Business Valuation Baltimore Maryland
How are Baltimore, MD Businesses Valued?
Have you ever assessed the value of your Baltimore business? Assessing the value of your Baltimore business can be more complicated than just working out the value of its assets. The value of a business means different things to different people, but there are some core principles of business valuation that can help you get the right valuation done for your Baltimore business. If this sounds technical, don’t worry. At Redwood Valuation, we built our foundation on years of experience that we leverage to assist our customers seeking business valuations.
409A Valuation in Baltimore, MD plus IRC 409A Valuation, and Purchase Price Allocation.
Call Redwood Valuation Partners for your next business valuation (206) 660-1295
Top Reasons to Seek a Business Valuation
There are a myriad of reasons to get your business valued, but perhaps the most obvious one is in order to see how much it will sell for. Don’t try to go into business negotiations about selling a business before you’ve gotten a valuation from a skilled accountant who’s an expert in the field.
A business valuation can also help show you where your business’ value comes from. Teasing out all the reasons a business is valuable is complicated, though. A business that is important for a particular city, such as Baltimore, may have high value there, but not elsewhere. In contrast, a business that seems modest and small may actually hold a lot of value for a buyer. It all depends on your perspective.
It’s imperative, then, that your business valuation is handled by professionals. Getting your business valued requires knowledge of finance, tax law, venture capital and the audit process, as well as of your business. If you are interested in stock compensation, expenses or selling price, you will see a lot of benefits from a well-done business valuation. However, any advantages of doing a valuation are up to you and your business. If you need help determining if a business valuation is right for your circumstances, get a free consultation from Redwood.
Approaches to Business Valuation
There are three main approaches to business valuation that an accountant or business valuator will use. These three approaches are not the only possible ways of looking at a business’s value, however. No matter where your business is located, these methods can help you find your business’s value. The best approach for your business depends on your reason for getting a valuation and your long-term goals for your company.
Asset-Based Approach
Finding the value of a business based on its assets isn’t as straightforward as it sounds. The aim of an asset-based approach is to total the investments of a business. One way to go about looking at a business’s assets is by figuring out how much it would cost to set up a brand new business that mimics the existing one. This reveals what that original business is worth (what kinds of assets it has) and what liabilities it has. The next step involves balancing the assets and liabilities in order to calculate how much value the business holds.
Don’t be fooled by how simple this approach seems at first glance. In practice, determining which assets and liabilities to include, and how, is a tricky process. A going concern asset-based approach or a liquidation asset-based approach will help you move forward with this appraisal.
One method is to look at assets with a going concern. The accountant looks at the company’s net balance sheet to find the value of its assets and then deducts the value of its liabilities. In a liquidation-focused approach to valuation, it is important to imagine the business is liquidated before determining its value. After a real liquidation, the business would receive cash; this now becomes the business’s value in a valuation.
Choosing an asset-focused method of business valuation may be right for your business. Asset-based approaches are not appropriate for all businesses. As one example, a business that is owned in the name of a single person, a sole proprietorship, should be advised not to take this approach. A corporation, however, could find value in an assessment that is asset-based, as its assets are owned by the entire company and not one person.
Looking at the Market
Sometimes it is important to take in the whole picture, meaning the entire market, and not just your one business. For example, you could compare your business to others located in Baltimore. Viewing your business side-by-side with other, similar ventures can provide crucial information for figuring out the value of a business.
The advantage of this approach is that it looks more comprehensively at the overall business climate for your particular field. Some important considerations for this approach include the current fair market value of similar businesses and what price buyers are paying right now for businesses like yours.
This approach encounters difficulties in that often other businesses are not eager to share their worth with competitors. Non-competition clauses and private information can hinder this approach, making it difficult or potentially even impossible to get the information necessary for this type of valuation.
Looking at Income or Earnings
The difference between an income or earnings-focused approach and other approaches is that this means of valuation is concerned with the future. However, this method starts in the present, looking at the earnings of the business today to try to predict its future earnings.
Obviously, this invites an element of risk in that the accountant or valuator is attempting to determine value based on a predication. There is, however, reliable data to back up the value assessment made through this method. Often, a valuator will “normalize” current earnings, removing abnormal costs and windfalls, to try to get a reliable set of figures to work with. The market itself can produce spikes and dips that require an additional capitalization factor to be figured into the assessment.
Again, sole proprietorship and the exact style of business can impact the ultimate valuation here. How customers view a business is a factor that is not captured in income figures or market values but that can impact a business’s value.
What Kinds of Valuations Exist?
Not all valuations are the same and not all valuations are confined strictly to businesses. There are other value assessments that serve difficult purposes. Someone with a patent, for example, may also seek a valuation of their property.
Getting a 409A Valuation
A 409A valuation looks at stock as it relates to the value of your business. It is common for employees in many fields to receive stocks as compensation. When compensation comes in the form of stocks like this it is considered a special type of deferred payment that has to be reported.
It’s not as confusing as it seems. What it comes down to is stock options. A benefit of this form of business valuation is that it can determine a company’s fair market value. The fair market value determined by this valuation is a benchmark at or above which employees given stock must be able to sell. In addition to stock, a 409A valuation is required if your company issues bonus plans, salary deferral arrangements, and other agreements involving deferred compensation for employees.
