favored retirement savings accounts to…

Oftentimes as a Buyer, a critical component of your success in acquiring and prospering in a new business venture can be the continued cooperation and goodwill of the Seller. But IF you don’t need the Seller’s continuing cooperation after closing…

In many cases the answer is “No.”  There is no legal requirement that a business must be sold through an intermediary, and indeed, many thousands of businesses are sold every year without one. If the buyer is a family member…

There is probably no greater truth in all M&A activities – for Buyers, Sellers and M&A Advisors alike – than “Time Kills All Deals.” In my experience, no other factor has caused more potentially good deals to go bad than…

Rule #1: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” Most buyers are eager to “make their mark” once they’ve acquired a business.  But unless the business is losing money, or employees and customers alike despised the previous owner, it is…

Most discussions about determining the value of a business, start — and frequently end — with an analysis of historical earnings and/or cash flow.  Many buyers & quite a few brokers are most comfortable expressing their valuation as a multiple…

One of the most frequently asked questions in my business is “How can I determine/improve the Fair Market Value of my business?”  When we talk about the Fair Market Value, we’re referring to the value of your business as seen…

As the generation of Baby Boomers approaches retirement, it has been estimated that over the next twenty years retiring business owners with be seeking to successfully exit their businesses, with an aggregate value in the trillions of dollars. Without the…

Almost without exception, all business sellers would prefer to get 100% of their selling price in cash at closing – and for some very good reasons.  Most sellers have heard horror stories about other sellers who sold their business for…

A nightmare scenario for most business owners is to learn that rumors are spreading among their employees, customers, vendors, bankers and competitors that their business is for sale. It’s only human nature for most people to suspect the worst until…