A auto body shop in Carthage is priced on adjusted seller’s discretionary earnings after a buyer compares this book to Quincy — not on a statewide rumor multiple. Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. The statewide auto body shops playbook is on the industry hub; this page is the Carthage file. Confidential sale. No upfront listing fee.
Confidential • No upfront fees • Illinois statewide
Carthage market
Selling a auto body shop in Carthage
A auto body shop in Carthage is priced on adjusted seller’s discretionary earnings after a buyer compares this book to Quincy — not on a statewide rumor multiple. Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. The statewide auto body shops playbook is on the industry hub; this page is the Carthage file.
Carthage is Hancock County’s seat near the Mississippi — a small courthouse town, Latter-day Saint historic sites, and Iowa-border adjacency, not Quincy’s regional city.
Quincy and Iowa operators show up as often as Springfield buyers. Dual-state tax questions appear on some books. Tourism around historic sites is seasonal if it appears in the P&L at all. Population is small; the customer map has to reach the townships.
Carthage has about 2,504 residents in Hancock County, inside the Carthage area. Nearby markets buyers already compare this book to include Quincy, Macomb. That comparison changes who shows up: a buyer who will drive from Quincy is not the same buyer who will fly in from a coastal platform.
Planning facts
Typical multiple
2.5x–4x SDE
Typical timeline
5–10 months
SBA eligible
Often — confirm
County
Hancock County
Population
2,504
Metro
Carthage
Nearby comps
Quincy, Macomb
Closing clock
Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago
Peoria, Quincy, Galesburg, and river-industrial towns underwrite customer concentration (OEM, hospital, campus) before anyone argues a multiple.
The first call is usually an operator on I-74 or the river, not a coastal fund.
Carthage demand for auto body shops is the customer list and the license path — not the Census population figure. About 2,504 residents is context for who already lives in the trade area. It is not a sale price.
Auto Body Shop in Carthage
What a Carthage buyer will underwrite on this auto body shop
A auto body shop in Carthage is bays or site plus environmental accounts. The first buyer is often an operator from Quincy, Macomb, not a coastal platform. Waste-oil, tanks, or refrigerant rules do not silently follow a stock sale.
Auto Body Shops statewide typically plan around 2.5x–4x SDE and a 5–10 months process when books and the lease are ready. That is a planning range, not a price for this Carthage shop. Buyers here usually argue drp insurance relationships, equipment value, i-car certifications, throughput capacity.
Closing clock for this Carthage file: Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. License path: Illinois does not license body shops statewide the way it licenses roofers, but paint-booth emissions, IEPA waste, and municipal occupancy are live issues. The industry hub teaches the statewide rule. This URL is the Carthage application of it.
Carthage is a small town market. The first serious call is often an owner-operator from Quincy, Macomb, not a platform that needs $2 million of earnings to pay for diligence. SBA 7(a) and seller financing usually matter more here than a headline multiple.
Buyer pool
Who buys a auto body shop in Carthage
Quincy and Iowa operators as often as Springfield buyers.
Illustration: a two-booth collision shop in Rockford with three DRP agreements, an aging downdraft booth, and a seller who still writes every estimate. Not a closed sale.
A auto body shop whose customers already sit in Quincy, Macomb is a larger business than one that stops at the Carthage city limit. Tell the truth about the route. Buyers will map it.
SDE recast
How a buyer will read the books on this Carthage auto body shop
Collision recasts on DRP throughput and cycle time, not a custom-paint year. Add back owner compensation, then isolate total-loss admin fees, OEM-certification pass-through, and any painter who is really a 1099. Frame and booth depreciation is real; do not treat a fully depreciated downdraft booth as free cash forever.
Illustration only — not a quote for any Carthage shop. A auto body shop whose tax return shows $157,000 of net profit is not worth $157,000 × a rumor multiple.
Add back the owner’s $62,000 W-2 and payroll tax, $12,000 of discretionary benefits, $10,500 of accepted one-time cost, and $10,000 of personal expenses that a buyer will not run. Then subtract $66,000 of replacement labor if the owner still diagnoses, sells, or closes the books.
Adjusted seller’s discretionary earnings are $185,000. At the planning range 2.5x–4.0x, enterprise value is $462,500 to $740,000. Mid-range 3.25x is $601,250 before debt, working capital, holdback, and tax. A Carthage buyer will argue the multiple after they ride with the staff and read the lease.
At 3.25 times $185,000 of seller’s discretionary earnings, enterprise value is $601,250 before debt, working capital, holdback, and tax. That is the planning conversation. It is not a listing-site guess.
SDE line items
Reported net profit (tax return, not the marketing P&L)
+ Interest expense
+ Income taxes (not payroll, sales, or property tax)
+ Depreciation and amortization
+ Owner W-2, bonuses, and payroll taxes on the owner
+ Discretionary owner benefits that a buyer will not keep (auto, personal travel, family on payroll with no role)
+ Accepted one-time or non-recurring expenses
− Market-rate replacement labor for owner work that will not transfer
= Seller’s Discretionary Earnings (SDE)
Illustration recast for a Carthage auto body shop — not a quote
Net profit
$157,000
Owner W-2
$62,000
Benefits
$12,000
One-time
$10,500
Personal
$10,000
Replacement labor (subtract)
−$66,000
Recast SDE
$185,000
Planning EV at 3.25x
$601,250
Recast Seller’s Discretionary Earnings, then apply a planning multiple for auto body shops.