Often, you will know you need this type of valuation because it will be legally required of your business. Even if you have gotten a 409A valuation in the past for your business, the law could require that you get another one each year or every time a new round of funding closes.
While you can do a 409A valuation yourself, a skilled accountant can guide you through the process with expertise to make sure you don’t hit any bumps along the way. Experience and expertise are key benefits that only an accountant can offer if you have to work through a 409A valuation.
Business Valuations/Looking at Business Valuations
Some of the reasons for a business valuation include things such as entity discussions and business negotiations, but they are also useful while planning a business or estate. Maybe you are wondering how much your business can sell for right now. Others desire a business valuation when researching things such as tax liability.
Whatever the reason, a skilled valuator can help you get equity and enterprise valuations. As our clients have expanded, so has Redwood, increasing the size and expertise of our team. With years of experience and a comprehensive team, we are prepared to take on a host of business valuation needs. Business valuation could include tax or financial reporting, assessment of fair market value, or for purchase price allocations.
It takes an experienced team to understand the intricacies of business and finance, as well as IRS regulations. A valuation is an added complexity on top of keeping your business running, so allow our accountants to handle valuations for you.
IP and Patent Valuations
Finding the value of intellectual property and patents is a specialized field. Most businesses do have some sort of intangible property that want to protect and valuate, though. IP and patents are always under threat from competing trademarks and leaked trade secrets, as well as tax concerns. Litigation, mergers, acquisitions and business planning provide additional cause for an IP and patent valuation.
Make sure your patent or intellectual property is protected by understanding what it’s worth on the market. It is sometimes complicated to find the value of these intangible assets. Despite the difficulty, IP and patents are extremely valuable assets that every business should seek to protect as well as they can.
Purchase Price Allocations (ASC 805)
Another requirement businesses encounter is ASC 805. This requirement relates to the acquisition of businesses and includes determining the fair market value of the transaction consideration, intangible assets, liabilities, and certain tangible assets as of the date of acquisition. The purchase price is the crucial outcome of such an evaluation of a business.
This type of business valuation looks at all the different parts of a business to determine its value. It is not always the case that a business is sold as one whole entity; it may be sold in smaller pieces.
What’s the Bottom Line?
Here at Redwood Valuation Partners, you will find the expertise you need for your valuation. Ensure that your Baltimore business meets the requirements of the tax code and applicable regulations while finding the value of the assets, liabilities, and intellectual property you hold.
Knowing the fair market value of your business can help your future. This may be because you intend to sell your company or because you want to stay in compliance with 409A. You also could seek a business valuation in order to protect a patent. Assets and liabilities are complicated. Get experts on your side who know how to cut through the complicated legal language to get you the information you need. Whether it’s finance, tax issues, or business, our accountants are prepared to navigate the technicalities with you.
One of our core values is teamwork, which we believe can help even in the complex world of venture capital and auditing. Our team consists of experts who have worked in their specialties for years. We understand that many of our clients come from high-pressure startups and growth-focused companies with tight deadlines. We let you get to the important work of running your business while we take care of the intricacies of business valuation.
Whatever your reason for getting a business valuation, we can offer client focus, experience, and expertise that can make the process as easy as possible for you. We go beyond the standard valuation to offer a free consultation, as well as audit defense and customized reports. We will even help you get started if you aren’t sure. Take a deeper look at your business with the customized report we provide as part of our valuations. See both subjective and objective elements of your valuation with an in-depth look at your business. Plus, you can take one less burden off your plate with an audit defense that guarantees audit defense at any time without high additional costs.
In the end, if you need a business valuation, you will likely need help with that valuation. Get Redwood’s experienced team to assist you as you work through a business valuation for any reason. Find out how to get started with a consultation.
Our clients have direct access to Redwood’s managing partners and directors. You know your business better than anyone and the valuation process includes subjective assessments that require your input. We guide you through this process, save you time, and allow you to focus on what matters – growing your business. Get a quality company appraisal in Baltimore, MD.
The Redwood team has performed many IRC 409A Valuation Seattle engagements, and we offer a wide variety of business appraisals to Seattle. Other services include ASC 805 valuation (purchase price allocations), IP valuation, patent valuation, impairment valuation, carried interest valuation, portfolio valuations, IRC 382 valuations, and many other types of stock valuations and business valuations.
With over 50 years of combined valuation experience, we provide top-tier expertise and client service at a reasonable price. Our experience as CFOs and Controllers of venture firms and startups separates us from our competitors who lack the boots-on-the-ground experience that our clients have, which we also share.
If you plan to issue stock options in the next twelve months or have any questions about potential valuations, give us a call for a free consultation and we will give you candid advice about whether a valuation may be needed and how we might help. Our goal is to help our clients achieve their desired goals with minimal burden.
409A Valuation Baltimore
Redwood Valuation Partners was formed behind an idea of service positioning us as one of the most well-respected companies in the industry. Our expert knowledge of finance, tax, venture capital, and the audit process helps us understand the difficulties of start-ups. We speak your language! Give us a call and learn how we can help. For information on Business Valuations follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook and find us on Google+ too! (206) 660-1295
