15 Things Buyers Wish Business Brokers Did Better

I recently came across this list shared by Jim Frey, SVP – Business Development Officer at Gulf Coast Small Business Lending and I found it particularly relevant to the work we do at J&E Business Group. Jim has graciously given me permission to reference and share his list.

As a business broker, this list motivates me to continually raise the bar for how we serve buyers and sellers. Our Business Brokers aim to be responsive and communicative throughout the process. We want to provide strong, well-supported valuations, address potential issues early, provide creative solutions when challenges arise, and add as much value as possible to all parties involved.

Buying or selling a business is a significant financial and personal decision. While no transaction is without challenges, I believe a good broker should help reduce unnecessary surprises, facilitate honest conversations, and keep the process moving forward. Our job isn't simply to find a buyer and leave the parties to figure out the rest. We walk both buyers and sellers through the process, help them understand what comes next, address issues as they arise, and work toward solutions that make sense for both sides. Our goal isn't simply to get a deal to the closing table—it is to help create a transaction that makes sense for everyone involved.

With that in mind, Jim's list is worth sharing. Based on industry sources, buyer discussions, and acquisition professionals, he ranks the top buyer complaints roughly as follows:

1. "The broker won't give me enough information."

This is probably the biggest complaint. Buyers receive a teaser or CIM showing revenue, EBITDA/SDE and an asking price, but can't get detailed P&Ls, tax returns, balance sheets, customer concentration, payroll information, lease details, working-capital requirements or explanations of add-backs. Some brokers want an LOI before releasing information the buyer believes is necessary just to determine whether an LOI makes sense. IBA Business Brokers

2. "The asking price isn't supported by the financials."

Buyers become frustrated when they believe the broker has accepted an unrealistic seller valuation simply to obtain the listing. The business might be marketed at $3 million while the buyer concludes that normalized cash flow supports something closer to $2 million. IBA specifically identifies improperly valued businesses and unrealistic seller expectations as a major source of failed negotiations. IBA Business Brokers

3. "The add-backs are too aggressive."

This is especially common in SBA-financed acquisitions. Buyers see an advertised SDE or adjusted EBITDA number and then discover adjustments for questionable personal expenses, family payroll, one-time expenses that seem recurring, "potential" savings, or expenses that the buyer will actually have to continue paying. Forbes identifies questionable add-backs as one of the recurring complaints buyers have about business brokers. Forbes

4. "The broker is pushing me to make an offer too quickly."

The buyer may feel pressured to submit an LOI, earnest-money deposit or indication of interest before receiving sufficient information. This creates a chicken-and-egg problem: "Give us an offer and we'll give you the information," while the buyer responds, "How can I make a reasonable offer without the information?" This friction appears repeatedly in buyer discussions. Reddit

5. "The broker doesn't respond."

Slow responses to emails, phone calls and requests for financial information are a surprisingly common complaint. Serious buyers become especially frustrated when they have financing lined up, have signed the NDA and supplied financial information, but then wait days or weeks for answers. One brokerage describing its acquisition-representation experience specifically identifies unreturned calls and emails as a recurring industry problem. IBA Business Brokers

6. "The broker is selling the dream instead of explaining the business."

Buyers sometimes feel that weaknesses are minimized while upside is emphasized: "huge growth opportunity," "owner barely works," "easy expansion," "turnkey operation," etc. Buyers generally want to understand historical performance and actual risks, not merely the seller's vision of what the company could become. That distinction becomes even more important when bank or SBA financing depends heavily on demonstrated historical cash flow.

7. "I didn't realize the broker wasn't representing me."

This is a major expectation problem. A first-time buyer may spend months communicating with the broker, asking questions and receiving guidance, and gradually start treating that broker as an advisor. But the listing broker's client is generally the seller. The IBBA explicitly tells buyers that most intermediaries represent the seller and that buyers should have experienced counsel representing their interests. IBBA

8. "Problems weren't disclosed early enough."

The buyer gets deep into due diligence and suddenly discovers customer concentration, declining sales, expiring contracts, employee problems, licensing issues, landlord problems, deferred equipment maintenance, litigation or another significant issue. Buyers frequently say, "If you had told me this 60 days ago, I could have evaluated it then." Due diligence exists precisely because buyers need to confirm that the business is actually what it was represented to be. IBBA

9. "The broker doesn't understand financing, especially SBA financing."

This is one I suspect you encounter frequently. A broker may negotiate a structure that sounds great commercially but doesn't work with the lender. Examples include unsupported cash flow, problematic seller-note terms, insufficient equity injection, unrealistic working capital, ineligible deal structures, unacceptable seller involvement or an acquisition price that simply isn't supported by debt service.

That can waste weeks or months before someone finally asks the lender: "Will SBA actually finance this structure?"

10. "The broker creates an artificial sense of competition."

Buyers sometimes feel they're constantly being told, "We have several other buyers," "another LOI is coming," or "You need to improve your offer today." Sometimes that's absolutely true. But when buyers perceive it as a negotiating tactic rather than genuine competition, trust evaporates quickly. Reports of perceived "phantom buyers" also appear among recurring broker complaints. Ryan Reiffert, PLLC.

11. "The CIM doesn't match reality."

Revenue might be technically correct, but the trend isn't clearly presented. EBITDA may require significant normalization. An owner may be described as absentee when he actually works 45 hours per week. A "management team in place" may really mean one key employee who is critical to operations. Buyers dislike discovering that the marketing package painted with a much brighter brush than the underlying business warrants.

12. "The broker doesn't understand the business."

Sophisticated buyers quickly become frustrated when the broker cannot answer relatively basic questions about the company's customers, revenue model, margins, employees, competition, equipment, owner responsibilities or industry dynamics.

13. "Nobody explained the acquisition process."

First-time buyers often don't know what happens after the NDA: CIM → management call → lender review → LOI → due diligence → purchase agreement → financing → closing. A good intermediary manages that journey. The IBBA itself emphasizes buyer preparation, acquisition criteria, financing, advisors, contingencies and due diligence as important components of becoming a serious buyer. IBBA

14. "The broker is trying to protect the deal instead of solve the problem."

Once everyone has invested several months in a transaction, buyers sometimes perceive resistance whenever they raise a legitimate concern. Instead of "Let's investigate this," the response feels like "Don't blow up the deal." That's where a broker can lose credibility.

15. "The broker disappears once we're under LOI."

Ironically, this is when an experienced broker can add enormous value: keeping seller, buyer, attorneys, accountants and lender moving in the same direction; obtaining missing documents; managing expectations; helping resolve due-diligence issues; and preventing small disagreements from becoming deal killers. Industry training from the IBBA emphasizes consistent communication and the broker's role in navigating due diligence, financing, attorneys, leases, closing and post-closing issues. IBBA

The Takeaway

There is a lot that can go wrong in a business acquisition, and not every challenge can be prevented. But many of the frustrations on this list can be addressed through preparation, communication, transparency and experienced guidance.

At J&E Business Group, we believe the broker's role goes far beyond putting a business on the market and finding someone willing to buy it. We're there to help guide the transaction from valuation through closing—and to help both sides navigate the challenges that inevitably come with a transaction of this size.

A successful transaction isn't simply one where the paperwork gets signed. It's one where the buyer understands what they're buying, the seller feels confident in the outcome, and both parties have been treated fairly throughout the process.

That's the standard we're continually working toward at J&E Business Group.