Re: going rate for purchase of alarm accounts?

[Charlie <xalarmguy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Robert L Bass wrote:
>>Is anyone who has bought or sold monitoring accounts recently willing to
>>disclose what multiplier for their monthly rates was used to establish
>>the value of the accounts?
>>
>>I've still got a few accounts I'm considering selling & need to know
>>what a 'fair' figure would be. The accounts pay only for monitoring; no
>>service contract is included in the monitoring fee.
>
>
> Most of my accounts were on annual contracts.  Most were also
> long-term customers.  I got 36 multiple.  We billed annually in
> advance so that reduced the payout by roughly 6 multiple since
> we'd already received payment from the clients.
>
> If I'd wanted to hold out I suppose I could have gotten more but
> I sold the business during my divorce and really just wanted to
> get it done.  One guy I know who had 3-year recurring contracts
> was able to get 42 months less prepayments.
>
> One of the issues will be the strength and assignability of your
> contracts.  Another consideration will be the time you've held
> them.  Longer is better, obviously.  The types of hardware,
> service obligations, etc., can all come into play.
>
> You might also want to chat with one of the companies that
> specialize in handling sales of alarm accounts to get an idea
> what they think your accounts are worth.
>
> Good luck.
>
> --
>
> Regards,
> Robert L Bass
>
> Bass Burglar Alarms
> The Online DIY Store
> http://www.BassBurglarAlarms.com
>
>
>
Hmmm...I've been out of active work in the alarm business since around
'94 (all these accounts are at least that old); how do I contact these
brokers?

The 1st offer I got was waaay less than what you mentioned so I figured
it was worth asking here.


I'm grateful for the help.

Charlie