When should I start exit planning?

Ideally three to ten years before you expect to sell. That's enough time to change the entity if needed, clean up the books, build a team that runs without you, and shape how the deal is taxed. Starting at the letter of intent still helps, but fewer options are left.

Can you tell me what my business is worth?

We can give you a planning range and explain what drives it, which is what the personal plan needs. A formal valuation comes from an appraiser, and we'll help you choose one when it's time.

What happens after the sale?

Your plan shifts from the business to the proceeds: investing them, managing the taxes, and funding the life you planned for. That part is what the rest of the firm is built for.

What is business succession planning, and do I need it if I’m not selling?

Succession planning decides who owns and runs the company next and how you get paid, whether that’s a sale to a third party, a transfer to family or employees, or a slow wind-down. In Missouri we see all three, and the tax and family questions differ for each. You need it before you need to sell; it’s the part of your plan we start first.

BELMONTPRIVATE WEALTH

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Business succession and exit planning for owners in St. Louis.

A sale is one event with three plans inside it: the business plan, the tax plan, and the life plan. Your deal team handles the first. We build the other two with you, and make sure all three agree.

Schedule a conversation How we help business owners

Timing

Start before you need to

The decisions that change what you keep from a sale are made years in advance: how the company is structured, how the deal is taxed, and when you sell. We'd rather start when a sale is a possibility than when a letter of intent is on the table, because that's when the options are still open.

What we work on

Six questions, answered in order

What is it worth?

A realistic planning range and what drives it, so the personal plan is built on a number you believe.

Is it structured to sell?

Entity type, owner compensation, and clean books can change the tax on a sale more than the price does.

How will the deal be taxed?

Asset or stock sale, installment payments, earn-outs, rollover equity. Each has a different tax bill and a different risk.

What does life look like after?

Income, lifestyle, and what you'll do with your time. The number you need depends on the answer.

Where do the proceeds go?

A plan for the money before the wire arrives: taxes set aside, debts cleared, the rest invested to your plan.

Who else is affected?

Family, key employees, a child who stays in the business. Gifting and succession planned alongside the deal.

Your side of the table

Who we work with on it

Your CPA, your attorney, and a transaction advisor or broker if you use one. We’re not the deal team. We’re the people on your side of the table, focused on your family’s outcome before, during, and long after the closing.

You don’t pay Belmont a commission or a success fee on the sale, and nothing we earn comes from the deal itself. If sale proceeds later become assets we manage, our published advisory fee applies to them, disclosed before you sign anything.

Three exits we see

Different buyers, different plans

Sale to a third party

The most money up front, usually, and the most tax to plan for. Structure and timing matter most here.

Sale to family or employees

Often paid over time, so the plan has to account for the buyer's ability to pay and your need for income.

Winding down

Some businesses are worth more to their owner than to a buyer. The plan is about drawing value out over the final years.

Common questions

What owners in St. Louis ask about selling

When should I start exit planning?: Ideally three to ten years before you expect to sell. That's enough time to change the entity if needed, clean up the books, build a team that runs without you, and shape how the deal is taxed. Starting at the letter of intent still helps, but fewer options are left.
Can you tell me what my business is worth?: We can give you a planning range and explain what drives it, which is what the personal plan needs. A formal valuation comes from an appraiser, and we'll help you choose one when it's time.
What happens after the sale?: Your plan shifts from the business to the proceeds: investing them, managing the taxes, and funding the life you planned for. That part is what the rest of the firm is built for.
What is business succession planning, and do I need it if I’m not selling?: Succession planning decides who owns and runs the company next and how you get paid, whether that’s a sale to a third party, a transfer to family or employees, or a slow wind-down. In Missouri we see all three, and the tax and family questions differ for each. You need it before you need to sell; it’s the part of your plan we start first.

Next step

Thinking about selling someday?

Someday is the right time to talk. We’ll tell you plainly where we’d start, and what it would cost.

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Thirty minutes with a founder. No homework.

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