---
title: Buyers Paid 100.8% of Asking Price Last Quarter. Here's What Separated Them From Everyone Else.
description: Discover key insights from the BizBuySell Q3 2026 report on business sales, highlighting how preparation and quality influence asking prices and buyer confidence.
image: https://cdn.marblism.com/9Vi14zSe7Iw.webp
---

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[selling a business](https://lobobusinesssales.com/blog/tag/selling-a-business), [buying a business](https://lobobusinesssales.com/blog/tag/buying-a-business), [Business value](https://lobobusinesssales.com/blog/tag/business-value)

# Buyers Paid 100.8% of Asking Price Last Quarter. Here's What Separated Them From Everyone Else.

[By \- Business Broker Dave,](https://lobobusinesssales.com/blog/author/business-broker-dave-1)  Oct 31, 2026

![ Featured Image](https://cdn.marblism.com/9Vi14zSe7Iw.webp)

[![Featured image: Dave Britton, Certified Business Intermediary and Tampa Bay business broker, reviewing due-diligence records at a desk with a golden growth arrow, illustrating a confidential business sale and business valuation with the Lobo Business Sales LLC logo.](https://cdn.marblism.com/9Vi14zSe7Iw.webp)](https://lobobusinesssales.com/)

The headline figure is striking, but it needs context. In the [BizBuySell Q3 2026 Insight Report](https://www.bizbuysell.com/insight-report/), businesses that sold for more than $1 million averaged **100.8% of asking price**. Businesses below $1 million averaged **93.6%**.

The difference was not a blanket reward for listing at the right time. The report shows a selective national market: buyers paid more, on average, for businesses in the larger transaction segment. Their confidence still softened, and buyers continued to scrutinize earnings, records, and the business’s ability to operate without its owner.

For a Tampa Bay owner considering a sale, or a digital-business owner preparing for a national buyer pool, the useful question is not, “Can I ask more?” It is, “Can a buyer verify what the business earns and see how it will keep earning after the transition?”

## What the Q3 figures do, and do not, say

BizBuySell reported **2,132 business sales in Q3 2026**, roughly flat versus Q2 and 7% below Q3 2025. The median sale price rose 17% year over year to **$350,000**, with the report attributing the increase to a higher share of larger, more profitable businesses selling.

Businesses above $1 million represented a record **22% of Q3 transactions**, up 8% year over year. Deals below $1 million fell 10%. In the above-$1-million group, the average cash-flow multiple was **3.73x**, compared with **2.30x** below $1 million.

These are national report figures, not Tampa Bay-specific results, and they are not a price formula for an individual company. A business’s value depends on its earnings, risk, transferability, industry, transaction terms, and evidence supporting the financial story. A reported average cannot tell an owner what their company is worth.

The signal is more practical: businesses that are larger and profitable may receive a different market response than businesses with weaker or less verifiable earnings. The report’s asking-price ratio and cash-flow multiple gaps are observations about completed transactions, not promises of future value.

## Buyers are searching for quality, and testing the evidence

In the report, **31% of buyers** named the lack of quality businesses as their top obstacle, ahead of financing at 15% and asking prices at 13%. Nearly half of buyers considered businesses on the market overvalued.

That combination matters. Buyers report difficulty finding quality opportunities, but that does not mean every seller has leverage. It means quality must be demonstrated. When financial statements, tax returns, bank deposits, customer records, and explanations of owner add-backs do not agree, a buyer has reason to question the earnings being presented.

### What “cash flow” means in a sale

Owners often use “profit,” “cash flow,” SDE, and EBITDA as though they mean the same thing. They do not.

**Seller’s discretionary earnings (SDE)** is commonly used when evaluating owner-operated businesses. It starts with earnings and may include documented adjustments such as owner compensation and certain nonrecurring or discretionary expenses. **EBITDA** (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) is a different measure, more commonly used in larger-company analysis. Neither measure is simply “whatever the owner says is left over.”

Recasting earnings means identifying adjustments, supporting them with records, and applying them consistently. Unsupported add-backs do not become credible because they are listed in a spreadsheet. Buyers and their advisors will ask what each item was, whether it was genuinely discretionary or nonrecurring, and whether the expense will return under new ownership.

[![Quality-of-earnings review materials illustrating financial diligence for a Tampa Bay business seller preparing a confidential business sale and business valuation with a Florida business broker or Certified Business Intermediary.](https://cdn.marblism.com/_VoN3Xhz-DH.webp)](https://lobobusinesssales.com/business-valuation-calculator)

## The Buyer Scrutiny Quiz: Would Your Business Survive?

Answer **yes** or **no**. A “yes” means the evidence is organized and available, not merely that the owner believes the item is true.

1. Can you reconcile three years of business tax returns and financial statements to bank statements and deposits?
2. Are key operating procedures documented well enough for a trained manager to follow without relying on your memory?
3. Do you know what share of revenue comes from your largest customers, and can you explain any concentration risk?
4. Have you prepared three years of recast cash flow with supporting records for each adjustment?
5. Have you considered buyer financing requirements and organized the information a lender or financing professional may request?

**Score your answers:**

- **5/5:** Strong preparation foundation. It does not guarantee a sale or a particular price; it means key evidence is more readily available.
- **3–4/5:** There is useful work to complete before presenting the business to buyers.
- **0–2/5:** Preparation should come before a market launch. Start by organizing records and identifying owner-dependent operations.

