{"id":1960,"date":"2017-02-19T14:30:34","date_gmt":"2017-02-19T19:30:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.solutions4childcare.com\/index\/?p=1960"},"modified":"2021-10-21T01:29:54","modified_gmt":"2021-10-21T05:29:54","slug":"small-medium-sized-child-care-businesses-likely-buyer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solutions4childcare.com\/index\/small-medium-sized-child-care-businesses-likely-buyer\/","title":{"rendered":"Small and Medium-Sized Child Care Businesses \u2013 Your Most Likely Buyer"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have been selling child care businesses since 1995 and speak with hundreds of child care owners and potential buyers each year.\u00a0 In my discussions with child care owners, I often find that they have been planning for years to sell their child care business to a buyer or \u201ctype of buyer\u201d that will most likely have little to no interest in their child care business.<\/p>\n

Owners of small and medium-sized child care businesses may be pinning their hopes on selling to a large regional or national child care chain for an anticipated equally large price.\u00a0 Unfortunately, things rarely work out that way.\u00a0 Large regional and national child care chains are only interested in buying large child care centers.\u00a0 Many of these buyers note a minimum licensure of 125 or even higher as their target acquisition.\u00a0 Moreover, in states with increased licensing regulations like North Carolina, some chain buyers will only consider very large child care businesses. They just cannot make the financial numbers work in small or even medium-sized centers.<\/p>\n

Small and medium-sized child care businesses are most often purchased by someone already working in child care or early education \u2013 maybe as a teacher, director, assistant director, or an elementary school teacher.\u00a0 Alternatively, the owner of another child care business either within the market area or a distance that does not require too long of a commute.\u00a0 Moreover, the ability for us to confidentiality market child care businesses on the internet sometimes allows for the sale of the child care business to someone living hours away or in another state but willing to move for the right opportunity.<\/p>\n

Unlike the large regional and national child care chains, these individual buyers often have limited financial resources to purchase a child care business.\u00a0 Ninety-plus percent will need to obtain either a substantial amount of seller financing or a bank loan or both to buy a child care business.\u00a0 Therefore, the child care business must have good financial records showing enough profitability or the buyer will have difficulty convincing a bank to lend the funds for the purchase.<\/p>\n

Owners of small and medium-sized child care businesses must:<\/p>\n