Partner Buyout and Buy-In Financing

Ownership changes we finance

• Buying out a departing partner

  Continuing owners, or the business itself, purchase a retiring or departing partner's interest.

• Buying in as a new partner

  An associate, key employee or outside buyer purchases an ownership stake for the first time.

• Increasing an existing stake

  A current owner buys a larger share as partners rebalance ownership.

• Practice buy-ins

  Associate-to-partner buy-ins at dental, medical, veterinary, law and accounting practices.

  Practice financing

Buying an entire business instead? See business acquisition financing.

Partner buyout loans: purchasing a departing owner's interest

A buyout funds an exit such as a retirement or planned separation. Clarify who is borrowing, who owns the business afterward and how the departing owner's work will be covered. The price alone does not set borrowing capacity: the lender looks at the valuation, transfer restrictions in the ownership agreement and cash flow after the exit, including replacement compensation and existing debt.

Buy-in financing: joining or increasing ownership

A buy-in lets an employee, outside buyer or current partner purchase a stake. Document the interest being acquired, the buyer's role, voting rights and distribution rights. An ownership percentage does not by itself show how much cash will be available to repay the loan, so lenders weigh expected distributions and the buyer's other obligations alongside the business's financials.

Specialized lenders for professional practice buy-ins

Practice buy-ins are the most common ownership change we see. Lenders with dedicated practice groups understand how a dental, medical, veterinary, law or accounting practice is valued and how partner compensation works, which shapes both the structure and the amount. See the specialty pages for dental, medical, veterinary, law firm and accounting firm financing.

SBA and conventional partner buyout loans compared

The SBA 7(a) program lists complete and partial changes of ownership as eligible uses, subject to current program requirements. Conventional financing follows the bank's own criteria. Compare both against the same price, buyer contribution and cash-flow plan; neither is automatically faster or cheaper.

How partner buyout financing works

1. Define the transfer. Who is buying what share, from whom, at what price. Your legal and tax advisers review the agreement and consents.
2. Documents. Financials, debt schedule, valuation support, the purchase and ownership agreements and the buyer's financial information.
3. Lender matching. We take one prepared request to the SBA and bank lenders that fit the transaction.
4. Compare and close. You compare contributions, payments, guarantees and conditions, choose an offer and resolve conditions before closing.

We explain how we get paid before you choose an offer.

Who qualifies

• Post-deal debt service: cash flow covers existing debt, the new loan and any seller-note payments, plus replacement compensation for a departing partner.
• The buyer: personal credit, relevant experience and the size and source of the contribution.
• The valuation and agreement: a supported price, reconciled across the valuation, purchase agreement and ownership documents.

Our loan readiness checklist lists the documents lenders commonly ask for. We work with businesses across New York and New Jersey. Program summaries are not an approval; lenders determine eligibility, amounts and terms after review.