we moved from Ohio to Las Vegas and Laguna Beach about a year ago. Anyone else?

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Tim and Julie Harris

got a few emails about how we sold it...so
the core business is still alive and running. The business was too large for any one buyer. Not too large in terms of volume but area served. We found 2 buyers, split the database up and made 2 sales. Other assets that were sold...URLs. Yes, URLS do have value. We sold one URL for close to $25k and several others for close to that.
Who else?

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Tim and Julie Harris

Got tired of the same ol'-same ol' and started looking for a successor. No one in our family interested (saw the hours and didn't want to work that hard!). Found another agent who did respectable sales on her own. She is now running my business and I serve as an advisor. I have to work 3 days a week for a year and 2 days a week for a year after that IF SHE WANTS ME! Do I work? Sure. My name is on the company. People respond beautifully to her and my team and, much to my surprise, on listing calls, contract negotiations, and still think it is the Irvine Team. My team likes her and continues to work as a cohesive unit. We have a written agreement and I am being paid out of proceeds over a 5 year period. She carries all expenses. And she is determined to grow the business and eventually have her family involved! We are even going to close more this year than we did last year! It can work. The down market even helps, because they want the top agent's team at any cost!

I sold the business in Chicaqo and bought an agent's business in Tucson. We then sold off part of the business )rental management) and then have bought the Yost Team in Casa Grande. We are looking for additional team's in Tucson and will develop another team in Red Rock. I have helped others value and sell their business and am finishing a book for Kaplan publishing that will be out next June with basics for valuating and selling a real estate business.

ah...this is good stuff.
please give ideas/ samples of real estate practices that were sold. Please DO include a link to any url you want to promote. Its all good.

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Tim and Julie Harris

That's right! Tim Baker and Graham Glauser are the proud new owners of the Yost Group in Casa Grande, AZ. Joe and I have bought a great big old house on a lake in northern WI. Yes, we'll be back and forth between the heat of AZ and cold of WI. Now I'll only be working PART TIME....coaching, doing on site consults and the occasional workshop. YEEEHAAAA!!!! Debbie Yost

Congrats Debbie....
without sharing any details that you dont want to....could you please descibe how the deal for the sale of your business looked...the term sheet if you will....

Congratulations Debbie - I too would be interested in how you did your sale, many of you know I sold 50% several years ago and now enjoying working 3 days a week in summer, 2 days coaching and spend winters in Florida coaching my 2 days a week. When I sold not a lot of experience so I would like to see how things have evolved. When I sold we determined a value based on 3 years net income and then purchase price 50% because only 50% share, paid out over 5 years from incomes. I still get paid by what work I do allowing me to go in and out of the business while enjoying still a % of profits. Of course I have a minimum requirement of # of days to work etc. - Tim we had given you our contract how much did you change it?? Bill Renaud - Your Canadian Referral Contact.

Hi
Kevin and I were ready to sell our Florida office and had 2 of our team members ready to purchase. We had agreed on terms, time and money. But when the market just went flat there didn't seem to be as much for them to buy except all those listings. But, als our market took a reall dive. How do we sell it in a down. down market and make it work for both of us. AJ

when we sold ours we parted it out.
sold the urls, the databases, even the office stuff. We now split the COI/ PC referral between different agents. We are paid referral fees.
I hear stories about agents who sold for big money but, they seem to be just that...stories.
'real' businesses are valued based on their top line or bottom line earnings. A service business like real estate usually only sells for 1 times net. Meaning, what you netted after taxes per year. Thats basically what ours sold for...when all the pieces were added up from the individual parts.
You make money from the money you earn from selling real estate...not from selling real estate.

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Tim and Julie Harris