DARRELL HESS & ASSOCIATES:  Over 300 parks SOLD!  WHY?
We educate buyers and sellers so they can make an intelligent, informed decision.
After all, we are dealing with a buyers life savings and a sellers retirement.


Pricing:  Business Valuation and Pricing Factors.

      A helpful tool to add to your business tool box.  

Many owners have told us that a very helpful step in making the difficult decision about selling is to obtain a realistic expectation of the sales price.  For example:  if you found out that your campground business would sell for only $125,000, you may not be a very serious seller.  On the other hand, if you found out that it would sell in the $2 million range ... You see what I mean.            

Unbiased Opinion:  In order to make an intelligent decision regarding pricing, you need an unbiased opinion.  

Although not a licensed appraiser, I have been exclusively brokering campgrounds and RV parks for over 30 years and have been involved in over 300 RV park and campground sales.  Consequently, I have developed a keen insight into the factors that affect the price of RV park businesses.  We know the campground industry well and have learned through experience what it takes to sell and finance campgrounds and RV parks.  Based on that knowledge we offer campground owners our written Business Valuation and Pricing Factors report.

Business Valuation and Pricing Factors:  You may be familiar with the common real estate approach to valuation called a Comparative Market Analysis.  This involves looking at what has recently sold and what is currently on the market.  Our Business Valuation includes this approach, but also goes several steps further by looking at pricing from the following 4 perspectives:

  1. SOLD Statistics.  We apply our database of "Sold Statistics" to your park.  Of course, no two parks are alike, but there are several common denominators such as gross income multiplier, price per site, and gross profit multiplier.  These pricing business formulas will be applied to your park with full explanations.

  2. Income Approach Method.  Our Income Approach to valuation involves making 7 adjustments to the year-end statement and tax return to better estimate the actual profit.  Once we have established that, we will then back into several different pricing packages to demonstrate the interaction of downpayment and financing terms and their effect on the final sales price.  This is the most complex pricing approach. 

    By sharing several different pricing examples, you will learn how to custom tailor a pricing package to meet your needs.  Obviously, you don't want the campground back once it is sold.  Therefore, it is important to price and package the deal in such a way as to minimize the odds of a default.  These examples will help you understand how to do that.  We will also look at an all-cash sale versus a combination of seller and bank financing.

  3. Recent Campground Sales.  We will look at recent park sales to see how your park compares.  We will provide basic details that will better allow you to compare your park.

  4. Parks Currently for Sale.  Finally, we will share basic information about campground businesses that are on the market now.  Buyers have choices - let's look at what your "competition" would be if you put your park on the market.  We will also share our thoughts about current market conditions.

Our basic fee for this written business valuation is $875 (more if you have a complex business).  Depending on our workload, it usually takes approximately 4 weeks to complete. 

If this interests you, certainly give us a call.  If you decide you would like to proceed with our written report, we will need:

  1. Your last 2 years' tax returns (including Depreciation Form 4562) and year-end statements.

  2. Pictures of the campground buildings and campsites, including a site map, brochure, rate sheet, and anything else you think would be relevant.

  3. A check for $875 (or if you prefer, MasterCard or Visa).

After receiving the above information, we will call with questions in order to be sure we have a thorough understanding of the business and together with you, will work through the various expense adjustments that will need to be made.

In our efforts to be truly helpful to you, we feel it is important to share with you the factors involved in determining a realistic sales price that will bring in qualified buyers and result in a successful sale, rather than just "hoping things work out."

If you have any questions, give us a call at 828-452-1535.

 

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