What to Have Ready Before Your Free Business Valuation

Quick answer: To complete an accurate free business valuation you need your last three years of business tax returns, a current year profit and loss statement, your owner compensation by year, and basic details about your lease, debt, inventory, and staffing. Gathering those takes most owners about ten minutes, and the questionnaire itself takes another fifteen.

The short checklist

1. Business tax returns for the last three years
2. A current year profit and loss statement through last month
3. Owner compensation for each of the three years, including W-2 wages and distributions
4. Depreciation, amortization, and interest for each year
5. Your lease: expiration date, renewal options, and monthly rent
6. Business debt: equipment loans, lines of credit, and any UCC filings
7. Inventory value at cost and the estimated value of your equipment and vehicles
8. Employee count, and whether you have a manager running daily operations
9. Your largest customer as a percentage of revenue
10. Roughly how many hours per week you personally work in the business

Where to find each figure

If you file Form 1120S (S corporation): Gross revenue is line 1c. Net profit is line 21, ordinary business income. Officer compensation is line 7. Depreciation is line 14. Interest is line 13.

If you file Form 1065 (partnership or multi member LLC): Gross revenue is line 1c. Net profit is line 22. Guaranteed payments to partners are line 10. Depreciation is line 16c. Interest is line 15.

If you file Form 1120 (C corporation): Gross revenue is line 1c. Net profit is line 28. Officer compensation is line 12. Depreciation is line 20. Interest is line 18.

If you file Schedule C (sole proprietor): Gross revenue is line 7. Net profit is line 31. Your compensation is the net profit itself, so there is no separate salary line. Depreciation is line 13. Interest is lines 16a and 16b.

Your accountant can pull all of these in a few minutes if you would rather not hunt for them.

Multiple locations

If you operate more than one location, have revenue by location available. A single consolidated figure still produces a valid valuation, but a per location breakdown lets the analysis show which sites carry the business and flag lease risk at each one. Buyers ask this question early, so it is worth having ready.

Why accuracy matters more than speed

The analysis is only as good as the figures entered. Two common mistakes distort results badly. The first is entering revenue where net profit belongs, which inflates earnings and produces a value that no buyer would honor. The second is omitting owner compensation, which understates your earnings and undervalues your business. Take the extra five minutes to get both right.

What happens after you submit

You get the full report immediately on screen, and a copy arrives by email. It includes your estimated value range, owner earnings calculated year by year, the industry multiple applied, a value driver scorecard, add backs, SBA financeability notes, and practical steps to raise your value. You can print it or save it as a PDF.

Everything you enter is confidential. Nothing is shared, and no business is ever listed or discussed publicly without the owner''s written direction.

Start when you are ready

Begin your Complimentary Business Analysis at usbizsales.com/in-depth-valuation. If you would rather walk through it with someone, call Jennifer Franco at 702-848-4663 and she will go through it with you.