The Independent Agency System Report Card – 2025 Evaluation
Do you remember when you were a kid and you’d get your report card? It created such buzz and anticipation with your classmates. The nervous energy was palpable as you prepped for opening the report card and thinking of how you were going to explain your school’s progress report to your parents. In this article, […]
How to Sell Your Insurance Agency
In today’s independent agency space, the increased frequency, size, and temptation of external sales are both inevitable and undeniable. IA Valuations, a DBA for the Ohio Insurance Agents Association (OIA), cares about seeing agency owners exit well, regardless of whether it is an internal or external sale. Good exits create good stories, which generates interest […]
Six Key Factors That Impact Insurance Agency Valuations
In the dynamic landscape of independent insurance agencies, understanding the many risk factors that influence agency valuation is crucial. These factors can significantly impact the value of an agency, whether it is being evaluated for internal perpetuation, external sale, or business planning purposes. In this article, we discuss six key factors that impact the valuation […]
Tax Implications and Guidelines for Independent Insurance Agencies – Part 2
As an independent insurance agency owner, understanding the tax implications of your business decision is critical, especially when considering a sale or transfer of ownership. The first article in this series examined the impacts of goodwill versus capital gains taxation, and how the tax implications can significantly affect the financial outcomes for both buyers and […]
The Quiet Reason Many Agents are Selling Their Agencies
How Stress and Burnout are Contributing to Agency Sales There are many factors why an agency owner sells their agency, including: retirement age, financial gain, and the 3-Ds (Divorce, Disability, and Death). However, the undocumented but growing reason that we are hearing about is stress and burnout. In many industries, including insurance, the pandemic gave […]
Three Keys to an Internal Perpetuation
“What if one of your account managers or producers won the lottery at lunch and didn’t come back that afternoon? How would the agency manage?” asked keynote speaker Kelly Donaue-Piro of Agency Performance Partners at IACON 2024, the annual conference for the Ohio Insurance Agents Association (OIA). Start with a series of questions. What is […]
Help! I’m Getting a Divorce and My Ex Wants Half of the Value of My Agency. How Will It Affect My Agency Value, and What Should I Do Next?
Life happens and you are getting a divorce. As you are negotiating the settlement terms, your spouse’s attorney is requesting the value of your insurance agency because it is subject to the division of assets 50/50. While your personal life is being turned upside down, it is not ideal that you may have to pay […]
Tax Implications and Guidelines for Independent Insurance Agencies – Part 1
As an independent insurance agency owner, understanding the tax implications of your business decisions is critical, especially when considering a sale or transfer of ownership. Taxes can significantly affect the financial outcomes for both buyers and sellers. This article will explore the tax considerations for independent insurance agencies, focusing on goodwill versus capital gains tax, […]
Navigating Private Equity in the Independent Agent System: Strategic Insights for Agency Owners
The world of independent insurance agencies is undergoing transformational change transformational change as private equity (PE) continues to reshape the industry landscape. In a recent discussion, experts Jeff Smith and Jarod Steed from IA Valuations, along with Dan Girardi from Keystone Agency Partners and James Parker from BroadStreet Partners, explored how private equity’s influence is […]
Help! A Key Carrier is Cancelling my Contract – How will it Affect my Agency Value?
You just got one of your least favorite notices: one of your key carrier partners has given you the dreaded 180-day written notice to terminate your agency agreement. Whatever the reason given, it likely does not matter because it is damaging to your business on so many levels. It will impact your relationship with your […]