Should you Keep your Property when you Sell your Business?

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Hey {{first_name}},

Should you keep your property when you sell your business?

When you sell your business, one of the biggest and often most overlooked questions is what to do with any property the company has.

Do you sell it with the company as a package deal?
Or do you hold onto it and become your buyer’s landlord?

The answer can change your wealth trajectory for the next decade.

🏢 1. When it makes sense to keep the property

If your buyer is taking over an operating business that needs your premises (let’s say, a factory, a restaurant, or an office with heavy fit-out costs) you have leverage.
They can’t move easily, so you can structure a lease-back arrangement.

That means:

You sell the business but keep the building.
The buyer pays you rent.
The buyer needs to find less money up front.
You enjoy an income stream that’s usually inflation-linked and far less stressful than running the company. It’s hard to negotiate an inflation-linked earn out but quite normal in real estate.

This strategy can be especially powerful if:

You’ve owned the property for years (so the mortgage is small).
You want recurring passive income rather than a big taxable capital gain all at once.
You’re thinking about generational wealth, because property tends to appreciate quietly while businesses can be volatile and cash is attacked by inflation.

It’s a classic move among seasoned dealmakers: build the company, sell the operations, keep the bricks.

⚠️ 2. When you shouldn’t keep the property

There are times when holding the real estate is a drag:

When the buyer could relocate. You’ll be left with a specialized building that may be hard to repurpose or lease.
When the buyer is using the property carve out to be cheap. Sometimes buyers offer just the business because they can’t afford the whole thing. Make sure you have their financials so the rental payments aren’t endangered.
When you need clean separation. Sometimes it’s better psychologically (and financially) to walk away with cash and reinvest elsewhere, instead of staying tethered to your old business through a landlord–tenant relationship.

If you sense any friction or potential disputes, take the cash and deploy it into a more diversified portfolio: property funds, covered call ETFs, or high-yield cash accounts.

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🧮 3. The middle ground: sell later

Some owners agree to sell the business first and give the buyer a two- to three-year option to purchase the property later.

That gives everyone breathing room:

The buyer gets time to stabilize operations.
You continue earning rent.
If interest rates fall the property value may rise, so your eventual sale price could be higher.

It’s a strategic way to capture both the short-term income and the long-term upside.

💡 Bottom line

Keeping the property can turn a one-time payday into a long term income stream, but only if the asset is genuinely desirable on its own.

Ask yourself:

❝

“Would I still want to own this property if my buyer disappeared tomorrow?”

If the answer is yes, hold it.
If not, cash out, reinvest, and start planning your next move.

Next week: How to Sell an Unprofitable Business

Here’s to your success,

Unlocking Wealth Weekly