Buying a Business

Cost to Buy a Business in Concord

Considering purchasing a company in Concord, North Carolina? You've come to the right place to get statistics and trend data on Concord, North Carolina business-for-sale transactions.

Luckily, the folks at BizBuySell.com have made some data available on what businesses are going for in Concord.

BizBuySell.com is the largest online marketplace for business-for-sale transactions. The vast majority of business brokers in the country put their business listings on BizBuySell.com. In addition, many business owners who are selling on their own, without a broker, will place listings on BizBuySell.com.

If you want to buy a company in North Carolina, check out the BizBuySell North Carolina listings to see the latest business-for-sale listings for Concord and other North Carolina cities.

Business Valuations in Concord, NC

According to BizBuySell.com, the median asking price for an Concord business-for-sale listing in Q4 2008, the quarter when they most recently released their data, was $300,000.

That was based on 227 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 in the area and so are likely representative of Concord business valuations.

Remember that this is the median asking price for a business. If you are in the market to buy a company, you may be able to buy an Concord business for much less. At the same time, some Concord businesses may cost much more.

Another thing you should know is that this is the asking price for an Concord business. Typically, when a business owner lists a business for sale, they start with an asking price that is higher than the eventual sale price. The sale-price-to-asking-price ratio varies considerably but typically might be between 0.85 and 0.90. So, a company listed for $125,000 would often sell for between $106,250 and $112,500.

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 8 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

Concord, NC Revenue Multiples

In the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC metro area, businesses will typically sell for 0.80 times the selling company's revenues. That was the mean revenue multiple for Q4 2008 in this metro area.

In other words, a business that has revenues of $200,000 might list for $159,326. Remember, however, that this is strictly an average for revenue multiples in the area. Some firms will have higher revenue multiples and others will have lower revenue multiples.

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

According to BizBuySell.com, the median revenues for its business-for-sale listings was $543,554 in Q4 2008.

Cash Flow Multiples In Concord, NC

Another common method to value a business is through cash flow multiples.

For Q4 2008, the average cash flow multiple for businesses listed in the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC metro area was 3.32.

So, a firm with cash flows of $120,000 might have an asking price of $398,966. That's if the business fits the area average. The distribution on revenue multiples for a given set of businesses can be quite wide-ranging.

The table below shows 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

In case you were wondering what typical cash flows are for a business in Concord, BizBuySell.com found that the median cash flow for Concord area businesses was $105,924 in Q4 2008.

Things to Consider When Buying a Business in Concord, NC

If you are interested in buying an existing business, you want the business broker you are working with to be selling you to the seller. As such, it's important that you demonstrate that you're a qualified, motivated buyer. Being prepared and serious about your search is an important initial step. This advice comes from Domenic Rinaldi, managing partner of Chicagoland Sunbelt, a leading business brokerage firm.

Business Valuations for Concord, NC Businesses

If you have a specific business in mind and want to get a ballpark business valuation, we recommend the BizBuySell.com Business Valuation Tool. You can refine the dataset that generates business valuations to meet your specific needs, and access to the tool is very affordable -- less than $100.

More Information on BizBuySell.com's Quarterly Reports

The BizBuySell Insight Report is published on a quarterly basis. If you find this data interesting, be sure to visit BizBuySell.com Insights Report for additional information.

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