Appraising a privately held business is a different proposition.

Real estate appraisers can see, touch, and measure both their subject property and those comparable properties used to determine market value.

An operating business consists of both tangible and intangible assets, and every single business is unique. To appraise a coffee shop (not the building, the operation run out of the building), a business appraiser may look at transactions of other coffee shops; however, not all of them are a Starbucks located on a busy corner in downtown Seattle Washington.

The basic formula for valuing a business comes down to income divided by risk. It is elementary math; however, determining the variables themselves can be difficult. In fact, the Internal Revenue Service’ Revenue Ruling 59-60 states that determining the risk rate is one of the most challenging aspects of private business appraisal.

We can teach students how to calculate and support their conclusions. An appraiser needs to apply both common sense and judgment to data analytics to arrive at a value conclusion that makes sense.

Business Certified Appraiser (BCA)

To obtain the Business Certified Appraiser (BCA) designation, one must pass the written exam with a minimum score of 75%. Our training materials guide the student through the learning process with hands-on exercises and utilizing differentiated learning techniques.

Our training program combines recorded videos with external articles and live-instruction preceded by the student’s reading of assigned sections.

After the exam, a demonstration business appraisal report must be submitted for peer review. Upon successful completion of these tasks, the Business Certified Appraiser (BCA) designation is awarded.