by Kevin G. Long, Esq. Most business owners assume that when they are ready to retire/sell/move on, that all-cash buyers or buyers that let them just walk away will be there. In the real world, however, there are not many buyers that will meet a seller's initial...
The original article appeared in EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN REVIEW. Owners of closely held businesses under-utilize Employee Stock Ownership Plans ("ESOPs") as an ideal vehicle for achieving key business and tax deferral goals. Many of these owners have no exit strategy...
Many engineering and construction firm owners will be retiring in large numbers in the coming years. Those whose children don’t want the family business face a dilemma. With more “baby-boomer” sellers than buyers, buyers are likely to be highly selective and very...
Traditionally, employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) are used as a vehicle to facilitate the retirement of the sole (or majority) shareholder of a closely held corporation and to finance business acquisitions. However, ESOPs are sometimes the perfect (and often...
Family-owned businesses, a key pillar in the American economy, make up a significant number of the privately held companies across our country. Although these companies cut across all industries and range in size from small to large, they all share common challenges....
A question we are often asked by business owners in the exit planning process is similar to the following: “Would it be more financially beneficial for me to sell my shares to a strategic buyer or to sell my shares to an employee stock ownership plan and elect tax...
Eventually, every business owner will exit his or her business – whether voluntarily or otherwise. At that time, every owner wants to accomplish certain personal, business, financial, and estate planning goals. Most fail to do so. According to a number of surveys,...
If you have spent time around the ESOP world, you know that, in addition to all of the wonderful benefits an ESOP brings to a sponsor company, there are complexities and various pitfalls to be aware of as well. In this blog, I thought I would discuss some of the...
When is it wise to have an independent review of a business valuation report? This blog will consider one common reason for requesting an independent review of a business valuation report. Under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), an ESOP’s named...
In another blog post by Acclaro, we looked at why ESOPs (employee stock ownership plans) make very good business sense. Today’s post provides an addendum and explores why ESOPs provide a higher rate of return to employees than do other retirement plans. There has...