More small and mid-sized California businesses were sold in October than in any month this year, with the total of 1,384 transactions, beating the previous month’s sold businesses figure by 56%.
The growth in
business sales, about 5% ahead of the numbers recorded in October 2009, was reflected in several of the state's counties. Los Angeles County posted 385 transactions last month, a bit ahead of the 379 deals completed in the same month last year. There were 84 closed business escrows in San Francisco during October, up from the 61 deals registered 12 months before. Orange County's sales figure was 128 vs. 99 the previous October.
The increase in deals coincides with what appears to be a shift toward more certainty on the part of buyers and sellers. And that is likely a response to a more cooperative posture by lenders whose funds are needed to complete transactions on businesses and business real estate.
SBA lending programs received a shot in the arm in late September with the new Federal Small Business Jobs and Credit Act. It reinstated incentives that, when used to a limited extent in the past, triggered a boost in borrowing for the small business purchases and expansions.
One indication of stepped up activity in the market for small and mid-sized business is the increase in requests we’ve received in the past few weeks from people wanting to gain access to funds through the SBA lending programs for their business transactions. We’ve responded to several questions regarding the best way to prepare a loan application. Buyers are learning that getting pre-qualified for a loan gives them more negotiating power, and enables them to act more quickly than other buyers on an appealing business opportunity.
It's interesting that some owners/sellers also are interested in having their businesses pre-qualified for an SBA loan program. A business opportunity with a preliminary SBA loan okay gets much more attention, and more offers, than businesses marketed without available financing.
The BizBen Index October report on the sale of small businesses in California, by county, (available at
http://www.bizben.com/stats/stats-monthly-oct.php) is as follows:
Alameda: 53, Amador: 1, Butte: 5, Contra Costa: 31, El Dorado: 8, Fresno: 41, Imperial: 4, Kern: 24, Los Angeles: 385, Marin: 4, Merced: 9, Monterey: 21, Napa: 8, Nevada: 3, Orange: 128, Placer: 16, Riverside: 62, Sacramento: 26, San Bernardino: 62, San Diego: 129, San Francisco: 84, San Joaquin: 18, San Luis Obispo: 12, San Mateo: 41, Santa Barbara: 23, Santa Clara: 51, Santa Cruz: 13, Shasta: 8, Solano: 7, Sonoma: 28, Stanislaus: 13, Sutter: 10, Tehama: 4, Tulare: 21, Tuolumne: 1, Ventura: 21, Yolo: 9.
About the Author: Peter Siegel, MBA, is Founder and CEO of BizBen.com. He assists business buyers, business owners/sellers, business brokers, and agents with SBA loan financing for business purchases (or businesses with real estate). For over 10 years he has represented 20+ SBA lenders and financial institutions. Siegel offers SBA loan assistance and placement with SBA loan amounts between $200,000 and $5,000,000. He can be contacted at 866-270-6278 for more details.
Posted on November 3, 2010 | 
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