Most Owners Start Out Just Curious
Very few people who reach out are ready to sign a listing. They want a number they can plan around: enough to retire on, buy out a partner, or decide whether one more good year would change things.
That is what the first call is for. A broker talks through a likely range, the few things that move it, and how long a sale tends to take from where you are today.
Companies Like Yours
The owners we hear from run established companies, usually with $1 million or more in yearly sales.
A lot of them serve the trade that crosses the bridges every day: customs work, warehousing, freight, packaging and the shops that keep trucks rolling.
Others are contractors, food makers, medical offices and service firms that grew up with the city. The kinds of business page covers several in more detail.
We also hear from owners in Horizon City, Socorro, Canutillo and across the line in Las Cruces and Santa Teresa. Our communities page explains what changes when your company sits in New Mexico.
Profit Sets the Price
Sales volume gets attention, but buyers pay for profit they can verify. For most companies under about $2 million in value, the yardstick is seller's discretionary earnings: profit plus what the business pays the owner.
Bigger companies with managers in place are usually priced on EBITDA. Either figure gets a multiple, and many established companies sell for roughly two to three times their yearly cash flow.
What makes buyers pay toward the top of that range?
- Tax returns that match the books
- Staff who can run the work while you are away
- No single customer, or single plant across the river, carrying the company
- Leases, permits and contracts a new owner can keep
Our page on how buyers price a business goes deeper.
Timing Matters Less Than Owners Think
Owners often wait for a perfect year. In practice, the multiples buyers pay barely move from one year to the next. What moves the price is your own trend: steady or rising profit sells, a slide does not.
The best time to ask about value is a year or two before you want out. That leaves room to fix the things a buyer would mark down, like loose records or a customer list that leans on one account.
Texas Paperwork Comes With Every Sale
Texas has no personal income tax, which helps a seller who lives here. The state still expects a final sales tax return, franchise tax filings and an update to the appraisal district about the equipment you sold.
A buyer can be held responsible for some of your unpaid taxes, so expect to show your accounts are current before closing. The before you close guides walk through each filing in plain language.
Who Gets Your Information
We are an introduction service, not a brokerage. Your request goes to one brokerage partner that values and sells companies in this area, and that partner may pay us a referral fee. You never pay us.
Ready? Fill in the two short parts at the top of this page or call (915) 555-0193 on a weekday.