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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
What is Private Equity in the Independent Agency System?
In today’s insurance agent marketplace, the phrase “Private Equity” or PE is quite the buzz phrase. The mention of PE causes a wide range of reactions from agency owners. Some owners seek to sell their agencies to PE backed brokers and others are avoiding it like the plague. No matter where you fall on the […]
Navigating the Complexities of Insurance Agency Acquisitions: Insights from Industry Leaders
The landscape of agency acquisitions is as challenging as it is rewarding, requiring a delicate balance between strategic alignment, financial prudence, and cultural fit. IA Valuations’ CEO, Jeff Smith, and Director of Business Planning and Valuations, Craig Niess, led a conversation with industry experts Missy Kahl (Bickle Insurance), Vaughn Troyer (Hummel Group), and Rob Smith […]
The Ins and Outs of EBITDA and How to Leverage It
“I bought this book of business for two times 25 years ago; I was just going to do the same when I’m ready to retire.” This is one of the most common quips IA Valuations hears from the generation of agency owners getting ready to retire, and we fear it could leave much on the […]
Help! Our Community Just Suffered a CAT, How Will This Affect My Agency Value?
It’s still early in the year and your community was just ravished by another convective storm, tornado, wildfire, mass flooding, or another widespread CAT loss. This story is becoming all too familiar across the country as natural weather events are happening at a higher rate. Over the last five years, 2019-2023, the National Centers for […]
Three Ways Your Accounting Practices Affect the Value of Your Insurance Agency
In an all too common and unfortunate situation, agency principals are often suddenly forced to step away from their agency due to death or disability. In this unplanned and unexpected scenario, there is no “break-glass-in-case-of-emergency” option, and it can be incredibly disruptive for the ongoing agency operations. At this critical moment, the CSRs and producers […]
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 […]