Replacement labor is subtracted. This is a planning tool, not an appraisal.
Recast SDE—
Planning enterprise value—
Before debt, working-capital peg, holdback, and tax. Educational only.
Enter your annual Seller's Discretionary Earnings (SDE) — your net profit plus owner's salary and any personal expenses run through the business — to estimate a range.
$
1x3.0x8x
Estimated Value Range—to—
This is an estimate for planning purposes only. Actual value depends on lease terms, asset quality, customer concentration, and current market conditions. Request a professional valuation for a precise number.
Hancock (Carthage) uses state CBS-1. Mississippi River / Iowa-border books can have dual-state issues.
Illinois does not license body shops statewide the way it licenses roofers, but paint-booth emissions, IEPA waste, and municipal occupancy are live issues. I-CAR and OEM certifications sit with people and with the facility. Insurer DRP agreements are contracts with the named shop and often require a buyer application, not a blanket assignment.
Labor and lease
What has to keep working on Monday after close in Carthage
For a auto body shop in Carthage, the first labor question is: Assignable or re-appliable DRP relationships.
Rural western Illinois. Farm and small manufacturing.
Border county. Customer ZIPs matter more than the Illinois headline.
Diligence
What a serious auto body shop buyer will open
Levers that move the multiple in this vertical: Assignable or re-appliable DRP relationships; Booth and frame equipment that meets current OEM repair methods; Staying estimators and painters; ADAS and aluminum capability; Cycle time a consolidator will not immediately discount.
Have these ready before anyone hears the name of the Carthage business: DRP roster, cycle time, and severity mix by carrier; Booth age, make-up air, and IEPA or municipal paint-booth file; Frame rack, welder, and ADAS-calibration capability; I-CAR / OEM certifications tied to staying techs; Parts-procurement accounts and rental-car float; Work-in-process and supplemental-aging that inflates the trailing twelve.
Buyer tool
SBA payment sketch for a Carthage auto body shop buyer
Most Illinois owner-operator acquisitions use SBA 7(a). This is a payment sketch, not an approval.
SBA 7(a) loans are the most common financing for business acquisitions. Estimate your monthly payment and required down payment based on the purchase price.
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Loan Amount—
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This calculator provides estimates for planning purposes only. Actual SBA loan terms depend on your credit profile, the specific lender, and current market conditions. Contact us to connect with SBA-approved lenders in Illinois.
Sale steps
How to prepare a Carthage auto body shop for sale
Recast this Carthage auto body shop. Start with the tax return. Add owner pay. Subtract replacement labor if the seller still does the work a Carthage buyer must hire. Do not treat a spike year as the new normal.
Name who can operate on Monday. List every credential that lets this auto body shop pull a permit or see a patient in Carthage, and whether that person stays. Personal licenses do not transfer with the assets.
Tell the truth about the Carthage trade area. Map customers against neighboring towns. Buyers will. A book that already covers those towns is larger than a book that stops at the Carthage limit.
Open the lease and the labor file. Remaining term and assignment in Hancock County. Whether the crew can run without the seller living eight minutes away.
Calendar the notices that apply here. Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. Start them at letter of intent, not the week of funding.
Read the statewide playbook, then talk. The Illinois auto body shops hub is the statute and recast teaching. This page is the Carthage file. Confidential consult — no upfront listing fee.
Answers for owners and buyers in Hancock County, including local closing steps.
Illinois auto body shops typically sell for 2.5x–4x SDE. Shops with DRP (Direct Repair Program) relationships with major insurers and I-CAR Gold Class certification command the higher end.
Very important. Insurance DRP relationships provide a consistent, predictable flow of work and are a major value driver. Buyers will scrutinize these relationships carefully, so maintaining them leading up to your sale is essential.
Most Illinois auto body shop sales close within 5–10 months. Shops with strong DRP relationships, certified staff, and modern equipment tend to attract qualified buyers quickly.
Buyers include Multi-Shop Operator (MSO) groups, PE-backed collision consolidators, and individual collision technicians ready to own. Illinois is an active collision consolidation market.
No. Most body shop sales are business-only transactions. A long-term, assumable lease is often preferable to buyers who want to minimize upfront capital requirements.
Most Carthage asset sales file Illinois Form CBS-1 at least 10 business days before closing. Hancock County does not use Chicago’s 45-day city notice unless the business also operates there. Municipal licenses and the lease still need their own calendar.
The first serious call in Carthage is usually an owner-operator or a neighboring shop, not a coastal fund. Hancock County buyers already know the trade area. Seller financing and a clean lease matter more than a headline multiple.
No. The planning multiple for auto body shops is a statewide starting point, not a Carthage appraisal. Buyers in Hancock County still adjust seller’s discretionary earnings, then argue the lease, licenses, labor, and owner dependency.
Service Area
Auto Body Shop Brokerage Near Carthage
We serve auto body shops owners and buyers across Hancock County and the surrounding region.