The result is many talented middle managers are now unemployed. Never before have so many displaced workers, many with generous severance packages in hand, been shopping for businesses to buy. All of this points to an unprecedented demand for business appraisals. Here is why your services are needed. Few buyers, despite strong technical skills, know how to select a business that fits their abilities, ambition and budget.
Few sellers know what price to ask or what the trade offs are between cash and terms.
They offer their businesses at unrealistic prices with unobtainable terms and conditions. That the present system of equating price, value and marketability is bogged down by a general lack of knowledge is confirmed by the number of listings that pass through the offices of realtors and business brokers. Just scan the Business Opportunities section of your local classifieds to see how often the same ones reappear. The biggest problems usually are that the offering is grossly overpriced, not in marketable condition or that the seller has not left anything behind for the next guy. All have land, a building or leasehold interest, equipment, income, profit, and at times, goodwill.