{"apiVersion":"2026-10-19","data":{"disclaimer":"Educational. Not legal, tax, or financial advice.","resource":{"slug":"buyer-readiness","title":"Buyer readiness before the first call","audience":"buyer","summary":"The proof, the criteria, and the people a buyer needs before an offer is worth a seller's time.","citations":[{"label":"SBA 7(a) loans","url":"https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/7a-loans"},{"label":"SCORE","url":"https://www.score.org/"},{"label":"America's SBDC","url":"https://americassbdc.org/"},{"label":"IBBA education","url":"https://www.ibba.org/education/"}],"body":"This is educational. It is not a credit decision and not legal, tax, or financial advice.\n\nSellers and brokers can tell when a buyer is browsing. The readiness score on this site is a checklist with weights, not a grade a lender will accept. Proof of funds is statements, not a screenshot of a wish. The down payment is a separate pile from the cash you need to live on while the business pays you. An SBA conversation means you have talked to a 7(a) lender about eligibility. The program description is on sba.gov. The lender applies the current SOP 50 10.\n\nOperating experience is the work you have done, written so a stranger can follow it. A written buy box is industry, geography, price, and the cash flow you need. An agent can search that. A mood cannot.\n\nAn advisor is a lawyer or an accountant you have actually named, or a mentoring conversation you have booked. SCORE and America's SBDC are the public places to start that search. The International Business Brokers Association publishes broker education; it does not assign you a broker, and NewHands does not either.\n\nTime to operate is the honest question. If you will not be in the building, the listing needs a manager who already is. The score's action plan is the unchecked items, in order. Checking a box on a website does not create the fact."}}}