Buying a business that needs to move its facilities immediately?

November 20, 2025

by a searcher from Southern Methodist University in Denver, CO, USA

Has anyone had experience with acquisition targets that are being pushed out of their current space? I'm looking at a chemfilm company where the building owner is selling and all tenants must relocate. Given the nature of the business, the move includes tons of regulatory red tape. It's not as simple as finding new office space. There is a big risk and cost associated with the move, but the business itself is very sound. Wondering is anyone has experience with this or thoughts?

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Reply by a searcher
from Charter Oak State College in New York, NY, USA

Hi Katelyn, If it helps, I’m working with a manufacturing company right now that is precisely in this situation. Landlord selling the property, hard stop on occupancy, and a facility full of regulated processes, permitted equipment, and aging infrastructure that was never meant to be moved. The business is healthy. The move is not. Here’s the reality of buying a company that has to relocate immediately: Moving a regulatory processing shop is not a relocation, it’s a reconstruction. You aren’t uprooting desks. You’re rebuilding utilities, environmental controls, wastewater systems, air handling, and chemical compliance from scratch. The regulatory burden alone adds months, not weeks. Your biggest risk isn’t equipment, it’s people. In every forced relocation I’ve seen, twenty percent of the workforce evaporates unless there’s a plan and money behind retention. Operators who know the process narratives in their bones are the linchpin. Lose the wrong five people and your “smooth transition” becomes a turnaround. There is no scenario where revenue isn’t disrupted. The only way to keep output flat during a move is to run old facility and new facility in parallel. This means buying duplicate equipment, duplicating utilities, and burning cash like jet fuel. Most buyers don’t budget that. Underwrite the J-curve. Seriously. Production doesn’t snap back to normal because the machines are plugged in. It takes time for operators to find rhythm in a new space. Tooling, workflow, setups, tribal knowledge — all of it resets. Model a dip, not a miracle. The deal math changes. If the core business is sound, your leverage is in the uncertainty. Price the risk, adjust the structure, and ensure the seller participates in the cost and time curve — whether through seller financing, holdbacks, or contingencies tied to relocation milestones. Bottom line: a relocation-distressed business can be a phenomenal buy. But only if your underwriting reflects the real timeline, the regulatory lift, and the human cost of moving a process-heavy operation. If you want, happy to share more detail on what I’m seeing in real time on a forced relocation for a 1950s-era aerospace tooling manufacturer.

Reply by a lender
from Eastern Illinois University in 900 E Diehl Rd, Naperville, IL 60563, USA

Katelyn, it sounds like you have a great opportunity there. We have funded acquisitions in the past with a change of location involved up front. Lenders are much more cautious about this because they worry about what type of disruption might happen to the business at the same time you are changing ownership. I think you have two available options. Option 1: You can have the seller find the new space, relocate the business prior to closing, and complete the regulatory hurdles. This should not be a challenging request for the seller to complete because the seller would need to complete this if not selling. I also think it is likely other buyers will run into the same concern and might want the same thing to happen. Option 2: You can contract to buy the business and make it contingent on securing new space and getting that space approved. That way you can move into it right after closing. This will take more legwork for you up front and you will likely incur a bunch of cost that could be lost if the deal does not end up moving forward for some reason. Although lenders would be concerned about the risk that the business just moved, if all lined up in advance the impact should be minimal. I would definitely think you should get a discount on the business for going through this hassle. I would not buy the business knowing it has to move without having the approved space to move it into. I also do not think lenders will finance you under this situation. Happy to discussion options in more detail at any time. You can reach me here or directly at redacted Good luck.

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