A quiz is a screening exercise, not a valuation. The [“Is Your Business Ready to Sell?” eBook](https://dave-s-site-b554.thinkific.com/products/courses/is-your-business-ready-to-sell) is a $39 resource for examining readiness gaps in financial records, owner dependence, customer relationships, and transfer planning.

[![Cover of the Is Your Business Ready to Sell? eBook, a readiness resource for a Tampa Bay business seller preparing a confidential business sale and business valuation with a Florida business broker or Certified Business Intermediary.](https://cdn.marblism.com/WnqlL4l29JK.png)](https://dave-s-site-b554.thinkific.com/products/courses/is-your-business-ready-to-sell)

## Five Moves That Close the Gap

### 1. Reconcile three years of financials

Gather business tax returns, profit-and-loss statements, balance sheets, and bank statements for the last three years. Compare reported revenue with deposits and investigate differences. Label unusual expenses instead of assuming a buyer will recognize them as adjustments.

### 2. Document the work only you know

Write down recurring tasks, customer hand-offs, quoting practices, vendor relationships, scheduling routines, and approval steps. Identify who can perform each task today and where the owner remains the only source of knowledge. In an HVAC company in Hillsborough County or a service business in Pinellas County, the question is not whether the owner is skilled; it is whether critical work can transfer.

### 3. Measure and address customer concentration

List the top five customers by revenue share. Note contract terms, renewal dates, length of the relationship, and who manages the account. If a large customer depends on a personal relationship with the owner, document the broader service history and plan a careful transition. Do not conceal concentration; understand and explain it.

### 4. Recast earnings to defensible SDE

Prepare a schedule that starts with reported earnings and lists each proposed adjustment, amount, explanation, and supporting document. Separate clearly documented adjustments from estimates or expenses that may continue after closing. A buyer can evaluate a transparent schedule more effectively than a headline earnings claim.

### 5. Understand financing realities

The Q3 report says about **78% of buyers** were anticipated to use SBA financing and **86%** said financing pre-qualification mattered. The report also notes expanded SBA underwriting requirements effective October 1 and states that acquisitions priced at $3 million or more require an independent quality-of-earnings report under revised SBA rules. Because financing guidance can change and depend on transaction details, verify current requirements through [SBA.gov loan guidance](https://www.sba.gov/loans/) and with qualified financing professionals before relying on them.

## A one-page DIY seller checklist

Set aside time to complete this short exercise:

- **Top five customers:** Write each customer’s estimated share of revenue, contract status, renewal date, and primary relationship owner.
- **Owner-only processes:** List the tasks, decisions, and relationships that currently depend on you. Mark which ones are documented and who could take them over.
- **Financial records:** Gather the last three years of business tax returns, year-end financial statements, and corresponding bank statements.
- **Earnings adjustments:** Start a separate list of proposed add-backs. Record the amount, reason, and evidence for each one.
- **Financing readiness:** Identify any records or explanations a buyer or lender may need to understand the company’s earnings and operations.

The purpose is not to make the business look perfect. It is to see where the story is supported, where it needs clarification, and what should be improved before a confidential sale process begins.

For more structured education on business ownership and transactions, explore the resources at [LoboBusinessSales.com/learn](https://lobobusinesssales.com/learn). Owners who want an initial orientation can also use the **Lobo Business Value Estimator™**; it is a starting point for organizing information, not a market-based opinion of probable value.

## The takeaway: preparation gives buyers less to discount

The Q3 results do not promise that a prepared business will sell above asking. They do show why sellers should not treat asking price as a substitute for proof. Verifiable earnings, clean financials, documented operations, and reduced owner dependence allow buyers to assess the opportunity with fewer unanswered questions.

For owners in Tampa, Brandon, Wesley Chapel, Clearwater, St. Petersburg, Lakeland, or elsewhere in Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas, and Polk counties, the preparation work is the same: establish what the business earns, show how it operates, and make its risks understandable. Few businesses are fully prepared on day one. The important distinction is whether the gaps are identified and addressed before a buyer finds them.

### About Dave Britton, Certified Business Intermediary

[![Dave Britton, Certified Business Intermediary, with Lobo Business Sales LLC branding, supporting Tampa Bay business sellers preparing for a confidential business sale and business valuation.](https://cdn.marblism.com/3VjXJR_Tz5s.webp)](https://lobobusinesssales.com/)

## Your two-part next step

**1. Order a $1,500 Broker Price Opinion from Lobo Business Sales LLC** for a market-based opinion of probable value. The scope includes three years of recast cash-flow worksheets, recent comparable-business sales, relevant valuation multiples and adjustments, and a written opinion of probable market value. A Broker Price Opinion is not a certified appraisal, lending approval, legal or tax opinion, or guarantee of value. Formal business appraisals are separate services and may start at $4,000–$5,000 or more.  
**Destination:** Contact [Lobo Business Sales LLC](https://lobobusinesssales.com/welcome) to discuss the BPO process.

**2. Contact Lobo Business Sales LLC** to determine whether confidential sale representation is a fit. The qualifying threshold is at least **$200,000 in annual net earnings/SDE**.  
**Destination:** [LoboBusinessSales.com/welcome](https://lobobusinesssales.com/welcome)

Licensed Business Broker services provided by  
Dave Britton, Certified Business Intermediary (CBI)  
Lobo Business Sales LLC  
Member: BBF & IBBA  
Supporting small businesses throughout Tampa Bay  
Veteran-Owned Business.

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The following are areas where we assist small business owners:

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The following are some of the business sectors and types we service:

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