Owners receiving offers are the least ready to sell

Here's the headline in this quarter's Exit Readiness Index:

21% of business owners received a written offer in the past year, almost double that of late 2024. But just 1% are prepared enough to command a premium valuation.

The result is a market where buyers circle more widely and pay no more for what they find.

For advisors, that gap is the opportunity. The owners most likely to get a knock on the door are the least prepared to answer it, and the advisor who starts that conversation first is the one who guides the sale.

The full Q2, 2026 report, drawn from our 14-year base of 75,738 businesses, breaks down readiness by industry, owner age, and deal size.

Download the full report

Advisor News is brought to you by The Value Builder System^TM , an exit-readiness platform that helps advisors start strategic conversations with business owners.