When you have spent years running a management-rights business, you know what sits behind its results: the work involved, the relationships with owners and the services that generate income. When it comes time to sell, a buyer’s accountant needs to understand that story through the records.

Your annual financial statements are an important starting point. However, a profit figure prepared for a sale serves a different purpose from accounts prepared for annual reporting and tax. The buyer’s accountant will examine the income, expenses and proposed adjustments supporting the earnings presented—not just the number at the bottom of the page. Specialist accommodation-industry guidance recommends preparing sale figures with an experienced accountant before taking a management-rights business to market.

For owners considering a sale, understanding that process early can help you present the business clearly and answer questions with supporting evidence.

Start with the income behind the result

A management-rights business may earn caretaking remuneration, letting commissions and fees for additional services. The verification process needs to establish what the business earned during the period under review and how those amounts are supported.

That means being able to connect the figures in the accounts with the relevant agreements, letting-system reports, owner statements, invoices and receipts. It also means clearly distinguishing the management business’s own income from rental proceeds collected on behalf of owners.

The distinction matters because, under an agency arrangement, the owner’s underlying supply and the manager’s commission are separate transactions. Funds passing through an account administered by the manager are not automatically the manager’s revenue. The actual relationship and agreements determine the treatment.

A clear reconciliation allows the accountant to follow each income stream rather than relying on totals alone.

Explain adjustments rather than assuming they will be accepted

Owners sometimes hear that certain expenses can be “added back” when preparing a business for sale. An add-back is a proposed adjustment to reported profit. For example, to identify an expense that relates to the seller’s circumstances rather than the ongoing operation of the business.

But an adjustment needs more than a label. Its purpose, amount and supporting evidence should be clear.

A one-off expense, for instance, should be considered in context. Was it genuinely unusual, or does the business incur similar expenditure from time to time? If an expense contains a private component, how has that component been identified? Would a buyer still need to incur some or all of the cost?

These are matters to assess with your specialist accountant, not automatic increases to the earnings figure. 

Show how the work gets done

The way an owner operates the business also helps explain its financial results.

Some owners perform substantial duties themselves. Others employ staff or engage contractors. A buyer needs to understand that arrangement when assessing both the earnings presented and the work they would be taking on.

Keep a clear record of owner responsibilities, employee duties, contractor arrangements and related costs. Where the sale figures use an owner-operator assumption, that assumption should be explained rather than left for the buyer to infer.

Business Queensland specifically identifies the seller’s role, staffing arrangements and whether the buyer would need to match the seller’s involvement as due-diligence considerations. Explaining those details gives the financial figures useful context.

Make the reporting period clear

The period covered by the figures is another important part of the story. A buyer’s accountant needs to know which months are included and whether the records consistently allocate income and expenses to that period.

For a holiday-letting business, monthly information can help explain seasonal movements. For any management-rights business, changes in the letting pool, remuneration, fees or staffing should be identifiable and supported.

A strong recent month or an expected improvement may be worth discussing, but it should be distinguished from historical earnings already achieved. 

Count Gold Coast’s Management Rights team provides sales figures reports, independent verification analysis, and specialist accounting and taxation services.

Contact our Management Rights team to review your records and discuss what would be needed to prepare your business for sale. Whether a sale is on the horizon or still some way off, we can help you understand the figures and the evidence behind them.

General information disclosure

This article provides general information only and does not constitute accounting, taxation, financial, valuation or legal advice. The scope of a verification engagement and the treatment of proposed adjustments depend on the business, supporting evidence and relevant transaction terms. Verification of historical earnings does not guarantee future performance or a sale price. Obtain advice tailored to your circumstances before acting. Information is current at 6 November 2026 and may change.

Sources

Count Gold Coast: Management Rights specialist service

Business Queensland: Due diligence when buying a business

ResortBrokers: Getting your property ready for sale

Australian Taxation Office: Using an agent

Australian Taxation Office: GSTR 2000/37: Agency relationships and GST

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