Q1 2009 Costs to Buy a Business
How Much Is My Beaverton Business Worth?
We just received the latest Beaverton, Oregon business-for-sale statistics.
Q1 2009 Business Valuations in Beaverton, OR
According to statistics issued by BizBuySell.com, Beaverton business-for-sale listings in Q1 2009 had a median asking price of $295,000.
That compares to a median ask price of $290,000 in Q1 2008. Because the median ask price for businesses for sale in Beaverton has risen year over year, we can conclude that many smaller firms in Beaverton are holding off on selling.
To be clear, this is the median asking price for a business. If you want to buy a business, you may be able to buy a Beaverton company for much less. However, some Beaverton businesses may be selling for much more.
Another thing to remember is that this is the asking price for a Beaverton business. When a business owner lists a business for sale, they typically set a price that ends up being more than the contracted sale price. A sale-to-ask ratio typically might be between 0.85 and 0.90, but of course it depends on deal specifics. In practice, this means a business listed for $250,000 would go for between $212,500 and $225,000.
Number of Beaverton Businesses for Sale in the Dataset
The study data comprised 170 listings in the Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA metro area. As such, some of the businesses used to derive the median valuation might be outside of Beaverton, but they are in the area and so are probably representative of Beaverton business valuations.
One year ago, in Q1 2008, the BizBuySell.com dataset for Beaverton spanned 162 listings. In a market where you would think fewer business owners would be selling, it's a bit surprising to see more Beaverton business-for-sale listings.
Beaverton, OR Q1 2009 Revenue Multiples
In the Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA metro area, companies will usually sell for 0.86 times the selling company's revenues. That was 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 $172,804. Keep in mind that this is simply an average for revenue multiples in the area. Some small businesses 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 $400,672 in Q1 2009.
To give this some context, the Q1 2008 revenue multiple was 0.82 and the median revenue for listed businesses was $469,000.
Q1 2009 Cash Flow Multiples In Beaverton, OR
Cash flow multiples are another popular technique to value a business.
For Q1 2009, the average cash flow multiple for listed businesses in the Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA metro area was 3.41.
So, a business with cash flows of $150,000 might have an asking price of $511,244. That's only if the firm complies with the local average. Cash flow multiples will usually vary considerably based on many factors.
If you are interested in what cash flows are for a business in Beaverton, BizBuySell.com reports that the median cash flow for Beaverton area businesses was $102,237 in Q1 2009. In Q1 2008, cash flow multiples clocked in at 3.65 and the median cash flow was $95,631.
Things to Consider When Selling a Business in Beaverton, OR
When selling a business, think about how dependent the business is on you as the business owner. If the business is heavily dependent on your skills and your personal reputation, a buyer will pay less money for it. As such, it's important to make the business less dependent on you as you approach the time when you hope to sell. This advice on how to sell a company comes from Domenic Rinaldi, managing partner of Sun Acquisitions, a leading business brokerage firm.
Business Valuations for Beaverton, OR 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 Beaverton, OR Business Valuations
If you are interested in trends in business-for-sale asking prices, here are the median asking prices for businesses in the Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA metro area for the last 9 quarters.
Here is how median revenue multiples are moving in the Beaverton area, based on BizBuySell.com's quarterly reports.
The table below shows how cash flow multiples are trending in the Beaverton area, based on BizBuySell.com's quarterly reports.
Flow Multiple
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