A buyer was told free cash flow was $480K. Our valuation said: not even close.

We found:

• $72K in non-repeating COVID grants
• $34K in a one-time legal recovery
• $49K in “consulting fees” that were really recurring employee costs

True free cash flow? Around $325K.

A $1.7M price tag suddenly looked… risky.

Deals get inflated fast when seller-side adjustments aren’t reviewed critically. Your valuation partner should help you see past the fluff.