Five types of businesses currently selling well: REIV's Colleen Danaher

The market for the sale and purchase of a business lacks the easy-to-access metrics of the residential housing market.

There are no median prices and nor are there any clearance rates. As a result, trends can really only be found through the people buying and selling businesses: the business brokers themselves.

The REIV Business Broking Chapter contains a wealth of just this sort of knowledge. Its members know what will sell, what won’t and how best to prepare your business for sale.

After studying the trends in their business they have highlighted five types of businesses that are currently finding buyers.

• Service-based businesses suitable for white-collar professionals.

This reflects the broader trend towards service-based industries in the Victorian economy and is an attractive business type as the established cliental is readily transferrable with the sale. Brokers find this sort of business is in reasonable demand because of the guaranteed income.

• Manufacturing businesses with niche products

It is no secret that broad-based manufacturing does not hold the place in the local economy that it did a few decades ago, but that does not mean there is no future in the market. Rather the focus has shifted to business based around specialised products, often with small production runs. These businesses are able to compete because of the unique nature of their product and they don’t face the cost based pressures from the high Australian dollar and related costs.

• Industrial businesses that provide a service to other industries

As businesses look to find ways to reduce fixed overheads in the face of competitive pressures they often outsource functions that are uneconomic to provide due their specialised nature or irregular need. This has created a niche business of industrial service businesses.

• Micro businesses that can provide a second family income

Families looking for a way to increase the household income have two choices, finding further waged employment or running their own, small, business. This has created a demand for very small business that can be run from a home office. This trend has been boosted by the Internet which allows a world-wide audience and simplifies the process of selling.

• Businesses involved in health and aged care

Australians are spending increasingly large amounts on health and aged care as our population ages. This creates an ongoing and strong demand for services in the sector. Not surprisingly the businesses that operate in the sector are also in high demand and according to REIV business brokers also readily find buyers.

To find an REIV Business Broker visit https://www.reiv.com.au/Members/Agency-Search.