Exit Planning Advice By Market

Selling an Aerospace Engineering Firm

Although an aerospace engineering firm may not be completely recession-proof, the best companies can survive nearly any storm. Now all you have to do is convince the right buyer that your business is built for long-term success.

The business-for-sale market is just as frustrating for buyers as it is for sellers these days. Although there are plenty of entrepreneurs who want to buy an aerospace engineering firm, capital restrictions are holding them back.

Fortunately for sellers, forward-thinking entrepreneurs continue to be attracted to aerospace engineering firms that exhibit strong financials and potential for future growth.

Average Timeframes

From the day they decide to sell their company, the question that plagues many owners is how long it will take to sell their aerospace engineering firm. The amount of time your business will be on the market depends on how aggressively it is priced and marketed. Before you can list your aerospace engineering firm, you'll need to invest as much as a year in preparing it for prospective buyers. Even though it's conceivable that an attractive opportunity could sell in weeks, an immediate flood of offers could indicate that the business is underpriced.

Leveraging Seller Concessions

Seller concessions are becoming more commonplace in business-for-sale transactions. By far, seller financing is the most sought-after concession, especially in the current economic environment. With entrepreneurs struggling to secure capital, you may be the buyer's only source of financing. If you are unwilling or unable to offer financing, be prepared to offer other types of concessions to close the deal.

Legal Concerns

In an aerospace engineering firm sale, the Letter of Intent contains the vital elements of the deal between the buyer and the seller . If you are seeking buyer concessions, the time to address them is before the Letter of Intent is drafted. For sellers, that makes a close review of the Letter of Intent more than a formality - it's a critical juncture on the path to closing.

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