re: How do you tell someone their business asking price is too high?

If the owner really wants to retire he will come to his senses and negotiate. If your wife walks he has to come to work full time or scramble to find a new associate. That brings in a whole new level of risk to him. If he puts it on the open market he will likely get lowballed even more than your valuation because whoever would be coming in does not already have the goodwill of the existing clients so the value is not the same. I am a chiropractor have have seen this in my profession. I always laugh at what the retiree thinks their golden goose is worth. I started my own practice 15 years ago after working for a tyrant. Lets just say I never looked back

You guys will just need to find a middle ground price that all parties can agree on. Everyone is suggesting to just open your own practice but think of the head ache and stress that will come with opening a business. What if the current owner sues you for either taking the clients or his employees. Sure you're going to have to pay a little more but it's a turn key operation that is working. Pay the man and move on.

Thanks for all the feedback. She has been there 3.5 years now, so the clients are loyal. We are having a lawyer look over her contract, specifically the non-compete. We have also discussed other places of employment as well as opening up a new clinic. Like someone else stated, this is a turn key for us and would like to make it work if we can agree on price.

He is more than welcome to hire someone else to assess the value, but they will be using the same data that he gave us. Hopefully if he does that, it will bring him into reality.

My apologies in advance if this has already been stated, but what all are you attempting to buy from this Vet? The business, building and land? How long has his he been in practice?

Ridiculous how many folks have chimed in here without asking the simplest question and giving the simplest advice...

Have you asked him what he thinks the value is and then listened carefully to his reply? You know the number, but you've given no one anything in this thread to go on about where this value came from.

I would simply ask, "You've told me the biz is worth X...tell me how you got to that number."

In any negotiation or sale, listening will always give you the exact tools necessary to get what you want. People usually tell you EXACTLY how they want to be sold or negotiated with if you give them the chance. In this case, you need to understand the need behind the number...or a motivating pain in a sense, that causes him to use the values he does.

Simply asking him to tell you about the why behind his price-AND THEN LISTENING-you'll know how to approach with your offer.

Yes, you have far more information and less emotion behind your offer. But you have to sell him on why you make sense and he doesn't. Crafting and scheming and burying him with paperwork or stats won't do that.

Give your customer or person on the other side of a negotiation a chance to talk. After that, you won't have to give him detailed business valuation reports and breakdowns. You'll be able to specifically target the reason he gives you that value, and then you can specifically address it.

But listen, and make sure you give him the opportunity to list ALL of his reasons for the value...and listen to him.

Listening-and not speaking-is so vital in sales and negotiations. Stop scheming and planning. Just have a conversation...you'll learn a lot.

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Listening-and not speaking-is so vital in sales and negotiations.

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I think a lot of us were under the impression that a discussion like that had already occurred. Maybe not.