“If I’m ready to sell my business, should I call my realtor?”
It’s a fair question—but the short answer is no, and here’s why. https://youtu.be/s9HkiHiiEB0
Realtors Sell Buildings, Not Businesses
Let’s look at the facts. Realtors specialize in real estate—they help people buy and sell property like homes, condos, office buildings, or commercial real estate. And while your business might include real estate, most don’t.
In fact, when I was a full-time business broker, I sold 36 businesses over three years—and only three of those included real estate. Most businesses are leased spaces, operated from laptops, or based out of people’s basements.
Yet time and time again, I talk to people who assume a real estate agent is the go-to pro for selling a business. So let’s break it down.
What Real Estate and Businesses Actually Have in Common (Hint: Not Much)
Here’s a simple comparison:
Real estate typically involves things like:
Land
Roofs
Walls
Foundations
Doors
Businesses, on the other hand, involve:
Employees
Receivables & payables
Inventory
Operational systems
Customer relationships
Totally different ball games. Selling a business isn’t about the structure—it’s about cash flow, intangibles, and risk. It’s part finance, part operations, part psychology.
So why the confusion?
The Licensing Problem: Where This Misunderstanding Comes From
I live in New Brunswick, Canada, where (believe it or not) business brokers are legally required to hold a real estate license. This comes from outdated laws that imagined every small business as a corner store with a storefront.
Because of this, a lot of real estate agents think they’re qualified to sell businesses just because they hold a license. They’re not. In fact, they often don’t know what they don’t know.
Let’s talk about the Dunning-Kruger Effect for a second.
The Confidence Curve: Why Some Realtors Think They Can Sell Businesses
The Dunning-Kruger Effect shows how people with low knowledge of a topic can often feel very confident, simply because they don’t realize how deep the subject goes.
So, your average home-selling real estate agent? High confidence, low actual understanding of business sales. I’ve had bankers call me in disbelief after seeing someone try to buy a convenience store using a home purchase agreement.
As they learn more, some of these agents realize how much they don’t know—and their confidence drops. That’s when a few of them either:
Step away and refer clients to professionals (good call), or
Level up their skills to become real business brokers (rare but respectable).
Who Should Help You Sell a Business?
✅ Business brokers specialize in valuing, marketing, and negotiating business sales.
✅ M&A advisors handle larger or more complex deals.
✅ In some cases, commercial realtors can be helpful—especially if real estate is a major component of the sale.
In fact, my best referral partners were commercial real estate agents—they understood enough to know business sales weren’t their game and would refer those clients to me.
What If Your Business Includes Real Estate?
Sometimes, a business owner wants to sell both the business and the building. Here’s how I’ve handled those situations:
Separate the two: Sell the business first, offer the building as optional (to lease or buy).
If the buyer wants just the business? Great.
If the buyer also wants the property? Bring in a commercial real estate agent.
Now you’ve sold the business and helped an investor acquire a leased property with a stable tenant—win-win.
Final Thoughts: Don’t Make the Mistake of Hiring the Wrong Pro
If you’re serious about selling your business, start with someone who understands businesses, not buildings. You wouldn’t call a dentist to fix your car—so why would you ask a realtor to sell your company?
Need help getting started?
📘 Check out my book How to Sell My Own Business
📄 Or grab my book: 12 Things to Do Before You Consider Selling Your Business
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Cheers, and see you next time!
David C. Barnett
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