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Seven mistakes that cost owners money at sale

Overpricing, thin records, lease problems, breaking confidentiality and leaving tax too late. The seven mistakes that most often cost owners money at sale.

General information only, not financial, legal or taxation advice. Tony Pope holds Queensland Office of Fair Trading licence 4963575.

Free confidential market appraisal. No cost, no obligation, and no charge before or after we meet. Licensed by the Queensland Office of Fair Trading, licence 4963575. Member, Australian Institute of Business Brokers.

The short version

  • Overpricing does not test the market, it burns it. Buyers who pass on a listing rarely come back when the price drops.
  • Records that do not reconcile are the single most common cause of extended due diligence.
  • A short lease with no option is a genuine obstacle to finance, not a detail to sort out later.
  • Confidentiality breaks cost real money through staff resignations and customers hedging.
  • Asset sale versus share sale has significant tax consequences and belongs with your accountant early.
Article cover: The mistakes that cost the most
Article cover: The mistakes that cost the most

None of these are exotic. They are the ordinary mistakes, made repeatedly, and each one has a cost that is easy to quantify after the fact and easy to avoid beforehand.

Mistake 1: pricing on hope instead of evidence

Owners price on what they need, what a neighbour reportedly got, or what the business felt like at its best. Buyers price on evidence.

An overpriced listing does not test the market, it burns it. Interest is highest in the first four to eight weeks. Buyers who look and pass rarely come back when the price drops, and a listing that has been sitting invites the question of what is wrong with it.

Mistake 2: financial records that do not reconcile

If the financials, the accounting file and the bank do not agree, due diligence stops being verification and becomes investigation. Even where the cause is innocent, it costs weeks and it costs trust.

Mistake 3: treating a short lease as a detail

A buyer needs tenure for at least as long as their finance runs. Their lender applies that test independently and often more strictly. A lease with two years left and no option is an obstacle to funding, not a formality to sort out at settlement.

Mistake 4: telling staff, customers or suppliers too early

Staff who hear the business is for sale hear that their job is uncertain. The good ones, the ones with options, start looking. Customers hedge. Suppliers tighten terms.

None of it shows as a single event. It shows up in the numbers three months later, precisely when a buyer is examining them.

Mistake 5: leaving capital gains tax until a contract exists

Structure drives the tax outcome and structure is hard to change once a contract is on foot. Owners regularly discover the consequences after the point at which anything could be done about them.

Mistake 6: choosing asset sale or share sale without advice

The two are different transactions with different tax, liability and transfer consequences for both sides. Buyers usually have a preference. So should you, and it should be an informed one arrived at with your accountant rather than a default.

Mistake 7: going to market before the business is ready

Almost every other mistake here is a symptom of this one. Six to eighteen months of preparation is what separates a business that sells cleanly from one that sits, drifts and eventually sells for less to a buyer who sensed the fatigue.

Common questions

What is the biggest mistake owners make when selling?

Going to market unprepared. Almost every other mistake on the list is a symptom of it.

Does overpricing really matter if I can reduce later?

Yes. Interest is highest in the first four to eight weeks. A listing that sits and then drops signals that something is wrong with it.

Can lease problems stop a sale?

They can. A buyer needs tenure for at least as long as their finance runs, and their lender applies that test independently.

Keep reading

Article cover: a timeline with a cut-off marked near its endThe ATO stops taking credit cards on 30 November. What that does to your cash, and what a buyer reads into itAfter 30 November 2026 the tax office will not accept a credit card. Both sides of the argument, what it does to a business that paid its BAS on a card, and what a buyer's accountant sees.Article cover: stacked layers, three solid, one highlighted and one still only an outlineLaw, draft or promise. What is actually settled before you sellSix of this year's changes are settled, two are drafts and one is an election pledge. A plain ledger of what an owner can plan a sale around in October 2026, and what could still move.Article cover: a timeline with one date marked on itEvery business gets a tax value on 1 July 2027, whether it is sold or notThe capital gains tax changes are law. Assets held on 30 June 2027 are treated as sold and bought back at market value, and that figure divides how a later sale is taxed. What it means for an owner.Article cover: a gate with a bar across the top and loose pieces inside itThe non-compete bill now reaches into the sale contract. The clause to watchTreasury's draft bill bans more than employee non-competes. Your own restraint as a seller is left alone, but a promise between businesses not to recruit staff may not be. Both sides, and what to check.Article cover: a ledger with one line carrying more weight than the restThe card surcharge is gone. Where that cost went, and what it does to your earningsFrom 1 October 2026 a business cannot add a surcharge on eftpos, Visa or Mastercard. The RBA's case, the small business case, and how a buyer will read the year the surcharge stopped.Article cover: nine changes layered, three of them carrying weightNine things that changed for business owners this year, and which ones move your pricePayday super, a permanent write-off, a 4.75 per cent wage decision, four rate rises and a draft non-compete ban. A plain list of what actually landed in 2026, and which items a buyer prices.

All notes on selling a business  ·  All seller guides  ·  What is my business worth?

Check it yourself

Primary sources, none of them affiliated with me and none of them endorsing this site. Where anything here differs from an official source, the official source is right.

Live registerFair Trading Licensing RegisterSearch licence 4963575, or any other broker. Peak bodyAustralian Institute of Business BrokersThe national peak body, formed in 1989. GuidanceSelling, closing or leaving your businessBusiness Queensland’s own guidance. Tax officeSmall business CGT concessionsThe four concessions that decide what you keep. OmbudsmanWhen businesses change ownersWhat a transfer means for entitlements. RegisterASIC ConnectCompany status, officeholders and business names.

Links open on external government and industry websites. The full list sits on licensing, registers and official sources.

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