Buying an Independent Agency

[DJHog]

I've been a captive agent for 3 years now and would like to move on to the independent side. How does one go about looking o buy an independent agency. I'm sure there are some Independents ready to get out of the business, what's the best strategy for finding out who these agency owners are?

[sunflower_gal]

To find independent agencies that are for sale, you might try looking at the listings of available agencies on http://www.agencies4salelistings.com. There are both independent and captive agencies listed on that website. You can sign up for notifications in order to receive alerts when new agencies are added to the site. You might also try http://www.businessnation.com as well. They don't specialize in insurance agencies but often have insurance agencies on the site.

You may want to try posting on Craig's List and LinkedIn Insurance network groups to get the word out that you are actively searching for an agency.

Contacting an insurance agency broker to let them know that you are looking for an agency can also help you get connected to available agencies on the market.

Good luck.

[wlunday]

First, I'll assume that you want to stay in your local area.

Join several of the local Independant Agency associations and PARTICIPATE! There are Big I, PIA and similar associations to work with, all will have local meetings and networking opportunities. If you are young, join the affiliated Young Agents Groups.

Next, if there are any regional IA oriented company marketers that you know or can get introduced to, ask them. Tell them you are very interested in buying an agency, or into an agency with the hope of full ownership later... they'll spread the word.

Finally, it seems that every time I looked at "Agencies4Sale" website it was Brooke Franchises or Allstate offices offered. Neither are that appealing. I think I read earlier that Brooke is out anyway...

Good Luck!

Swymmer

[sunflower_gal]

I believe you are correct about the Agencies4Sale.com website. Brooke owned that website, which is why there were so many of their franchises listed there. The website I've been utilizing is Agencies4SaleListings.com, which is a completely different website. There are a lot of Allstate agencies, especially in the FL area, but there are also independent ones as well.

[InsuranceConsultant]

We have an excellent website that offers independent agents and brokers services for buying and selling insurance agencies. Visit http://www.ganisco.com