When Values Matter – Choose Your Business Appraiser Carefully

Welcome to the first edition of When Values Matter. We hope you will find this blog informative and educational as we explore various topics related to business valuation for small and mid-sized private companies, including closely-held family businesses.

With today’s hectic business pace, many professionals may not fully realize that all valuations are not alike. No more than all family law attorneys are alike, nor all CPAs are alike, there can be vast differences in the quality of professional advice.  Similarly, a business valuation is not a commodity.

There are many different reasons to value a business including tax matters (estate settlement, gifting, and employment related), divorce settlement, shareholder dispute resolution, or sale of a business. Consequences can be dire if the wrong value is used, or if a value intended for one purpose is used for another.

So how do you select a business appraiser?

When a business valuation is needed, look for the following:

  • Track Record.
    While most cases settle outside of court, when Merrimack Business Appraisers’ valuations have been presented in court by Mr. Pereira, the triers of fact have ruled in favor of the opinion of value 100% of the time.
  • Ethics.
    When business values matter, professional values matter too including objectivity and ethics.
  • Certifications.
    Louis Pereira has completed the most intensive training in the country and earned the highest designations available in the field of business valuations. There are fewer than 200 Certified Business Appraisers in the country, and Lou is one of them. In New England, he is one of only a dozen having earned the rigorous designation of Certified Business Appraiser.

At Merrimack Business Appraisers, we are here to help when values matter to you.