Most business sales take six to twelve months from start to finish. That is the range the major brokerage and advisory firms publish, and it is what Google's AI answer repeats. Our sell-side process is built to run shorter: a guaranteed offer within weeks, a signed letter of intent within 45 days, and close within 75 days of that letter. Here is where the months actually go, and what makes a sale slow.
Why Speed Matters in Selling Your Business
The traditional business sale process takes six to twelve months from engagement to close. That is the range Morgan and Westfield and Allegiance Capital both publish, and the figure Google’s AI answer gave when we checked it in September 2026. During that time, owner fatigue sets in, key employees sense the change and start updating their resumes, and market conditions can shift in ways that erode value. Every additional month on the market increases the probability that the deal falls apart or the seller accepts a lower price out of exhaustion.
At Lighthouse Capital Group, our sell-side practice has refined a 75-day close process that compresses the timeline without cutting corners on valuation, due diligence, or deal structure. The result is a faster exit at a higher price, with fewer sleepless nights for the business owner. Before any of that starts, it helps to know how much your business is worth and how buyers build that number.
If you have not yet decided who should run your sale, start with what a business broker and an M&A advisor each cost you. The full timeline, milestone by milestone, is on our sell-side page. The real dates from sixteen deals we closed are in how long business sales really take.
The Pre-Market Preparation Phase (Days 1-15)
The single greatest accelerator of a fast close is preparation. Most sellers come to market without clean financials, clear organizational charts, or documented customer contracts. These gaps do not kill a deal outright, but they create delays in due diligence that compound over weeks and months.
Our team spends the first 15 days building what we call the Deal-Ready Package. This includes normalized financial statements for the trailing three years, a management presentation deck, a summary of all material contracts and customer relationships, and a preliminary quality of earnings analysis. By front-loading this work, we eliminate the most common sources of delay later in the process.
We set out the five steps of running a sale, including the documents we ask every seller for first, in how to sell your business.
- Normalize financial statements and remove owner-specific expenses
- Document all customer contracts, with renewal dates and concentration analysis
- Prepare a management presentation that tells the growth story
- Conduct a preliminary quality of earnings review to surface any red flags
- Build a data room with organized folders and clear naming conventions
- Brief key employees who will participate in management meetings
The Targeted Outreach Phase (Days 16-45)
We do not list businesses on public marketplaces. Instead, we run a confidential, targeted process that reaches pre-qualified buyers who are actively looking for businesses that match the seller's profile. Our proprietary buyer database includes over 2,000 vetted acquirers — search funds, independent sponsors, family offices, and strategic buyers — organized by sector, geography, and deal size.
Within 20 days, we typically have 8-12 qualified buyers engaged and 3-5 indications of interest on the table. This competitive tension is the single most important driver of premium valuations. A seller negotiating with one buyer is at a structural disadvantage. A seller negotiating with five is in a position of strength.
The Close Phase (75 Days From the Letter of Intent)
Once a letter of intent is signed, the clock starts on confirmatory due diligence, legal documentation, and financing. This is where most deals stall. Buyers request additional information, sellers take days to respond, and attorneys negotiate contract language that has little economic significance.
We manage this phase with a detailed closing checklist and weekly milestone reviews. Our deal team maintains a shared project management dashboard with the buyer's team so that every open item is visible and accountable. When a due diligence question comes in at 2 PM, our goal is to have the answer delivered by 5 PM the same day.
The result is a closing process that moves with purpose and precision. Sellers retain their sanity, buyers gain confidence in the business, and both parties arrive at the closing table with a deal that reflects the true value of the enterprise.
What Sellers Should Do Today
If you are considering selling your business in the next 12 to 24 months, the most valuable thing you can do right now is start preparing. Clean up your financials. Document your processes. Reduce customer concentration where possible. And have a confidential conversation with an experienced sell-side advisor who can assess your readiness and identify any gaps that could slow down the process when the time comes.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to sell a business?
Most sales take six to twelve months from engagement to close. That is what the major brokerage and advisory firms publish, and what Google's AI answer repeated when we checked it in September 2026. Our own sell-side process is built to get a signed letter of intent by day 45 and close within 75 days of it.
What makes a business sale take longer?
Preparation gaps, almost always. Most sellers come to market without clean financials, clear organizational charts, or documented customer contracts. Those gaps do not kill a deal outright, but they create delays in due diligence that compound over weeks and months.
How long does due diligence take?
Confirmatory due diligence starts once a letter of intent is signed. In our process that phase runs up to 75 days from the signed letter of intent, alongside legal documentation and financing. It is the phase where most deals stall, usually because information requests sit unanswered for days at a time.
What happens if you miss the timeline?
If we do not deliver a signed letter of intent within 45 days, and close within 75 days of it, we cover our advisory costs.
How long should I prepare before going to market?
If you are considering selling in the next 12 to 24 months, start now. Clean up your financials, document your processes, and reduce customer concentration where you can. Our team builds a deal-ready package in the first 15 days, and the more of that work that already exists, the faster the rest of the process moves.
