# Diligence checklists by industry

This is educational. It is not a diligence opinion.

Every deal room on NewHands starts with the same list: tax returns, add-backs, concentration, contracts, employees, and real estate. The industry changes what "done" means.

Marine and marinas. Ask who holds the submerged-land or slip agreement, whether the yard lease survives a sale, and how winter storage contracts renew. Weather years are not a trend.

Restaurants and liquor. The permit is often the asset a buyer thinks they are buying. State liquor authorities decide transfers. A Connecticut restaurant permit in the public index is a license record, not an offer. Start with the state alcohol agency linked in the New England notes.

HVAC and trades. Service agreements, technician licenses, and the van fleet. If the owner is the lead tech, price the replacement wage in the SDE worksheet.

Practices (dental, veterinary). Payer mix and whether the clinical owner must stay. These businesses are often discussed on collections. NewHands's estimator still shows SDE so industries can be compared, and it says so.

Manufacturing and wholesale. Customer concentration, inventory method, and whether equipment is leased. A quality-of-earnings review is the tool for add-backs that are really ongoing costs.

Hospitality and inns. Separate the real estate cap rate conversation from the operating multiple. Occupancy is seasonal in this region.

Child care. State licensing capacity is the constraint. Confirm the license transfers or can be reissued before you model revenue.