#129 - Selling Your MSP - My Price, Your Terms | FROM THE TRENCHES

#129 - Selling Your MSP - My Price, Your Terms | FROM THE TRENCHES (Hartland Ross) In this episode of From The Trenches, Josh Peterson sits down with Hartland Ross, Founder and Managing Partner of The Host Broker, a brokerage that has helped facilitate hundreds of MSP, web hosting and IT services acquisitions since 2005. Together they dig into selling your MSP: what a signed LOI really commits you to, how to choose between offers when fit matters more than price, how long buyers actually want a seller to stay, and when an earnout is fair. Josh opens with a client whose LOI paid them $200,000 when the buyer walked away, and asks whether that is normal. Hartland explains why break fees rarely survive, how exclusivity works once an LOI is signed, and why a seller should start interviewing the buyer the moment offers arrive. Then they argue about earnouts: Josh treats a buyer who needs one to finance the deal as disqualified, and Hartland makes the case that every seller is choosing between price and terms. If you're an MSP owner, leader, or operator looking to grow, avoid common pitfalls, or learn from those who've done it before, this conversation is packed with practical insight. Learn more about the BMK Vision Operating System: https://beringmckinley.com/vision Want to join Josh on the show? Apply to be a guest: https://beringmckinley.com/blog#speak... ---------- Connect with Our Guest & Host Hartland Ross:   / hartlandross   Josh Peterson:   / joshdpeterson   Bering McKinley:   / bering-mckinley   ---------- Topics We Cover The $200K LOI penalty, and why break fees rarely survive How exclusivity works once an LOI is signed Why there's no asking price, and whose LOI to work first The questions a seller should ask a buyer Fit over price, and why it protects the money at risk What a buyer can do when the seller becomes the problem The seven-month tally: how long sellers really stay My price, your terms: why earnouts exist The buyer who needs the earnout to finance the deal The $100K hardware investment a buyer inherits at closing The one thing to do if you might sell in the next two years ---------- Chapters 00:00 - Cold open 00:38 - A $200K penalty clause in the LOI 03:23 - Why LOI break fees rarely survive 07:41 - One buyer or a market, and LOI exclusivity 12:51 - No asking price, and whose LOI to work first 16:04 - Fit first, then money 18:02 - When the acquired owner becomes a nightmare 20:36 - Reference-check the buyer, gut-check the seller 24:10 - The seven-month tally 25:56 - How long buyers want sellers to stay 29:22 - Cash, seller notes and the earnout 31:41 - My price, your terms 32:43 - Why small MSPs get earnouts: contracts and concentration 35:36 - Ask for the offer with and without the earnout 36:26 - Earnouts should cut both ways 38:12 - The $100K HaaS investment the buyer inherits 42:49 - Tough luck, or a fair true-up? 45:44 - The wave of founders turning 60 49:01 - Valuations at an all-time high, and AI 51:37 - The one thing to do before you sell 53:25 - Where to find Hartland Ross ---------- Guest Bio - Hartland Ross Hartland Ross is Founder and Managing Partner of The Host Broker, also known as The MSP Broker, a business brokerage for IT service providers based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Since 2005 the firm has helped facilitate hundreds of acquisitions of MSPs, web hosting companies, data centers and other IT services businesses, regularly listing companies from about $100K to $10M in annual revenue. Hartland has worked in the sales and marketing of web-based technology companies since 1999 and has worked with more than 1,000 web hosting companies, MSPs, ISVs, SaaS providers and data centers. He also founded eBridge Marketing Solutions, an online marketing agency for IT service providers. Website: https://www.thehostbroker.com/ LinkedIn:   / hartlandross   ---------- Host Bio - Josh Peterson Josh Peterson is the CEO of Bering McKinley and host of The BMK Vision Podcast. Since 2004, Josh has worked with hundreds of MSP owners to build operationally sound, profitable businesses through consulting, peer teams, and direct coaching. LinkedIn:   / joshdpeterson   Learn more: https://beringmckinley.com/vision ---------- #MSP #ManagedServices #MSPOwner #BMKVisionPodcast #SellingAnMSP #MSPExit