Trent Lee — #1 ranked business broker in the U.S. seven years in a row, with 600+ closed sales totaling over $200M in deals and more than $15M in personal commission.

Early hustle: Painted address numbers on neighborhood curbs and mowed lawns — learned value creation early.

Current role: Licensed business broker & appraiser. Specializes in small to mid-sized businesses, valuations, and finding qualified buyers through cash, SBA loans, or seller financing.

How he got here:

Inspired watching his father sell his 700-employee company (private equity deal).

Learned firsthand how CPAs, attorneys, and buyers operate in M&A.

Started and sold businesses (financing consulting & medical alert response center). Frustrated with brokers he worked with → became one himself.

How to become a business broker:

Licensing depends on the state (some require real estate + broker permit, others none).

Associations like IBBA help standardize training/education.

Strong background in accounting, contracts, negotiations, and marketing is essential.

Challenge: takes 12+ months before first commissions hit; most fail because they run out of money before their first big close.

Earnings potential:

Smaller deals: 8–15% commission. Larger/private equity deals: lower %.

First year = expect $0 while building pipeline.

Year 2+, even a few deals ($500K–$2M businesses) → six figures+.

Industry is older (often second careers), but huge opportunity for those who survive the ramp-up.

Why brokerage over ownership?

Trent opts not to buy businesses himself. Brokerage gives income without employees, leases, or headaches.

He’s built wealth through business sales commissions, investing proceeds into 24 fully paid rental properties.

Why so few business brokers?

Most owners don’t even know brokers exist (unlike real estate).

Lack of awareness & high skill bar keeps supply small — which means big opportunity for specialists.

For Buyers:

Buying an existing business = easier path to cash flow than startups.

Zero-money-down deals are rare clickbait; you’ll usually need ~10% down. Can come from:

personal cash/savings,

self-directed retirement accounts,

equity partner, or

combination of buyer + seller financing.

Buying with 0% down = 100% leverage → dangerous if market fluctuates. Better: leverage smartly so downturns = inconvenient, not devastating.

Brokerage is a lucrative but long game; plan financially for the first year with no income.

For buyers, don’t chase unicorn “zero down” structures — get creative but realistic with 10% in.

Buying an existing cash-flowing business is almost always better than starting from scratch.

Email: [email protected] 

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