How to sell a home care agency, step by step

Step 1: Decide what you want from a sale

Write down your goals before talking to anyone. Do you want all cash, or are you open to rollover equity? Do you want to stay on for a year, or leave at closing? Do you care whether your caregivers and office staff keep their jobs? Buyers structure offers around these answers, and knowing them lets you compare offers on more than price.

Step 2: Get your financials buyer ready

Buyers want at least two full years of financial statements plus year to date results, ideally on an accrual basis and reconciled to tax returns. Separate personal expenses, one time costs, and owner compensation so a buyer can see what the agency earns on its own.

Monthly P&L

24 to 36 months, with revenue split by payer and service line.

Addback schedule

Each adjustment to EBITDA listed with the evidence behind it.

Payroll data

Caregiver wages, overtime, and turnover by month.

Step 3: Document the metrics buyers underwrite

Home care buyers look past revenue to billable hours per week, average bill rate and pay rate by payer, caregiver fill rate, client retention, and referral source concentration. Having these ready shortens diligence and signals a well run agency.

Step 4: Choose how you will reach buyers

Owners typically sell to an inbound buyer who approached them, hire a broker who markets the agency, or use a buy-side introduction to several screened acquirers. Each route trades off price discovery, confidentiality, and cost. Talking to more than one qualified buyer is the most reliable way to test price and terms.

Step 5: Compare letters of intent

A letter of intent sets the headline price, the cash at close, any rollover or earnout, the working capital target, exclusivity period, and your post closing role. Compare offers on cash you actually receive at closing, not on headline value.

Step 6: Diligence, licensing, and closing

During exclusivity the buyer reviews financials, payer contracts, caregiver files, compliance history, and litigation. In parallel your attorney handles state licensing, Medicaid provider enrollment, and change of ownership notices, which can set the timeline. The purchase agreement, escrow, and transition plan are then signed at closing.

Illustrative example: comparing two offers

Headline price rarely tells you which offer is better. Compare the cash you receive at closing and the risk attached to the rest.

Pre-sale preparation checklist

Work through these items before speaking with buyers.

How Lartico fits in

Lartico introduces home care owners to screened acquirers already looking for agencies like theirs. You send your details, we return a list of qualified buyers, and you choose who to speak with. The buyer pays our fee.