How much is my business worth?

Most owner operated businesses in Florida sell for a multiple of seller's discretionary earnings: net profit plus the owner's salary, benefits and one time or personal expenses run through the business. Where the multiple falls depends on the industry, the lease, the staff, the trend in the numbers and how much the business depends on you. A confidential valuation gives you the range for your business and the reasons behind it.

Will my employees, customers or landlord find out?

Not from us. The business is marketed without its name or address, buyers sign a nondisclosure agreement and prove their funds before they learn who you are, and showings happen after hours or are presented as something else. The landlord is approached only once there is an accepted offer, because the lease has to be assigned.

How long does it take to sell a business?

Six to nine months from listing to closing is common for a well prepared small business, faster when the price is right and the records are clean, longer for businesses that need a licensed buyer or a franchisor's approval. The escrow period after an accepted offer is usually sixty to ninety days.

Selling the Business and Keeping the Building

Owners who own their building often keep it, sell the business and become the buyer's landlord. The rent becomes retirement income, the property keeps appreciating, and the sale of the business is simpler and more affordable for the buyer. It works when the lease is written the way a buyer and a lender need.

Storefronts and parked cars along a small town main street at sunset

Reviewed by Tyson E. Sam, Founder and Broker of Record, BreakThru Realty, Florida License 3565210

Last reviewed November 7, 2026

Find Out What My Business Is Worth · (786) 914-1017

The Lease the Buyer Needs

A buyer's lender wants a lease whose term and options outlast the loan, usually ten years in some combination of term and renewals, at a rent the business can carry. A rent set too high makes the business unsellable; a rent set too low sells the business for more and the building for less later. The review prices the rent against the market and against the business's earnings, so both assets are valued fairly, and the lease is drafted before the business is marketed.

What the Lease Should Say

Who pays taxes, insurance and maintenance, how the rent increases, what the tenant may do to the building, the assignment rights if the buyer sells again, and the remedies if the rent stops. The buyer signing for the lease personally, and a security deposit, are normal. The lease is a real estate document and is drawn by counsel; the business sale references it as a condition.

An Option to Buy the Building Later

Many buyers want the right to buy the property later, once the business has proven itself to them, and many sellers are happy to sell then at a price fixed now or set by appraisal. The option, its price formula and its window are written into the lease. It widens the pool of buyers and gives you a planned exit from the property as well as the business.

Your Income and Your Taxes Afterwards

Rent is taxed differently from the proceeds of a business sale, and holding the building changes the allocation of the business price. Your accountant models the two sales, business now and building later, against a single combined sale, so the decision is made on what you keep over the years, not only at closing.

Find Out What My Business Is Worth

Tell us the type of business, the city, how long it has operated, annual revenue, owner benefit or seller's discretionary earnings, EBITDA if you track it, monthly rent and lease expiry, number of employees, how involved you are, why you are selling, your timeline and whether you would consider seller financing. A licensed BreakThru business broker prepares a confidential valuation from comparable sales and replies within one business day. Everything you tell us is confidential, the valuation is free, and nothing is listed or announced unless you decide to sell. Prefer to talk now? Call (786) 914-1017.

Questions Owners Ask

How much is my business worth?: Most owner operated businesses in Florida sell for a multiple of seller's discretionary earnings: net profit plus the owner's salary, benefits and one time or personal expenses run through the business. Where the multiple falls depends on the industry, the lease, the staff, the trend in the numbers and how much the business depends on you. A confidential valuation gives you the range for your business and the reasons behind it.
Will my employees, customers or landlord find out?: Not from us. The business is marketed without its name or address, buyers sign a nondisclosure agreement and prove their funds before they learn who you are, and showings happen after hours or are presented as something else. The landlord is approached only once there is an accepted offer, because the lease has to be assigned.
How long does it take to sell a business?: Six to nine months from listing to closing is common for a well prepared small business, faster when the price is right and the records are clean, longer for businesses that need a licensed buyer or a franchisor's approval. The escrow period after an accepted offer is usually sixty to ninety days.

Selling the Business and Keeping the Building

The Lease the Buyer Needs

What the Lease Should Say

An Option to Buy the Building Later

Your Income and Your Taxes Afterwards

Find Out What My Business Is Worth

Questions Owners Ask

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