Buying A Business:
Working with Horizon Business Brokers

If you are looking into buying a business, Horizon Business Brokers is a top Business Brokerage serving the Washington D.C area to help you navigate through the process and ensure you are not only buying a good business but the right business for you! Horizon Business Brokers provides some of the best business opportunities on the market as we thoroughly vet all of the businesses we represent for sale which gives our buyers the peace of mind they need when making such a big decision to invest in buying a business. We have relationships with other business brokers and have a robust database of businesses for sale from working with business owners in various industries looking to sell their business. Many of the businesses we represent for sale are successful, profitable, turn-key businesses where the owner is looking to retire, move out of the area, or are ready for their next business opportunity. If we don’t currently have a business for sale that fits your needs and interests, we will find it for you.

When buying a business with Horizon Business Brokers, our clients benefit from our industry experience, expertise in various industries, and high ethical professional standards. We promise to treat our clients fairly, professionally, and honestly. Imagine your dream of owning a successful business coming true! Click Here To View Our Current Listings

Stage 1:

Getting Started with Purchasing a Business

Initial Consultation:

We’d like to get to know you and your interests in purchasing a business by meeting with you where we can answer any questions or concerns you may have, help you understand how small businesses are valued, the sale process, and share how Horizon Business Brokers can help you obtain your goals!

The Confidentiality Agreement helps protect all parties concerned in the sale process and allows us to share confidential information with you regarding the businesses that interest you. Click Here To Complete The Confidentiality Agreement

The Buyer Profile helps us understand your background, interests, and needs so we can be sure we help you purchase the right business that you will enjoy operating and be just as or more successful than the seller. Click Here To Complete The Buyer Profile

The Financial Statement gathers your financial information on a very high level. We don’t ask for Social Security Numbers, Bank Names or Account Numbers. This allows us to determine your financial ability in terms of how much of a business you can afford to purchase and if you meet the qualifications of lenders as well as landlords and franchises where applicable. Click Here To Complete Financial Statement

Outlining Business Interests and Opportunities:

This is where we will get a thorough understanding of your business interests and try to start identifying some business opportunities for you. To do this efficiently and effectively please have a list of your goals, a few business industries that may be of interest to you or perhaps not of interest so we can refine our search, an idea as to what your annual cash flow needs are (a business’s value and sale price is largely determined by the cash flow it generates), what you think your available down payment and total budget may be, as well as what geographic areas you are interested in purchasing a business.

Having all of these outlined will allow us to quickly identify the most viable businesses for sale that meet your overall needs and interests.

Stage 2:

Business Search

Identifying Business Opportunities:

From our initial meeting and outline of interests, we will start searching for business opportunities with you. Once one or more businesses have been identified that may be of interest to you, we will further discuss each business for sale to see which are worth pursuing.

Determining Interest:

After we have identified and viewed opportunities and taken the opportunity to meet with the seller we will determine which business for sale is the right one for you to make an offer on, at which point we will work together to determine a fair market value and offering price to present to the seller. 

Stage 3:

Offer and Due Diligence

Offer to Purchase:

Once we have selected a business that meets your goals and interests and determined there is sincere interest this is when an initial offer to buy the business is made. We can work with you in helping prepare an offer whether that is utilizing a Letter of Intent or a Purchase Agreement with necessary contingencies in place but always recommend and encourage that each party engages proper counsel from an attorney, accountant, and other financial advisers before completing and signing any contractual agreements. There may be some back and forth negotiations that take place until all the general terms of the purchase are agreed to by all of the parties concerned. An Earnest Money Deposit equal to 10% of the sale price or $10,000, whichever is greater is typically collected from the buyer at this stage to show their good faith and commitment in purchasing the business.

 Due Diligence is also a time that the seller will see if the buyer is qualified and capable to operate the business. This is important since there could be some seller financing as part of the deal or the seller might even still be liable for any remaining lease or franchise terms where applicable. If seller financing is part of the sale the seller will want to pay close attention and offer any help the buyer may need in understanding the business during their due diligence. The seller will want to have enough faith in the buyer that the buyer will be able to successfully operate the business and be profitable enough to pay any seller financing which may be offered as well as meet obligations that the seller may still be a guarantor of and potentially liable for.

There are certainly all-cash deals made frequently in small business sales, but typically small businesses are sold with the seller holding some financing for a buyer, usually around 10-30% of the total sale price, but it also isn’t uncommon for a seller to finance as much as 80-100% of the sale price of the business. Providing seller financing shows their they have faith in the business, opens your buyer pool, helps obtain at or closer to asking prices, and can also help offset tax liabilities from the sale.

Stage 4:

Finalizing the Purchase of the Business

Assist in Resolving Any Issues:

If there are any issues while performing or coming out of due diligence related to the financial health and performance of the business, operations of the business, your ability to secure funding, obtaining the lease or franchise agreement (if applicable), or necessary licenses needed to operate the business we will do our best to work with you, the seller and any outside advisors to resolve any issues to ensure we can proceed to settlement. It may be necessary to make amendments to the Letter of Intent or Purchase Agreement to extend due diligence or postpone settlement.

Establish a Definitive Purchase Agreement:

If a Definitive Purchase Agreement hasn’t been executed by both parties already (if a Letter of Intent was first established) since this can be done prior to, while in, or after due diligence we would want to finalize the Definitive Purchase Agreement, which can be signed prior to or at settlement. The Definitive Purchase Agreement is the final agreement that all parties sign which formally defines all the terms of the sale and transfers the business to new ownership.

Funding & Managing Obligations:

We want to be sure that 3rd party financing and/or any personal funding to complete the purchase is in place. This is also a time where we will work on finalizing any applicable lease, franchise agreements, and license or permit transfers to transition the business. Once all of these items are in place we can move to settlement.

Settlement:

The settlement is the final process in a small business purchase. An attorney or attorneys for the buying and selling parties draw up and complete the documents necessary for finalizing the purchase. When all terms are agreed to and all contingencies are met, the definitive purchase agreement and closing docs are signed, applicable lease and franchise agreements have been approved and signed, the business is transferred at a formal closing with money and keys changing hands.