Finding A Business Broker
There are a number of business brokers to help you finding a business for sale. Some operate as a business broker firm and others operate as a real estate agent and business broker. You will find details of these companies in yellow pages and on the internet.
There is also an association of business brokers - WA Business Brokers Association (www.wabbainc.com) and a list of their members is on the website.
This is a very useful website as most business brokers have the businesses they have up for sale listed on this one website. This saves so much time trying to search for individual business brokers and their listings.
Business for sale
These appear in the newspapers in the real estate section and these businesses tend to be smaller ones. However, business brokers also advertise some larger businesses under this section. The West Australian has a business sales section within the real estate pull out each Saturday and also on a Wednesday.
Any business you look at that is listed for sale should have been prepared for sale and relevant information should be readily available to you.
There should be an information pack with a "Business Summary" giving an overview of the business and how it is operated. In particular, you need to know the duties carried out by the current owner(s) and think about how those skills can be replaced and what skills you will be able to provide. Also consider whether there is someone in the business who may want to buy that business and how they might feel if someone new comes in as the owner.
Financial Statements - 2 or 3 years financial statements and year-to-date figures should be available. These include the Profit & Loss Statement, Balance Sheet and Depreciation Schedule. This is vital information should you need financial backing from a financial institution. Details of add backs should be provided to enable you to establish a pre tax profit or earnings position. The add backs normally include proprietors wages and related costs, finance charges and any one-off expenses.
Plant & Equipment - You will need an up to date list of all plant, equipment and fixtures included in the sale. Normally all plant and equipment is sold unencumbered unless specifically stated. Equipment not owned and subject to finance should be detailed on a separate list with the outstanding amount of lease or borrowings which the vendor will need to pay on settlement. Try and avoid pricing individual items as this may be a point of disagreement with a vendor and could jeopardise a potential purchase. As a guide, follow the depreciation schedule and talk totals.
Premises Lease Agreement - Make sure you are provided with a copy of the premises lease agreement or at least a copy of the lease schedule. The schedule summarises the main points of the lease such as costs, area occupied, rent reviews, term and options.
Details of the workforce - A schedule of employees, their job title, length of service and pay rates. This is vital information as you need to know the staffing level for operating the business going forward. You also need to know of any long service leave entitlements, annual leave entitlements and redundancy payments that may need to be made.
Our Terms & Conditions of Use | Site Produced & Maintained by planiTweb
Copyright © 1999 - 2006 Wbay: Western Australia Facts Interesting Immigration Information Business Broker Finding A Business For Sale
