Here in Atlanta, like in most other places, the task of buying or selling a business can prove to be a tough hill to climb. Nevertheless, with a little inside information, you stand a better chance at coming out on top, whatever your particular venture might be.
If you are a buyer, it’s healthy to approach all of the information provided about the business, with a certain degree of skepticism. As a rule of thumb, most sellers are good and honest people, but you don’t want to be taken advantage of. Make sure you thoroughly examine all of their financial statements and income tax returns before making your decision. Don’t rely on the fact that they say they have a lot of unreported income.
Although there are many good motivations for selling a business, there are obviously ones that the buyer ought to be cautious about. Still, keep an eye out for long-standing, single-owner profitable businesses where the owner is approaching retirement, and must sell, even though he or she might not necessarily want to. If the sellers seems overly eager to sign a non-compete agreement and generally wants to rush through negotiations, you should think twice about purchasing their company.
After everything has been mulled over and discussed at length, it’s now time to get everything in writing. This is usually when one of the parties starts questioning whether or not they are really get a fair deal. The best way to handle this, is to simply anticipate it happening and not let emotions get the best of the situation, which ever side you might find yourself on.
Once the “Purchase and Sale Agreement” has been signed by both parties, chances are, the sale is going to happen. Still, there must be an end to the negotiations or things will begin to come apart, and the other party might even back out completely. Reopening negotiations isn’t always a smart thing.