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3 Key Factors I Know After Buying an Accounting Firm
Accounting firm ownership can be an exciting and profitable proposition. However, there is much to learn to identify the right firm to purchase and pursue.
In this article, I share the top 3 lessons I have learned in my journey.
1. Assume you need 2–3 staff to replace a full-time owner/seller
Many accounting firm sellers will try to underplay their role and sell themselves as a passive part-time employee. Don’t be fooled.
Owners who have built a firm over decades have tremendous knowledge and ability, which is challenging to comprehend before you are in the weeds yourself. If someone started from scratch, they will personally know all the clients, backstories, workloads, processes and such just in their heads.
However, you are not them. Instead, you will need to factor in the various roles they perform and allocate the funds to replace them. In the case of my first firm, the owner was the manager, client interface, did taxes, and did all the valuations. It took 2–3 staff to fully replace him.
I read from another source that $300k would be a fair amount to replace the owner, and I completely agree. Don’t let the small salary…
