Frequently asked questions

 A:  Choosing the right business broker is one of the most important decisions you will make in the selling process.  You need a broker who is experienced in doing transactions of all types.  Don't be overly concerned if a broker has not done any transactions that are an exact match to your company.  You are the expert in your type of business and and the broker should rely on your help to answer questions specifically related to your operations.  You are hiring the broker for his expertise in dealing with Buyers, understanding company financials and doing many different types of transactions with different levels of complexity.  You are the company expert, your agent is there to find a buyer, negotiate terms and put together a deal structure that will maximize the net proceeds from the sale. 

  A:  Business brokers are trained in the intricacies of a business transaction such as understanding, analyzing and forecasting Profit and Loss Statements, Cash Flow Statements and Balance Sheets.   They should also understand the legal requirements and ethics involved with a business transaction which vary dramatically from a Real Estate transaction.   One of the worst mistakes inexperienced brokers make is not properly pricing a business.  A business that is not priced properly will not sell!  First, experienced buyers will know when a business is unrealistically priced and immediately walk away.  Secondly, a buyer will not be able to obtain  acquisition financing.  Lenders do their own due diligence and will not lend if the cash flow of the business won't support the debt payments.  This is after a reasonable owner salary and working capital requirements are deducted from the adjusted cash flow.   

  A: This is when you need an experienced broker to guide you.  There are a number of things that need to be done and you need to think like an institutional lender thinks.   If they don't think it's a good risk, why should you think differently?   Be sure a lender knows there is a components of seller financing involved in the proposed terms.  They will consider it as part of the debt payments and will not lend if payments to both the seller and the lender do not make sense when the cash flow is taken into consideration. 

   A:  We are commission based Business Brokers.  When listing your business with Tait & Associates you will NOT be charged any upfront fees.  We charge a commission to be paid only if the business is sold.  The amount of the commission is based on the value of the business being sold.  Let us give you a market valuation and then we can give you an exact commission percentage amount. 

  A:  No, we do not charge any up front fees to sell your business.  The market valuation, advertising and memorandum preparation are all a part of the services provided to our sellers at no additional cost.

  A:  Many agents do not like to coop their listings because this would require them to share their commission.  Any good agent should not have a problem doing coop arrangements provided the participating agents are qualified business brokers who also coop their own listings.  Any agent who will not participate in coop arrangements is doing a disservice to their client.  In essence they may be turning away qualified and interested buyers in order to not have to share in a commission.  Obviously this is potentially harming and definitely not helping their own client. 

 A: Confidentiality is one of the most important factors in selling or buying a business. We make sure that every buyer signs a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) prior to receiving any information about the business.  The NDA prohibits the buyer from contacting the seller  directly, speaking with any employees, customers or venders and revealing any information about the business to anyone other than qualified advisors. Some of the problems that can arise should your broker not require an NDA are as follows:

• Employees will know the business is for sale and would most likely start looking  for alternative employment to protect themselves;
• Product and supply venders could stop issuing terms to the company fearing that the owner will leave without paying their bill;
• Banks can cancel working capital lines of credit or call existing debt due immediately; and
• Perhaps worst of all, customers could go elsewhere for products or services fearing the new owner might treat them differently.

 A:  Communication is extremely important while working with a business broker.  At Tait & Associates we go to extra lengths to let you know what is happening.  If desired, we will blind copy you on correspondence of a non private nature between us and potential buyers.  Since we also have a fiduciary responsibility to the Buyer as well the Seller, as stated in the Broker's  Association Code of Ethics, if either party tells us not to disclose our discussions we are obligated to comply with that request.  The only time we are required to disclose something that either party tells us (even if they consider it private), is when the item being discussed could have a material impact on the business.