I Want to Buy a Business: 12 Steps to Take Before Making an Offer
If your starting point is “I want to buy a business,” do not begin by negotiating the asking price. Begin by defining what you can operate, finance, and verify. Before making an offer, identify your acquisition criteria, assemble advisers, screen the seller and opportunity, normalize earnings, test transferability, choose a preliminary structure, and decide the […]
An Asset Sale Doesn’t Always Leave the Liabilities Behind
The main reason small business buyers prefer an asset sale is simple: you buy the assets you want and leave the seller’s liabilities with the seller’s old company. Their unpaid taxes, their lawsuits, their vendor disputes — not your problem. That’s mostly right. It’s the reason asset sales are the norm in deals this size, […]