Business Exits By Industry
Selling a Counseling Services Business
Selling a counseling services business doesn't happen overnight. It takes a deliberate process to get top dollar for your company.
In a down economy, many counseling services business sellers wait to list their businesses until they see signs that the economy has rebounded, making it difficult to accurately evaluate the number of counseling services businesses that are actually for sale.
Eventually, it will the time will come to exit your business. And when that day arrives, you need to know how to sell your counseling services business in a way that achieves positive outcomes for you and the business.
Legal Considerations
It's obvious that you're going to need to hire an attorney to finalize the sale of your counseling services business. Competent legal counsel ensures that the sale documents are in proper order. Furthermore, a good lawyers provides the counsel necessary to navigate the tax and liability issues that surround a business sale. We recommend hiring an attorney early in the process to gain insights about the legal consequences of various sale outcomes.
What About Market Conditions?
Today's counseling services business sellers face an intimidating economic landscape. So far, government intervention and promises that the economy is slowly recovering haven't been enough to alleviate many entrepreneur's fears. However, many business sellers don't realize that a full economic rebound can have devastating consequences, particularly if sellers who have waited to list their businesses suddenly create a glut in the business-for-sale marketplace. Like it or not, the time to sell your counseling services business may be right now, as long as your willing to adequately prepare your business for the marketplace.
Valuation Methods
Multiple valuation methods exist for a counseling services business. The income method determines value based on the amount of income the business is expected to generate. The asset method, on the other hand, is based on the value of tangible and non-tangible assets (e.g. brands and trademarks). In many sales, the most accurate valuation comes from the market method which determines value based on the recent sales of similar businesses. A good appraiser will often use multiple valuation methods to arrive at a reasonable estimate. To drive up your sale price, position your counseling services business by improving variables like assets, revenue and profitability during the years leading up to a sale.
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