How Do I Sell My Business? How Your Accountant Can Maximise the Value of Your Business
Selling a business is rarely a simple decision. It can come after years of growth, a shift in personal goals, or simply because it’s time for a new chapter. Whatever the reason, a business sale is a significant process, and one that puts your financial records under the microscope.
There’s a lot that goes into preparing a business for sale, but the groundwork often starts in the accounts. From cleaning up the numbers to ensuring they reflect the true value of your business, a good accountant plays a quiet but crucial role in making sure everything adds up, literally and strategically.
Here’s how we help business owners prepare their financial foundations for a successful exit.
1. Cleaning Up the Books
One of the first steps in preparing a business for sale is making sure your books are accurate, up to date, and easy to interpret. Buyers want to see a clear picture of how your business has been performing, and they’ll be looking closely at your financial reports to assess returns, risk and opportunity.
That means making sure the accounts are tidy with minimal inconsistencies, cleaning up old transactions, and ensuring the numbers are telling a consistent story. It also means moving away from messy spreadsheets or outdated systems and producing a set of financials that can be trusted.
If your bookkeeping has been rushed or patchy in recent years, this stage is critical, it’s what gives buyers confidence in what they’re looking at.
2. Turning Data Into a Narrative
Once the numbers are clean, we work on the story they tell.
Many businesses, especially those led by hands-on owners, have perfectly healthy financials that still look confusing to an outside party. That’s because they may include non-business expenses (like the family car or travel), one-off costs, or cash-based reporting that doesn’t show the business’s full potential.
As accountants, we help translate your raw financials into a clear narrative - one that highlights profitability, explains anomalies, and gives buyers the confidence that what they’re buying has long-term value. This process is often called “normalising” the earnings, and it helps ensure the business’s true performance isn’t buried under noise.
3. Reducing Your Personal Involvement
A business that relies too heavily on the owner is harder to sell, and often worth less.
One of the most valuable things we can do is help you reduce owner dependency. That doesn’t mean stepping back entirely, but it does mean building systems and processes that allow the business to run without your constant oversight.
We look at where you're still deeply involved (maybe you're the only one who understands payroll, or you still sign off every quote), and help identify ways to delegate, automate, or document those roles. We also help implement simple financial tools and dashboards so reporting can happen without needing your input.
Not only does this increase buyer confidence (that they will be able to achieve the same outcome even without you in the business), and it will improve team performance and give you more breathing room while you're still in the business.
4. Identifying Red Flags Before the Buyer Does
During due diligence, buyers will dig deep. The last thing you want is for them to discover issues that could have been fixed months earlier.
We conduct a pre-sale financial review to uncover any red flags that might raise eyebrows. That includes unresolved tax obligations, unusual fluctuations in revenue, unreconciled payroll, or outdated asset registers.
Fixing these early helps avoid last-minute renegotiations, or worse, a buyer removing themselves from the process.
5. Understanding and Improving Business Valuation
A key part of selling well is knowing what your business is worth and what drives that value.
We work with you to break down the factors that influence valuation in your industry, often a multiple of EBITDA or net profit, and help identify areas where small changes could significantly boost that figure. That might include improving margins, reducing overhead, or showing more stable recurring income streams.
We also assist with forward projections that demonstrate growth potential, giving buyers a clear picture of what the business could look like in 12 to 24 months. Buyers don’t just buy your past, they’re investing in your future too.
6. Preparing for Due Diligence
When a buyer moves forward, their team will request detailed documentation. Having this ready (clean, organised, and consistent), can be the difference between a quick close and a drawn-out process.
We help you prepare for this by pulling together financial reports, tax returns, payroll records, and supporting documentation in a format that’s easy to share and understand. We also help explain any unusual items so buyers don’t have to guess or assume the worst.
Good due diligence preparation doesn’t just smooth the process—it signals professionalism and reduces risk in the buyer’s eyes.
7. Structuring for Tax and Timing
Finally, tax planning can make a huge difference to your net result. Selling a business without tax advice can lead to nasty surprises, especially when large capital gains are involved.
We guide you through the different ways a sale can be structured, including whether you’re selling assets or shares, and how that affects tax. We also explore whether you qualify for any small business concessions, and how timing the deal could reduce your liability.
It’s not just about paying less tax, it’s about making sure the sale supports your long-term personal goals too.
Selling Smart Starts Early
Preparing your business for sale isn’t something you do in a week. It often takes months, sometimes longer, to get the financials, systems, and strategy aligned for a smooth and profitable exit.
The good news? Much of that preparation doesn’t just help the sale, it helps the business in the meantime. Cleaner reports, stronger systems, and fewer surprises benefit you and your team, whether you decide to sell or not.
Talking to Your Newcastle Business Accountant is the Perfect Place to Start.
If selling your business has crossed your mind, whether you want to sell or simply want to plan for your future, now is the time to start laying the groundwork.
Talking to your business accountant is the perfect place to start.
Our accountants are experts at partnering with business owners like you who are thinking of their future. Start the conversation about the future of your business before things become urgent.
