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From first conversation to closing day — the full M&A process for buying or selling an insurance agency. Letters of intent, due diligence, carrier approvals, AMS transitions, staff retention, and post-close integration.
39 articles
How does rollover equity get taxed in an insurance agency sale? From tax-free vs. taxable rollovers to Section 1045 deferral and capital gains treatment.
Read Article →U.S. brokerage M&A delivered 241 deals through May 2026. Private capital drives 70% of deals. Here is who is buying and what multiples clear heading into Q3.
Read Article →A non-compete means nothing if the carrier won't release the appointment. Carrier consent is the real enforcement layer in agency sales. Here's why.
Read Article →Rollover equity in a consolidator deal means investing in a capital structure you do not control. Security class and waterfall position outweigh the percentage.
Read Article →Most insurance agency earnout structures look like 7x EBITDA on the LOI and pay out like 4x in practice. Here is the math buyers do not show you.
Read Article →PE-backed buyers drive 73 percent of insurance agency deals, and nearly all require rollover equity. Here is what the stake means and what to negotiate.
Read Article →Selling an insurance agency takes 4 to 8 months from valuation to close. Preparation before that adds months or more. This is the full stage-by-stage timeline.
Read Article →Insurance agency M&A creates hidden E&O risks that surface months after close. Swiss Re data confirms rising claims. A prevention framework for buyers and sellers.
Read Article →Q1 2026 OPTIS data: 148 agency M&A deals, the slowest first quarter since 2016. PE took 72 percent. What the bottoming trend means for agency sellers right now.
Read Article →Carrier consent is the written permission each carrier must grant before an appointment can transfer. How it works, what carriers evaluate, how to protect the deal.
Read Article →Seller negotiating power peaks at the LOI. Negotiate price, structure, exclusivity window, carrier-consent contingency, and non-compete before signing.
Read Article →Traditional agency M&A brokers charge 5-10 percent ($50K-$100K on a $1M sale). What you actually pay for, what brokers deliver, and better alternatives in 2026.
Read Article →Independent P&C agencies sell for 10 to 30 percent more than captive agencies. Ownership structure, carrier flexibility, and transfer ease drive the gap.
Read Article →Buyer's guide to acquiring a P&C insurance agency: financing options, due diligence checklist, retention analysis, carrier transfers, and common pitfalls to avoid.
Read Article →The complete guide to selling your P&C insurance agency: preparation, valuation, listing, buyer vetting, deal structuring, and transition. Updated for 2026.
Read Article →The real numbers behind starting an independent agency, with the cost lines that matter and the ones that surprise new owners six months in.
Read Article →Month-by-month State Farm to independent transition: months 1-3 research, 4-6 infrastructure, 7-9 transition window, 10-12 launch and first independent clients.
Read Article →What happens when an Allstate agent goes independent: the economic-interest buyout math, the life-insurance quota nobody warned you about, the real commission gap.
Read Article →How a veteran captive agent goes independent after ten years: the honest twelve-month timeline, the cash needed, and the non-compete reality nobody warns you about.
Read Article →Allstate restricts who you can sell to, when, and for how much. Here is what those carrier rules mean for your exit price and your transition timeline.
Read Article →633 deals in 2024, PE-backed buyers at 73.5 percent of all agency transactions. Here is what that buyer mix means for your agency's likely sale price and terms.
Read Article →What agency buyers actually evaluate: organic growth rate, retention above 90 percent, EBITDA margin, technology stack, client concentration, owner dependency.
Read Article →What to evaluate, what to pay, and what to watch for when buying an insurance book of business: retention, carrier mix, customer concentration, producer dependency.
Read Article →Due diligence on an agency purchase: 20 verifications across financials, retention, loss ratios, carrier relationships, and the walkaway list every buyer needs.
Read Article →A 95 percent retention rate and an 85 percent retention rate look similar on paper. The difference at closing is hundreds of thousands of dollars in agency value.
Read Article →Nobody talks about the integration chaos, the 6 AM client calls, or the carrier renegotiations. Here is what your first year as a new owner looks like.
Read Article →Timing the sale of your agency is worth hundreds of thousands. Here is how to know when the market favors you and which signals predict the next price ceiling.
Read Article →Selling to PE vs an independent buyer: PE pays higher multiples but loads earnouts. Independent buyers pay less but close cleaner with cash and full exit.
Read Article →Earnouts can add 30 to 40 percent to your sale price or leave you working for free for two years. Here is how to structure them so the upside is real.
Read Article →The difference between asset sale and stock sale tax treatment can be six figures on a $1M deal. Know the structure and the elections before you sign the LOI.
Read Article →Most failed agency sales die for preventable reasons. Here are the seven that kill deals most often, with the early warning signs and the fixes that save the close.
Read Article →Agency brokers charge 5-10 percent of the sale. When that fee is worth it ($5M+ deals, no time), when you can go direct, and how to negotiate if you hire one.
Read Article →The best exit starts a decade early. Here is the succession planning framework that maximizes your payout, protects your team, and keeps the agency intact post-sale.
Read Article →Morbid question, critical answer. Most agencies lose 30 to 50 percent of their value within 90 days of an owner death without a funded buy-sell agreement in place.
Read Article →Your agency management system is the backbone of your operation. Here is how to choose between EZLynx, HawkSoft, and Applied without regret or migration pain.
Read Article →Fast-growing agencies spend 10 to 15 percent of revenue on marketing. Most new agents spend 2 percent. Where the budget goes and the brand-recognition gap.
Read Article →The captive model is dying as carriers admit. Nationwide's transition to independent distribution is just the loudest example of an industry-wide shift.
Read Article →Big is getting bigger and PE is rolling up agencies at record pace. Here is what small independent owners need to know about positioning to survive or sell into it.
Read Article →How insurtech actually helps independent agents: AMS upgrades, quoting engines, AI underwriting, and the tech-stack premium buyers pay for. Real threat isn't tech.
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