Buying an accounting practice
Expert help in the search for your next acquisition
Whether you are after a small parcel of fees or a multi-partner firm, we support practitioners and firms through every stage of an acquisition. Our constantly evolving database of genuine parties, combined with extensive networks built over decades in the profession, gives you a resource no open search can match.
The best opportunities are rarely advertised
Many of the strongest practices change hands quietly — matched to a buyer before they ever reach the open market. Working with a broker who knows the profession puts you inside that process. We keep you informed of opportunities that match your criteria, qualify them before they reach you, and give you an honest read on each one, so your time goes only to acquisitions worth pursuing.
What a sound acquisition actually looks like
A practice that looks attractive on paper can be an expensive mistake in practice. Before price, three questions decide whether an acquisition will work.
Will the fees stay?
You are paying for recurring fees that survive the vendor's departure — not the headline revenue. How goodwill is held, and how clients are tied to the practice rather than the practitioner, determines what actually transfers to you.
Does it fit your firm?
Client profile, culture, systems and location decide whether an acquisition strengthens your practice or strains it. A well-priced practice that is a poor fit costs more than it saves.
Does the structure protect you?
Retention terms, payment structure and vendor transition arrangements are where a buyer's risk is genuinely managed. The right structure matters as much as the right price.
Our practice buying services
Engage us for the full search or for a single stage — the support is tailored to what you are looking for and how far you have already progressed.
Practice buyer's agent services
Enlist our expertise to find the right opportunity — one that suits exactly what you are looking for. We search, source and qualify practices on your behalf, keep you informed of opportunities that match your criteria, and give you discreet, early access before they are widely known.
Practice appraisal
An objective appraisal ensures you know what an acquisition opportunity is genuinely worth — the strength of its recurring fees, the durability of its goodwill and how the market would price it — so you make your decision with confidence rather than guesswork.
Structuring an offer
Use our expertise to structure a competitive offer that positions your firm as the front-runner in negotiations — while building in the retention, payment and transition terms that protect you after settlement.
Consulting services
Independent, expert advice on any aspect of the acquisition process, tailored to your specific needs — whether you are testing the idea, comparing opportunities or deep in negotiation on a deal you sourced yourself.
From brief to settlement
Professional advice at every stage of the acquisition process — a structured path that keeps the transaction moving and your position protected.
Your brief
We establish what you are looking for — fee level, client profile, location, structure — and what your firm can absorb.
Search & qualify
We source opportunities through our database and networks, and qualify each one before it reaches you.
Confidential access
Once a confidentiality agreement is signed, you receive the particulars and meet the opportunity properly.
Appraise & offer
We help you test what the practice is worth and structure an offer that leads the field without overreaching.
Negotiate & settle
From initial discussions to final negotiations, we are there — through due diligence, terms and settlement.
Why buy a practice with Rob Knights Practice Broking
An evolving database
Access to a growing database of contacts within the profession — vendors, acquirers and practitioners weighing their options — built and maintained over decades of working with accounting firms.
Expert guidance
Professional advice at every stage of the acquisition process, from the first conversation about your criteria through to the structure of the final offer.
Flexible support
From initial discussions to final negotiations, we are here to help — as your buyer's agent on a full search, or as an independent adviser on a single decision.
The Buyer's Guide
Acquiring an Accounting Practice covers what drives the value of a practice, how the acquisition process runs from search to settlement, and the decisions that matter along the way — the same ground we walk through with our broking clients.
Request your copy and it will be with you in moments.
Download the buyer's guide
Tell us what you are looking for
The most useful first step is to register what you are after: where, how large and when. We keep it on our buyer register and contact you when a practice that fits comes to market. If you would like advice on your own acquisition, a one-hour consultation with Michelle is available.
Register as a buyer Book a consultation
Confidential by design
Opportunities are promoted so that genuine buyers can find them — but no particulars that identify a practice are released until a confidentiality agreement is signed. It protects the vendor, and it means the opportunities you see through us are ones other buyers cannot browse.
We also broker legal practices. Read about our legal practice broking work
Prefer to manage the process independently?
If you’re comfortable taking the lead on your acquisition but want access to the proven strategies we use with our broking clients, our Buy or Sell Without a Broker – Complete Toolkit offers a practical, cost-effective alternative.
This on-demand resource includes the structure, templates, and professional insights developed through decades of experience—designed to support informed decision-making without engaging a full brokerage service.
For those seeking more support, our tailored broking services remain available when you’re ready to take the next step.
Available practices for sale
At Rob Knights Practice Broking, we specialise in connecting accounting practices and financial services businesses with the perfect buyers or partners. Whether you’re looking to sell your firm, acquire a new practice, or explore strategic partnerships, our expertise ensures a seamless and successful transaction.
Explore our current listings to find the right opportunity for your business goals, or browse our past listings to see the success stories we’ve helped create.
Stay ahead of the game with our monthly newsletter, MAP Memo.
Buying an accounting practice, answered
What should I look for when buying an accounting practice?
Three things before price: whether the recurring fees will survive the vendor's departure, whether the client base and culture fit your firm, and whether the deal structure protects you through the transition. A practice that looks attractive on the headline numbers can fail all three.
Our Buyer's Guide walks through each in detail.
How do I find practices that never reach the open market?
Many of the strongest practices are matched to a buyer before they are ever advertised — through broker databases and professional networks rather than listings. Registering as a buyer with us means you are considered when those opportunities arise, rather than seeing only what is left over.
Do I need a buyer's agent?
Not necessarily — many acquirers run their own search. What a buyer's agent adds is qualification and early access: opportunities are vetted against your criteria before they reach you, and you see them discreetly, before they are widely known. For firms whose principals cannot spare the time a proper search takes, that is usually the difference between finding an acquisition and settling for one.
How are offers usually structured?
Beyond the price itself, most offers involve some combination of payment terms, a retention arrangement tied to how the fees hold after settlement, and a vendor transition period. Where the balance sits depends on the practice and the parties — and it is where a buyer's risk is genuinely managed. We help you structure an offer that leads the field without exposing you.
Why must I sign a confidentiality agreement before receiving details?
Because the vendor's staff, clients and competitors should learn of a sale from the vendor — not the market. No identifying particulars are released to any party until a confidentiality agreement is signed. As a buyer it works in your favour too: the same discipline will protect your practice's details, and your interest in acquiring, from circulating.
Should I buy a parcel of fees or a whole practice?
It depends on what your firm can absorb and what you are trying to build. A parcel of fees bolts capacity onto an existing structure; a whole practice brings a team, systems and premises with it — more to gain and more to integrate. We broker both, and testing the question is often the first thing we work through in an acquisition brief.
How do I know I am not overpaying?
An independent appraisal. It tests the strength of the recurring fees, the durability of the goodwill and how the market would price the opportunity — so your offer rests on evidence rather than the vendor's expectations. It is the single most useful protection a buyer can put in place before negotiating.
Not sure where to start the search? Tell us what you are looking for, and we will contact you when a practice that fits comes up.
Register as a buyer
- Ph: (02) 9233 4333
- Email: broking@robknightsbroking.com.au
- Located in Sydney
- Serving practices Australia-wide
