I’m an independent sponsor mapping out my diligence plan before signing an LOI. I’m trying to understand practical ways to fund QoE and accounting diligence when the buyer has limited upfront liquidity. For context, I’m targeting businesses with $1M–$5M in normalized EBITDA. For those who’ve closed a conventional, non-SBA acquisition: ‣ Did your lender require a third-party QoE, rely on its own underwriting diligence, or take another approach? ‣ If you commissioned buyer-side QoE, how did you fund it? Could the cost be included in approved closing uses or reimbursed at close? ‣ Has anyone used seller-funded QoE? If so, how were the firm’s independence, scope, and lender reliance handled? ‣ Did staged or limited-scope diligence work in practice? I’m especially interested in what the lender actually approved and not just what was proposed. I realize the answer may depend on the lender, deal, and transaction documents.