What It Costs to Sell an Advisory Practice (and Why You Shouldn’t Pay It)

Most routes to selling a practice charge the seller at multiple points along the way — before, during, and at close. There’s a structural alternative: a buyer-paid model where the seller’s cost is zero at every step. Here’s the honest comparison.

The typical seller fee stack

• Paid valuations. Formal appraisal reports commonly run from the low four figures into five figures depending on depth and credentials — often required before a listing or financing.
• Listing and membership fees. Marketplaces and matching platforms typically charge subscriptions or listing fees just for visibility.
• Seller-side success fees. Brokered and banked processes commonly take a mid-single-digit to low-double-digit percentage of the transaction from the seller’s proceeds at close.
• Consulting retainers. Deal-support and succession consulting engagements frequently bill monthly regardless of outcome.

On a $3M practice sale, a seller-side success fee alone can be $150,000–$300,000 — before valuation and listing costs.

The buyer-paid alternative

In our model, buyAUM compensates us only if a transition is completed. Your valuation is free. The curated introductions are free. Deal support through close is free. There is no listing because there is no listing model — your practice is never publicly exposed.

“If buyers pay you, do you really work for me?”

Fair question — here’s the honest answer. Buyers pay because access to prepared, qualified, confidential sellers is worth paying for; that’s the service they’re buying. But nothing closes unless you say yes to the price, the structure, and the fit. A buyer-paid fee on a deal you refuse is worth exactly zero, which keeps everyone’s incentives pointed at the same outcome: a close you’re genuinely happy with. Compare that with a model that charges you for reports and listings whether you ever sell or not.

Your out-of-pocket with us, itemized

Valuation range: $0. Full underwriting: $0. Buyer introductions: $0. Negotiation and deal support: $0. Fee at close: $0 — the buyer carries it. Your only costs in the entire transaction are your own attorney and tax advisor, which you’d want in any process.