Q1 2009 Costs to Buy a Business

How Much Is My Concord Business Worth?

We just received the latest Concord, North Carolina business-for-sale statistics.

Q1 2009 Business Valuations in Concord, NC

Based on data compiled by BizBuySell.com, Concord business-for-sale listings in Q1 2009 had a median asking price of $275,000.

That compares to a median ask price of $325,000 in Q1 2008. One interpretation of the lower median asking price is that Concord, NC sellers are dropping their asking prices in light of market conditions.

Please understand that this is the median asking price for a business. If you want to buy a business, you may be able to buy a Concord company for much less. However, some Concord businesses may be selling for much more.

Another thing to remember is that this is the asking price for a Concord business. When a business owner lists a business for sale, they typically set a price that ends up being more than the eventual sale price. A sale-to-ask ratio typically might be between 0.85 and 0.90, but of course it varies considerably. So, a business listed for $100,000 might sell for between $85,000 and $90,000.

Number of Concord Businesses for Sale in the Dataset

The study data comprised 247 listings in the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC metro area. As such, some of the businesses used to derive the median valuation might be outside of Concord, but they are nearby and so are probably representative of Concord business valuations.

One year ago, in Q1 2008, the BizBuySell.com dataset for Concord spanned 202 listings. In a market where you would think fewer business owners would be selling, it's a bit surprising to see more Concord business-for-sale listings.

Concord, NC Q1 2009 Revenue Multiples

In the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC metro area, small businesses will typically sell for 0.78 times the selling company's revenues. The data indicates that is the mean revenue multiple for Q1 2009 in this metro area.

In other words, a business that has revenues of $200,000 might list for $156,697. Remember, however, that this is in fact an average for revenue multiples in the area. Some firms will have higher revenue multiples and others will have lower revenue multiples.

According to BizBuySell.com, the median revenues for its business-for-sale listings was $484,278 in Q1 2009.

To put this in perspective, the Q1 2008 revenue multiple was 0.79 and the median revenue for listed businesses was $526,228.

Q1 2009 Cash Flow Multiples In Concord, NC

Cash flow multiples are another common way to value a business.

For Q1 2009, the average cash flow multiple for listed businesses in the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC metro area was 3.53.

So, a firm with cash flows of $150,000 might have an asking price of $528,976. That calculation is dependent on the business selling for the area's average multiple. Cash flow multiples will usually vary considerably based on many factors.

If you are interested in what cash flows are for a business in Concord, BizBuySell.com found that the median cash flow for Concord area businesses was $100,000 in Q1 2009. In Q1 2008, cash flow multiples clocked in at 3.41 and the median cash flow was $108,604.

Tips for Concord, NC Business Sellers

It's critical to keep the potential sale of your business as confidential as possible. If that confidentiality is compromised, you risk losing customers, employees and vendors. Loose lips sink ships...and sink business-for-sale transactions as well! This useful business selling advice comes from Domenic Rinaldi, managing partner of Sun Acquisitions, a leading business brokerage firm.

Business Valuations for Concord, NC Businesses

If you are contemplating buying a business or selling a business and would like to look at comparables in the area, we suggest you try the BizBuySell.com Business Valuation Tool. You can modify the dataset that creates business valuation estimates to meet your specific criteria. As a bonus, access to the tool is very affordable -- less than $100.

More Information on BizBuySell.com's Quarterly Reports

The BizBuySell Insight Report is published every quarter. If you find these trends interesting, take a moment to visit BizBuySell.com Insights Report for more information.

Historical Data for Concord, NC Business Valuations

If you are interested in trends in business-for-sale asking prices, here are the median asking prices for businesses in the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC metro area for the last 9 quarters.

Quarter
Median Ask
Q1 2007
$312,500
Q2 2007
$273,000
Q3 2007
$300,000
Q4 2007
$350,000
Q1 2008
$325,000
Q2 2008
$300,000
Q3 2008
$325,000
Q4 2008
$300,000
Q1 2009
$275,000

Here is how median revenue multiples are tracking in the Concord area, based on BizBuySell.com's data.

Quarter
Revenue Multiple
Q1 2007
0.77
Q2 2007
0.82
Q3 2007
0.82
Q4 2007
0.77
Q1 2008
0.79
Q2 2008
0.80
Q3 2008
0.85
Q4 2008
0.80
Q1 2009
0.78

Here is how cash flow multiples are trending in the Concord area, based on BizBuySell.com's quarterly reports.

Quarter
Median Cash
Flow Multiple
Q1 2007
3.41
Q2 2007
3.38
Q3 2007
3.47
Q4 2007
3.45
Q1 2008
3.41
Q2 2008
3.26
Q3 2008
3.52
Q4 2008
3.32
Q1 2009
3.53

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