Record-Breaking Number of Small Businesses Changed Hands in 2018

Record numbers of small businesses changed hands in 2018, according to the latest BizBuySell Insight Report. The report aggregates statistics from business-for-sale transactions reported by participating business brokers nationwide. A total of 10,312 businesses were reported sold in 2018, the most since BizBuySell started collecting such data in 2007. This is a 4% increase over the previous record of 9,919 in 2017, and a 31% jump from 2016’s then high of 7,842.

BizBuySell also separately surveyed business brokers and small-business owners. Brokers said they saw similar increases, with 65% of respondents reporting that their transaction activity increased in 2018, while another 21% said it remained similar to 2017.

Asked why they believed the business-for-sale market has remained so hot, brokers credited an increasing number of buyers and sellers and the general improvement of the small-business environment. Small-business owners credited the same factors as the reason for transaction growth.

Other data in the report, which is replete with graphs, include:

• Closed Transactions by Year
• Key Financials of Sold Small Business
• 2018 Small Business Financial Health
• Small Business Sale Price vs. Asking Price
• 2018 Small Business Values
• Small Business Sales by Sector
• 2018 Industry Breakdown
• Top 10 Markets by Closed Transactions
• Top 10 Markets by Median Sale Price
• Industry Share of Sold Businesses by Sale Price
• Key Metrics by Sale Price
• 2018 Differences by Deal Size
• Q4 2018 Overview
• Market Outlook

For more information, comments by survey participants, and detailed graphs and tables, visit this BizBuySell web page.