Tax Strategies to Maximize After-Tax Proceeds of a Business Sale

We had the pleasure of interviewing Greg Carlson, CPA partner with Boyum Barensheer who specializes in tax strategies for privately held companies. Greg has been working with owners for over 30 years and he could really share some stories. His work has surely made a significant impact in the lives of his clients and he knows the exit planning process really well, but as Greg says, you have to take advantage of some tax strategies right at the outset, not at the end. 

Greg's specialties include Tax, M&A, Succession Planning, Divorce Planning and Estate Planning. With numerous credentials, he can advise in most any primary category for preparing an owner for exit, yet believes strongly in the collaborative effort required for a favorable outcome. 

Should you sell your business Stock or sell the Assets? A Stock vs Asset Sale has benefits and drawbacks for each side of the table. For sellers, a stock sale is more advantageous, just as an Asset sale works better for buyers. The Capital Gains liability and other tax implications affect both buyers and sellers in different ways. 

We talked about Goodwill, how it affects purchase price and what it includes. We decided we needed an entire episode just to cover that topic. Suffice it to say, Goodwill includes anything you can't touch. Tangible assets like equipment, real estate, inventory are part of the business value, but the lion's share is in the intangible: customer list, key people, proprietary processes, brand, etc. Lots of goodwill means lots of value! In other words, build your intangible asset value while you still own your company for a better payoff later. 

Great advice from a true expert; listen to the episode here

Find Greg here

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Founder, Consultant, Author, Pod-caster and Instructor