San Antonio · Valuation
Where can I obtain a pre-sale valuation for my San Antonio company?
The three kinds of pre-sale valuation available to a San Antonio owner, which one you need, and what to bring to get it.
By Michael D. Rubin, CEO & Founder · September 2026 · 767 words
You can obtain a pre-sale valuation for a San Antonio company from an M&A advisor, who gives an opinion of value based on what buyers pay, or from a credentialed appraiser, who produces a formal written valuation. MDR & Associates offers both routes: a free, confidential opinion of value as part of a discovery meeting, and a separate formal third-party valuation when you need one. Which you need depends on what the number is for.
Three kinds of valuation, three different jobs
An owner planning a sale usually needs the second option. A formal valuation is thorough, but it answers a slightly different question, namely what the company is worth under a defined standard, while a sale is decided by what buyers will actually pay when they compete. Some owners need both, for example when partners must agree a value before one of them sells.
| Option | What you get | Best used for |
|---|---|---|
| Online valuation snapshot | A quick, rough range from a few inputs | Deciding whether a sale is worth exploring |
| Advisor's opinion of value | A low-to-high range after review of three years of financials, based on what buyers pay | Deciding whether and when to sell, and setting expectations |
| Formal third-party valuation | A written report using accepted valuation methods | Partner buyouts, estate or gift planning, lenders, disputes |
What to have ready
Those expense lists feed the recast: the financial statements rewritten to show what the company earns for a new owner. The result, adjusted EBITDA, is the figure most buyers price from. EBITDA stands for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. Owners are often surprised that adjusted earnings run higher than their tax returns suggest, because returns are built to keep taxes low, not to show value.
- Three years of profit-and-loss statements and balance sheets, plus year-to-date figures
- Three years of business tax returns, which should reconcile to the financial statements
- A list of owner-related expenses run through the company, such as vehicles, family members on payroll or personal travel
- One-time costs, such as a lawsuit, a move or a major repair
- Revenue by customer, so concentration can be seen
- An equipment list, leases and any major contracts
Why value the company a year or two before selling
A valuation done early doubles as a to-do list. It shows which issues pull your price down, such as a single large customer, earnings that depend on you, or books that do not reconcile, while there is still time to fix them. Our pre-exit consulting covers the 12 to 24 months before a sale for exactly this reason.
It also protects you from the most common timing mistake: learning your company's value from the first buyer who calls. For a fuller explanation of the drivers behind the number, read what is my business worth.
What a valuation cannot tell you
Any valuation is an estimate made before buyers have looked. It cannot tell you which buyer will want your company most, how hard they will compete, or what terms they will offer. Two buyers can look at the same numbers and offer very different prices, because one of them sees savings or sales the other cannot. A strategic buyer, meaning a company in your industry, may pay more than an individual buyer for exactly that reason.
So treat a pre-sale valuation as a well-founded starting range, not a price tag. The final number is set when several qualified buyers make offers at the same time, and the terms attached to each offer matter as much as the headline figure.
Keeping the request private in San Antonio
Asking for a valuation is itself sensitive. You may not want your banker, staff or competitors to know you are thinking about selling, and in a business community where people know each other, questions travel. Our discovery meeting is confidential, and our advisors come to you, at your office after hours or somewhere discreet.
The San Antonio page explains how we work with owners there, and the San Antonio contact page is the direct way to set a meeting.
How MDR & Associates handles a pre-sale valuation
We review three years of financials, recast them and give you a low-to-high opinion of value, free and without obligation. We also tell you what would move the number and whether we believe we can sell the company for maximum value; if we don't, we say so. If you need a formal written report for partners, a lender or estate planning, our business valuation service provides one at a separate price. To see a first range in a few minutes, start with the free valuation snapshot.
Where this fitsSan Antonio business brokers and M&A advisors →