2024 State of Independent Insurance Agency Valuations – IA Valuations Webinar Recap
IA Valuations recently held a webinar discussing 2024 Independent Agency M&A Trends and Predictions. IA Valuations’ CEO, Jeff Smith, and Director of Business Planning and Valuations, Craig Niess, hosted three panelists: Mike Wagar from Westfield Bank, Dan Girardi from Keystone Agency Partners, and Rob Smith from Fideles Advisors. These panelists were selected due to their […]
The Resiliency of the Independent Insurance Agency System and How You Can Leverage It
Why has private equity fallen in love with the independent insurance agent? Many would be quick to tell you that the insurance broker and agent industry is steady. It weathers storms. Thus, private equity interest in this space has remained so high. While this sentiment is true, how do we know it’s true? How do […]
Help! I’m Buying My Dad’s Insurance Agency and It Has Not Been Updated in 35 Years
After much consideration, you’ve made the decision to purchase your father’s insurance agency. He’s been dreaming of this moment since you were a child; this day has felt inevitable for you since childhood. He always brought you into the office on the weekends, having you file papers, shovel snow, vacuum the floors, and had you […]
Help! I’m 65 and Want to Sell My Insurance Agency
The highly anticipated day has finally come: you are getting ready to retire. After spending 30+ years working in your insurance agency, you have made the difficult decision that it is time to sell the agency and step down. Hopefully, you have been running your business over the years as if you were going to […]
Is There an Optimal Age to Sell Your Insurance Agency?
It is hard to say, however, based on our analysis, we believe the optimal age is 58. Whether you are planning to perpetuate internally or sell externally, it is inevitable that you are going to sell your ownership at some point. In this article we explore whether there is an optimal age to transition ownership […]
The Importance of a Strong Balance Sheet
The value of a balance sheet is a key component in the calculation of agency value. We encourage our IA Valuations clients to bolster their balance sheets, not only to increase their agency value, but also for a myriad of reasons that will have both short-term and long-term impacts on the agency. Agency Reinvestment Agencies […]
Being in the Driver’s Seat
As an agency owner, when it comes time to sell your agency or internally perpetuate, you want to be in the driver’s seat during the process. Now, what exactly does “being in the driver’s seat” mean as an owner? Simply put, you are in control during the sale, you know your numbers, you’ve done the […]
Narrowly- Vs. Broadly-Held Stock Ownership and the Impact on Agency Value
We have found that many agencies are on one side of the spectrum or the other when it comes to stock ownership. Whether they operate with narrowly-held or broadly-held stock ownership can have quite the impact on their agency’s value. We hope to highlight the major differences between the two in this article. Narrowly-Held Stock […]
Red Flags that Weaken Agency Value
In the 200+ valuations that the IA Valuations team has performed, pinpointing and recognizing the red flags has become an essential step in the process to maximize an agency’s value. In general, agency owners are not aware of the internal factors that are stunting their growth and limiting overall value. In this article, we will […]
Has Your Agency Value Peaked?
Is this a question you have found yourself asking? If so, we will explore what to do next. First, let’s start with the evaluation process of determining whether your agency value has peaked. For me, this question arose when I was meeting with an agency owner that was sharing that they had made the decision […]