When Two Brokers Give You Two Very Different Valuations: How to Separate Market Reality from Salesmanship

It’s a common—and deeply confusing—moment for veterinary practice owners.

You speak with two brokers. You provide similar information. And you receive two wildly different estimates of what your practice could sell for.

One broker presents a measured range.
The other confidently promises a dramatically higher outcome.

Both sound informed. Both reference “the market.” And both imply they know something the other doesn’t.

So what are you supposed to believe?

This article is designed to help you understand why these discrepancies occur, what questions actually matter, and how to avoid locking yourself into a decision based on an estimate that may never materialize.

Market Reality vs. Salesmanship

At a high level, valuation differences usually stem from how much real market data a broker is relying on—and how selectively it’s being used.

In veterinary practice sales, there is no centralized exchange and no published pricing. The only reliable reference points are closed transactions—deals that made it all the way through buyer diligence, legal review, and closing—that particular broker was involved with.

That’s where a critical distinction emerges:

Some brokers participate in over 40 completed transactions annually, giving them a statistically meaningful view of how buyers are actually behaving right now.

Others close 2-4 deals per year.

That difference matters more than most owners realize.

A small handful of transactions can produce appealing anecdotes—but it does not create a reliable market baseline. Outliers loom large, variance is high, and conclusions are easily distorted by one unusual buyer or one unusually strong practice.

When you’re hearing two very different valuation estimates, you’re often not hearing two interpretations of the same data—you’re hearing data versus extrapolation.

The Question Owners Rarely Ask (But Should)

Some owners ask, “What comps are you using?”
A better question is:

“How many similar, closed transactions are you relying on?”

Volume matters because it reveals:

• How repeatable a valuation outcome truly is
• Whether pricing patterns are stable or anecdotal
• How often expectations survive the actual market

A broker closing a small number of deals per year may be sincere—but sincerity is not the same as statistical credibility.

An owner should feel comfortable pressing here. This is not an abstract academic exercise; it’s your life’s work.

A Critical Clarification: Brokers Don’t Set the Price

Unlike residential real estate, veterinary practices are not “listed” at a price.

No broker—regardless of confidence or reputation—tells buyers what they must pay.

But the market sets the price—not the advisor.

This distinction matters, because it dismantles the idea that a broker can simply “hold out” for a higher number through willpower or optimism.

Can a Broker Consistently Deliver “Above Market” Outcomes?

If a broker truly and consistently closes deals at higher levels than their peers, those results would redefine the market itself.

In practice, what usually explains these claims is:

• Selective memory (highlighting best-case outcomes)
• Different definitions (comparing a peak headline multiple to a conservative baseline)
• Salesmanship (they assume a practice owner will select a broker based on the highest estimate they hear)

Exceptional outcomes happen—but they are driven by exceptional businesses under specific conditions, not by persuasion alone.

The Hidden Risk of Inflated Projections: You Can’t Undo the Decision

Here’s the risk most owners don’t see coming.

If a broker leads with an aggressive valuation projection and you sign an engagement agreement, you are typically bound by a tail provision.

That means:

• You cannot simply “switch brokers” when reality diverges from the estimate
• Buyers introduced during the process may remain tied to that broker
• You may be locked into a misaligned strategy long after optimism fades

In other words, an inflated headline number isn’t just misleading—it can remove your ability to course-correct once the process is underway.

This is why valuation realism before engagement matters far more than optimism at the outset.

The Questions That Actually Separate Insight from Salesmanship

When confronted with conflicting estimates, consider asking both brokers:

1. How many closed transactions from the past 12–24 months inform this range?
   • The size of the dataset matters as much as the examples themselves.
2. How often do your deals close within your initial valuation range?
   • This reveals whether estimates are predictive or aspirational.
3. Can I speak to one of your prior clients who received offers consistent you’re your initial estimate AND well above what other brokers estimated?
   • The absence of credible references who experienced a similar situation should give you pause.
4. What assumptions must be true for this valuation to hold?
   • Growth, margin expansion opportunity, doctor dynamics should be explicit—not implied.
5. How does your engagement agreement handle tail exposure if reality does not meet expectations?
   • This question alone filters out a surprising amount of misalignment.

Reality Check: Why Deal Volume Matters More Than Almost Anything Else

Imagine a clinical study that claims to redefine best practice—but the findings are based on three cats.

Most veterinarians would (rightly) be skeptical. The sample size is too small, the variance too high, and the conclusions potentially far too dependent on outliers.

The same issue exists in veterinary practice valuations.

A broker who closes five to ten transactions per year simply does not have a large enough dataset to reliably identify pricing patterns, buyer behavior shifts, or where the true middle of the market sits. One unusually strong deal—or one unusually aggressive buyer—can skew expectations dramatically.

By contrast, valuation guidance informed by dozens of recent, closed transactions reflects trends, not anecdotes. It smooths out anomalies and reveals what buyers are consistently willing to pay—not just what sounded impressive once.

When the decision involves your life’s work, you want conclusions drawn from evidence—not a study of three cats.

Written by:

Win Lippincott works with veterinary practice owners on the decisions that shape their practices—both today and down the road. Much of his work involves helping owners strengthen performance, improve decision-making, and build healthier, more valuable businesses long before a sale is even considered.

When owners do begin thinking about a transition, Win helps them understand valuation, buyer behavior, and what actually matters in a sale process. His perspective comes from working side by side with owners and seeing how practices evolve over time, not just from observing transactions at the finish line.

He writes to make complex topics easier to understand, so owners can focus on running better practices now and making confident, informed decisions when the time comes. You can find him presenting on stage or walking the floor at VMX, WVC, AAHA Con, Insightful.vet, etc.

Win welcomes thoughtful questions and conversations—connect on LinkedIn or reach out through the Ackerman Group contact page.