Legacy Advisors review: agency valuation, M&A advice and fees
Legacy Advisors helps insurance agency owners sell. It never represents buyers. It runs the sale for the owner from a first valuation through closing.
It is paid only when the sale closes. The first valuation costs nothing if you and Legacy agree to proceed.
- Best for
- Owners ready to sell to an outside buyer who want an advisor with no buyer clients
- Works for
- Sellers only
- Services
- Valuation, sale preparation, buyer outreach, negotiation and diligence
- Valuation fee
- Free first valuation
- Success fee
- Paid only at a successful close. Rate set per engagement
Our take
Legacy Advisors is the clearest seller-only choice in this group. It won't represent buyers, so it has no reason to favor one in your deal.
Its fee comes only at a successful close, and the rate is set for each engagement. Ask whether any retainer or expenses apply if the sale falls through.
The team includes former agency owners. It lets you choose which buyers to meet and weighs how the buyer will treat your people after day one, not just the price.
Pros
- Represents sellers only
- Paid only when the sale closes
- First valuation at no charge
- Mutual NDAs with you and with every buyer
- You choose which buyers to meet
Cons
- Doesn't publish its fee rate
- Built for outside sales, not handoffs to producers or family
- No published agency size range
- Its posted deals carry no dates
Who they work for
Sellers
Legacy Advisors works only for agency owners who are selling. It handles most of the work and sends updates daily or every two weeks.
Buyers
Not represented. Legacy Advisors says working for both sides is a conflict of interest.
Services
| Service | What you get |
|---|---|
| First valuation | An estimate of what a buyer might pay, from financials shared under a mutual NDA |
| Sale preparation | The agency's story, a confidential sale book and a pro forma financial model for buyers |
| Buyer outreach | Materials go to selected buyers, and you pick who to meet |
| Offers and negotiation | Compares offers on money and culture, then negotiates with your top picks |
| Diligence | Works with the buyer, lawyers and accountants to keep deadlines through closing |
| Transition help | Advice on the period after the sale, including staff and clients |
Agencies they work with
- Types
- Independent insurance agencies
- Where
- United States
How they value an agency
- Method
- A multiple of pro forma EBITDA for most agencies
- Earnings measure
- Pro forma EBITDA, the agency's yearly profit restated the way a buyer would see it
- What adjusts the value
- Revenue and profit, margins, growth, client retention, carrier relationships, leadership and the commercial and personal lines mix
Legacy Advisors may weigh other approaches when the agency or the likely buyer calls for it.
Terms on this page in plain words
- EBITDA
- Profit for the year before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization
- Multiple
- What a buyer pays for each dollar of yearly revenue or profit
- Earn-out
- Money paid after closing that depends on the agency reaching growth or profit goals
- Equity rollover
- Keeping a stake in the buying company as part of the price
- Success fee
- The advisor's fee that comes due only when a deal closes
- Retainer
- An advance or monthly fee for the advisor's time
- Tail
- A set period after the agreement ends when you still owe the fee if you sell to a buyer the advisor introduced
Valuation reports, cost and timing
- What you get
- An estimate of the price a buyer might pay
- Price
- No charge if you and Legacy agree to proceed
- What it needs
- Your financials, shared under a mutual NDA
Selling your agency with them
First conversation
You talk through your goals, the market and how the sale would run.
Valuation
Legacy Advisors reviews your financials under NDA and estimates a price.
Preparation
It writes the sale book and builds the financial model buyers will see.
Buyers and offers
It approaches selected buyers, then negotiates with the ones you prefer.
Diligence and close
It manages the buyer's checks with your lawyer and accountant until closing.
Deal structure advice
Legacy Advisors helps owners weigh cash at closing against equity in the buyer, depending on how long they plan to stay involved. It also compares buyers by size and culture, from large acquirers to smaller partners.
- Earn-outs
- Legacy's articles say earn-outs in the market usually run one to three years after closing
- Equity rollover
- Cash versus stock in the buyer, matched to your plans after the sale
Succession and after the sale
Legacy Advisors says its advice goes past closing, including how the sale affects your staff and clients.
Credentials and transactions
- Team
- Former agency owners alongside private equity investors
Recent transactions
| Agency sold | Role |
|---|---|
| Real Senior Management to Highstreet | Seller advisor |
| Archibald Insurance to Trucordia | Seller advisor |
| Lincoln Insurance Group to King Risk Partners | Seller advisor |
| T Blackwell Insurance Group to Inszone Insurance Services | Seller advisor |
| Douce Agency to Patriot Growth | Seller advisor |
| Rubin Insurance Agency to Blue Ridge Risk Partners | Seller advisor |
From the deals posted on its site, which lists more. It gives no dates.
Confidentiality
- NDA with you
- A mutual NDA before it sees your financials
- NDA with buyers
- Every prospective buyer signs a mutual NDA before seeing anything about your agency
Fees and engagement terms
- Success fee
- Paid only when the sale closes. The rate is set for each engagement
Retainer, expenses, exclusivity and tail terms aren't on its site.
Pin these down before you sign
- The success fee rate and what counts as the sale price
- Whether earn-out and stock payments count toward the fee, and when it is paid on them
- Any expenses you pay if the sale doesn't close
- How long you are exclusive and how long the tail runs
Legacy Advisors alternatives
- Agency Brokerage ConsultantsOffer review $7,500Seller auctions and a fixed-price offer review
- Sica | FletcherFees not publishedA founding partner leads every sale
- Springtree GroupFree valuation quoteSmaller agencies, with loans to fund the buyer
- OPTIS PartnersQuote onlySale advice plus perpetuation planning
- MarshBerryQuote onlyLarge investment bank, one client per deal
See every option in insurance agency valuation.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Legacy Advisors charge?
It is paid only when your sale closes, at a rate set for each engagement. The first valuation costs nothing if you both decide to work together.
Does Legacy Advisors represent buyers?
No. It works only for agency owners who are selling.
How does Legacy Advisors value an agency?
Usually as a multiple of pro forma EBITDA, the agency's yearly profit restated as a buyer would see it.
How does it keep a sale quiet?
It signs a mutual NDA with you before seeing your financials and with every buyer before sharing anything about your agency.
How we researched this review. We based this review on the terms and product pages published by Legacy Advisors, reviewed in October 2026, together with our team's experience working with insurance agents and agency owners since 2008.
Corrections
Vendors change their pricing all the time and they don't email us when they do. So if you see a price on here that's gone up, a plan Legacy Advisors quit selling or a contract term that reads different now, let us know and send the link to the page where Legacy Advisors has it. Somebody here pulls up that page and checks it before we change anything on ours.