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What a business broker does, and how to choose one

By , founder of SignetryLast reviewed

General information, not financial, tax or legal advice. A lawyer should check whether the agency agreement is fair to sign.

A business broker lists a business for sale, markets it, screens and qualifies buyers, helps negotiate price and terms, and coordinates with the lawyers and accountants who draft and settle the deal. Choosing one comes down to three things: whether they are licensed to do the work in your state, whether they have handled sales like yours before, and what the agency agreement actually commits them to. This page names no firms. What a broker charges for this is covered on how business brokers get paid.

What a business broker actually does

A broker's job runs from listing to settlement:

  • Values the business informally, as a starting point for an asking price. This is distinct from a formal valuation (see business valuers for when you need one).
  • Prepares marketing material, usually an information memorandum, and often does not disclose the business's identity to the general public.
  • Screens enquiries, has interested buyers sign a confidentiality agreement, and qualifies them financially before sharing detail.
  • Manages negotiation between buyer and seller.
  • Works alongside your accountant and lawyer through due diligence and contract, without replacing either.

A broker is not a lawyer, an accountant, a lender or a party to the sale contract. Their job is to find and manage a buyer, not to give tax or legal advice.

Licensing varies by state

The rules differ by state and territory.

  • New South Wales: you need a real estate agent licence, or a licence restricted to business agent functions, issued by NSW Fair Trading1.
  • Victoria: estate agents are licensed under the Estate Agents Act 1980, and Consumer Affairs Victoria's definition of the work includes arranging the sale of land and businesses2.
  • Queensland: a real estate agent licence authorises buying, selling (other than by auction), exchanging or letting businesses for others for reward (s 26(1)(b)); doing that for someone else for reward without a licence is an offence, unless otherwise permitted under this or another Act (s 97)3.
  • Western Australia: individuals, partnerships or companies wishing to operate as real estate or business agents are required to be licensed and hold a current triennial certificate, under the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978, administered by Consumer Protection4.
  • South Australia: a person who intends to conduct business as a land agent, including buying, selling or negotiating the buying and selling of land or businesses, must be registered under the Land Agents Act 19945.
  • ACT: business agents are licensed by Access Canberra6. The Act's definition of business agent work includes buying, selling, exchanging, disposing of, or otherwise dealing with, a business or professional practice or a share or interest in its goodwill or stock, for a principal for reward (s 10); carrying on that business, or pretending to be licensed, without one is an offence, unless otherwise licensed (s 20)7.
  • Northern Territory: a Business Agent Licence, issued under the Agents Licensing Act 1979, is needed to sell, buy, exchange, lease or let businesses for profit or reward8.
  • Tasmania: real estate agency business, defined to include selling, buying, exchanging, leasing or otherwise dealing with, or disposing of, property or businesses on instructions from other people (s 3(1)), must not be carried on unless registered (s 34)9.

Check the licence with your state's own regulator before you sign anything.

What reviews and "top 10" lists cannot tell you

Searches for the best or top business brokers turn up a lot of lists and review pages. None of them can tell you the thing that matters for your sale: whether that broker has sold a business like yours, in your industry, at your size, recently. A high rating tells you other clients were satisfied. It does not tell you whether the broker has a genuine buyer network for, say, a regional trades business versus a metro hospitality venue. A "top 10" list is often marketing rather than an independent ranking, and it may not name its method. Ask a shortlisted broker directly for two or three past sales in your industry and price range, and for the outcome, not just the anecdote.

Questions to ask before you sign

  • Can you give me your licence number, and which state issued it?
  • Have you sold a business in my industry, at roughly this size, in the last two years?
  • Is this agreement exclusive, and for how long?
  • How will you value my business, and is that the same as a formal valuation?
  • What is your fee, and when is it payable? (See how business brokers get paid.)

Sources

  1. Apply for a real estate agent licence, NSW Government, no last-updated date shown, accessed 24 Sep 2026. Confirms you need a real estate agent licence, or a licence restricted to business agent functions, to provide services related to buying or selling a business in NSW, issued by NSW Fair Trading.
  2. Estate agents: definitions, Consumer Affairs Victoria, last updated 12 October 2023, accessed 24 Sep 2026. Confirms Victoria's definition of estate agent work includes arranging the sale of land and businesses, and that doing so requires an estate agent's licence, or employment by a licensed estate agent as an agent's representative.
  3. Property Occupations Act 2014, Queensland Legislation, version in force from 1 August 2025, accessed 24 Sep 2026. Section 26(1): a real estate agent licence authorises the holder to perform activities as an agent for others for reward, including under 26(1)(b) to buy, sell (other than by auction), exchange or let businesses or interests in businesses. Section 97(1): a person must not, as an agent for someone else for reward, perform an activity that may be done under a property agent licence unless licensed, or otherwise permitted under this or another Act, maximum penalty 200 penalty units or 2 years imprisonment.
  4. Real estate agents, property managers and sales representatives, Consumer Protection, Western Australia, no last-updated date shown, accessed 24 Sep 2026. Confirms individuals, partnerships or companies operating as real estate or business agents are required to be licensed and hold a current triennial certificate, under the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978.
  5. Land Agent Registration, Australian Business Licence and Information Service, no last-updated date shown, accessed 24 Sep 2026. Confirms you need to be registered if you intend to conduct business as a land agent, and that land agents buy, sell, negotiate or otherwise deal with the buying and selling of land or businesses, under the Land Agents Act 1994.
  6. Licensing for business, real estate and stock and station agents, Access Canberra, no last-updated date shown, accessed 24 Sep 2026. Confirms business agents hold a licence under the ACT's Agents Act 2003.
  7. Agents Act 2003, ACT Legislation Register, republication R45, effective 6 December 2025, accessed 24 Sep 2026. Section 20: a person commits an offence if they are not a licensed business agent and they carry on business as a business agent, or pretend to be one; under section 20(3) this does not apply to a person otherwise licensed to provide the service. Section 10: a person carries on business as a business agent if they provide a business agent service for a principal for reward; section 10(2)(a): a business agent service includes buying, selling, exchanging, disposing of, or otherwise dealing with, a business or professional practice or a share or interest in the goodwill or stock of a business or professional practice.
  8. Business Agent Licence, Australian Business Licence and Information Service (Northern Territory Government), no last-updated date shown, accessed 24 Sep 2026. Confirms you need this licence if you intend to sell, buy, exchange, lease or let businesses for profit or reward, under the Agents Licensing Act 1979.
  9. Property Agents and Land Transactions Act 2016, Tasmanian Legislation, authorised version current from 1 July 2025, accessed 24 Sep 2026. Section 34: a person must not carry on real estate agency business unless registered as a real estate agent. Section 3(1): "real estate agency business" is defined to include selling, buying, exchanging, leasing or otherwise dealing with, or disposing of, property or businesses, on instructions from other people.

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