Why That $350K Practice Isn't Worth What You Think

Why That $350K Practice Isn't Worth What You Think

From Federal Tax Updates by Roger Harris, EA and Annie Schwab, CPA

December 15, 2025 · 1h 3m · Episode 66

About this episode

Andres Costa and Emily Goodman discuss their acquisition strategy for accounting practices and the realities of practice valuations.

Andres Costa and Emily Goodman have acquired four accounting practices since 2021, expanding from a single location to five offices with a team of ten. They break down their acquisition strategy, from finding deals and structuring payment terms to handling employee transitions and raising client fees. Roger and Annie dig into the hard realities of practice valuations, including why a $350,000 firm might only be worth $200,000 and what sellers need to fix before they can command top dollar Sponsors Padgett - Contact Padgett or Email Jeff Phillips Get NASBA Approved CPE or IRS Approved CE Launch the course on EarmarkCPE to get free CPE/CE for listening to this episode. Chapters (00:00) - Introduction and Greetings (00:52) - Meet the Special Guests: Andre and Emily (01:55) - The Importance of Acquiring Firms (02:46) - Starting the Acquisition Journey (07:11) - First Acquisition Experiences (13:16) - Evaluating Potential Firms (26:20) - Maintaining and Scaling Operations (33:22) - Structuring Acquisition Deals (33:59) - Client Retention Strategies (35:18) - Evaluating Firm Value (37:03) - Challenges with Small Firms (40:15) - Owner Financing Benefits (48:17) - Raising Client Fees…

People in this episode

Hosts: Roger Harris, Annie Schwab

Guests: Andres Costa, Emily Goodman

Topics covered

  • accounting practices
  • acquisition strategy
  • practice valuation
  • client retention
  • employee transition

Keywords

  • accounting
  • acquisition
  • valuation
  • client fees
  • employee transition

Sponsors

Padgett

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