Documents Needed for a Business Valuation
A Business Appraisal Checklist to Get You Started
Here is a Business Valuation Checklist of the information we need to get started on the Business Appraisal or Business Valuation of your US company. This list is inclusive, so all the information here may not apply to your unique situation as you seek a value of a business.
The Business Appraisal Checklist form is also downloadable in pdf format: Business Appraisal Checklist PDF.
Business Valuation Checklist PDF
Once you are a client, we can email you the Business Valuation Checklist in Word Doc form. You can use this checklist as a starting guide to begin gathering the documents needed for a business appraisal.
If you are a small business, don’t let this list intimidate you. We can help you work through it to get the financial information we need to ascertain your company’s fair market value. Your business is worth more than an asset list.
Documents Needed for Business Appraisal
You can also read the steps to a business exit strategy and understand the value of a business and why you need an exit plan.
Do you need a valuation to buy an existing business to see if it is a fair asking price? Read our buying an existing business guide.
Table of contents
What is the intended use of this Business Appraisal or Business Valuation?
- Brief company history and description
- Revenue and earnings (4-5 years if possible)
- Is this business valuation for an SBA or bank loan?
- Are company revenue and earnings stable or growing?
- What are the customer concentrations?
- What is the current ownership structure and ownership information? Any sale or purchase of company stock in the last five years? Any stakeholder buy-sell agreements?
- What are the Exiting Party or Client goals?
- What deal structure is the Exiting Party or Client open to (if applicable)?
- Will there be sufficient management continuity?
Pre-Valuation Information
- Current capital structure with a list of business owners
- Financial Statements, including:
- Balance Sheet
- Income Statement or Profit and Loss Statements
- Cash Flow Projections and Statements
- Account Receivable Aging Report
- Accounts Payable Aging Report
- 4-year historical financial statements (Better if a review from your CPA, but a compilation beats no financials from a CPA)
- 4-5 years of historical tax returns
- Current YTD interim financial statements with comparative prior year interim period
- Quarterly summary P&L (past three years)
- Detailed calculation of EBITDA
Revenue
- Description of major product categories
- Revenue by period by significant product category
- Description of the sales process and customer profile
- Market size; share analysis; opportunities and threats to market share
- Key competitors and market information
- Dashboard metrics currently used to evaluate sales performance
Customer concentrations – List the five largest customer revenue amounts for the past three years and a total of all other customers.
Vendor concentrations – List the five largest vendors with numbers for the past three years and a total of all other vendors. Do you have any contracts or licensing agreements in place?
Employees
- Headcount by function
- A brief biography of key employees
- Any deferred compensation or perks?
- Any non-compete agreements?
- Any employment contracts?
Facilities & Assets – ownership or lease terms for all buildings, land, real estate, patents, copyrights, trademarks, intellectual property, intangible assets, websites, equipment, and any other business assets.
Description of any current/pending litigation or tax issues
Any adjustments to Income? Please read our article on adjustments to income when valuing a company.
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You can also check this article as an additional guide to business appraisal to get an insight into the process and why each document is needed for a business valuation from a certified valuation analyst or CVA at Business Appraisal FL|GA|HI.
What are your valuation needs? For a quotation, please email us at chris@businessappraisalflorida.com or use the contact form.