Who should I hire to sell my business in Alberta?
In Alberta, a person who sells your business for a fee is trading in real estate once a building or a lease is in the deal, and that takes a RECA licence. Here is who to bring in at each stage of a sale, and how to check each one.
In Alberta, a broker who sells your business for a fee needs a RECA real estate licence when the deal includes a building or a lease, because the Real Estate Act treats both as real estate. A sale of shares alone generally falls outside it. Check the licence and its commercial sector on RECA’s ProCheck before you sign.
The Alberta law behind a broker’s licence
An owner who searches for a business broker in Alberta, whether in Calgary or in Edmonton, finds directories and firm profiles first. Before comparing any of them, check a rule that belongs to this province. Section 17 of Alberta’s Real Estate Act allows a person to trade in real estate as a real estate broker only with the licence for that purpose, and the Real Estate Council of Alberta (RECA) issues it.
The Act defines a real estate broker as a person who trades in real estate for others in return for a fee. Trading reaches well beyond signing the sale. Under section 1 it includes advertising real estate for sale and negotiating the agreement, along with any act that furthers either one.
This piece builds on our comparison of a business broker, an M&A advisor or selling it yourself and on Alberta’s costs and rules for a sale. It adds who an Alberta owner hires at each stage and how to check each one.
A building, a lease, or shares alone
The same Act defines real estate as real property or leasehold property, and it counts a lease or any other disposition of an interest in real estate as a sale. Whether your deal falls inside the Act therefore turns on what the buyer receives.
- In an asset sale where the company’s own building goes to the buyer, the deal includes real property. The person who markets it for a fee is trading in real estate.
- In an asset sale of a business that rents its premises, the buyer usually takes over the lease. A lease is leasehold property, so passing it on brings the deal inside the Act as well.
- In a sale of shares, the buyer acquires the company, and the building or lease stays in the company’s name. The Alberta Real Estate Association’s practice guidance reads the Act as leaving a sale of shares alone outside its reach, even where the company owns property.
The structure is often settled at the letter of intent, after a broker has already begun. A deal that starts as a share sale can end as an asset sale with a lease assignment, and the licence question changes with it. Which structure suits you depends mostly on tax, as share sale or asset sale explains.
Section 2 of the Act exempts two groups from licensing. One is an owner disposing of real estate it owns, so you may sell your own business and building yourself. The other is a member in good standing of the Law Society of Alberta acting as part of the practice of law.
The commercial sector of a RECA licence
RECA licenses real estate professionals in four sectors, and each sector needs its own education. Commercial is the sector for property used to earn income. A licensee may hold several sectors once the course for each is complete.
A licence also has a class. A real estate associate is registered with a brokerage, while a broker runs one, and RECA requires at least two years as an associate within the last five before an associate can become a broker.
For a business that includes a building or a lease, the person you hire should hold a real estate licence with the commercial sector. The Alberta Real Estate Association’s guidance says a realtor licensed in Alberta needs the commercial designation to help with the sale of a business that has a real property component.
Looking up a licensee before you sign
RECA’s public search, ProCheck, takes a person’s name or a brokerage’s name. It shows whether they are authorized to work in Alberta and the type of licence they hold. It also lists disciplinary decisions from the last five years.
RECA’s page for owners selling a business property asks you to confirm that the licence fits your type of transaction. It also recommends a written service agreement, which sets out what the licensee will do and how they are paid. Compare those fees in dollars at the price you expect, the method what it costs to sell a business walks through.
Your Alberta advisers in the order a sale needs them
A broker is one of several people a sale draws in. The table sets out who an Alberta owner usually brings in at each stage, and where each one can be checked in this province.
| Stage | Who | What they do | How to check them |
|---|---|---|---|
| A year or more before the sale | A Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) | Tax planning and the financial statements a buyer will read | CPA Alberta’s Verify a CPA Member search |
| When a formal value is needed | A Chartered Business Valuator (CBV) | A written opinion of value that others can rely on | The CBV Institute directory, searchable by name and city |
| If the company owns its building | A real estate appraiser | A market value for the building, which also sets the Land Titles fee | Membership in a body named in section 17.1 of the Real Estate Act |
| Marketing and negotiation | A business broker or an M&A advisor | Finding buyers and running the offers | RECA ProCheck, with the commercial sector where land or a lease is in the deal |
| Letter of intent to closing | A lawyer | The purchase agreement and the documents that transfer land or a lease | The Law Society of Alberta Lawyer Directory |
The accountant’s check matters most, since CPA Alberta’s verification page says anyone in Alberta may call themselves an accountant. The Verify a CPA Member search confirms the designation, and CPA Alberta answers enquiries about a member’s public record of discipline. Your accountant is often the first person you tell, and our guide for accountants covers that role.
The CBV Institute directory lists valuators by location and specialty, and a listing serves as contact information for the public. When a formal valuation repays its fee is the subject of our piece on hiring a business valuator.
For the building, section 17.1 of the Real Estate Act reserves the work of a real estate appraiser in Alberta to members of three named bodies, the Appraisal Institute of Canada among them. The figure matters twice, because the Land Titles fee is set on market value.
The Law Society’s Lawyer Directory shows whether a lawyer is currently practising, along with their admission date and any discipline history. Choose one whose practice includes business sales, since the lawyer drafts the agreement your broker negotiates.
Where InvestDeal fits in this list
InvestDeal is an M&A advisory firm that sells owner-operated businesses across Canada, Alberta included. The work runs as a confidential sale: buyers see an anonymous profile, and your name goes only to a buyer you approve. The fee is five percent of the sale price, paid on closing, and it is the only payment you make.
Put the questions in this piece to every adviser you speak with, ours included, and keep the answers in writing. An owner with sites in other provinces will find the rules for British Columbia and Ontario in their own guides. To see where your company stands before you hire anyone, the free valuation is anonymous and gives an early range on adjusted earnings in a few minutes.
The provincial tax and regulatory requirements, regions and buyers are set out on selling a business in Alberta.
Fee structure, buyer outreach and disclosure are compared in InvestDeal compared with a business broker.
Questions owners ask
- Does a business broker need a licence in Alberta?
- A broker needs a RECA real estate licence when the sale includes real property or leasehold property, such as the company’s building or the lease on its premises. Section 17 of the Real Estate Act requires a licence to trade in real estate for others in return for a fee.
- How do I check a business broker’s licence in Alberta?
- Search the person or the brokerage by name on RECA ProCheck. It shows whether they are authorized to work in Alberta and the type of licence they hold, with disciplinary decisions from the last five years. For a deal with land or a lease, look for the commercial sector.
- Can I sell my own business in Alberta and skip the broker?
- Yes. Section 2 of the Real Estate Act exempts an owner disposing of its own real estate, so you may sell the business and its building yourself. A lawyer acting in the practice of law is exempt as well, and you will still want one for the purchase agreement.
- How do I check an accountant or a valuator in Alberta?
- CPA Alberta keeps a public search of its members, which matters because anyone in Alberta may use the title accountant. Chartered Business Valuators are listed in the CBV Institute directory, searchable by name and city.