A auto body shop in Waukegan is priced on adjusted seller’s discretionary earnings after a buyer compares this book to Gurnee — 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 Waukegan file. Confidential sale. No upfront listing fee.
Confidential • No upfront fees • Illinois statewide
Waukegan market
Selling a auto body shop in Waukegan
A auto body shop in Waukegan is priced on adjusted seller’s discretionary earnings after a buyer compares this book to Gurnee — 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 Waukegan file.
Waukegan is Lake County’s seat: a lakefront industrial and downtown city with a working port heritage, not a North Shore boutique village.
Great Lakes Naval Station payroll and I-94 industrial parks attract operator and logistics buyers. Do not price this like Libertyville or Gurnee Mills tourism. Municipal licenses, harbor-adjacent environmental questions, and a bilingual customer base show up more often than a lifestyle-suburb teaser.
Waukegan has about 87,157 residents in Lake County, inside the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area. Nearby markets buyers already compare this book to include Gurnee, Libertyville. That comparison changes who shows up: a buyer who will drive from Gurnee 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
Lake County
Population
87,157
Metro
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
Nearby comps
Gurnee, Libertyville
Closing clock
Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago
DuPage, Lake, Kane, Will, McHenry, Kendall, and neighboring collar shops sell on household density and the I-88, I-90, I-94, and I-55 corridors.
There is no Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. Buyers still compare this suburb to the next one on the same highway.
Waukegan demand for auto body shops is the customer list and the license path — not the Census population figure. About 87,157 residents is context for who already lives in the trade area. It is not a sale price.
Auto Body Shop in Waukegan
What a Waukegan buyer will underwrite on this auto body shop
A auto body shop in Waukegan is bays or site plus environmental accounts. Dealer service departments and neighboring shops in Gurnee, Libertyville are the competition. 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 Waukegan shop. Buyers here usually argue drp insurance relationships, equipment value, i-car certifications, throughput capacity.
Closing clock for this Waukegan 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 Waukegan application of it.
In a suburb like Waukegan, collision technicians, mso groups, pe-backed platforms are the names that usually appear on the NDA list. A buyer who will drive from Gurnee is not the same buyer who will fly in from a coastal platform.
Buyer pool
Who buys a auto body shop in Waukegan
Split buyer pool: North Shore and Libertyville businesses attract SBA and strategics who want household income; Waukegan and industrial I-94 businesses attract operator and logistics buyers. Great Lakes Naval Station and tourism along the lake change seasonality for some retail and hospitality books.
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 Gurnee, Libertyville is a larger business than one that stops at the Waukegan city limit. Tell the truth about the route. Buyers will map it.
SDE recast
How a buyer will read the books on this Waukegan 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 Waukegan shop. A auto body shop whose tax return shows $127,000 of net profit is not worth $127,000 × a rumor multiple.
Add back the owner’s $79,000 W-2 and payroll tax, $16,000 of discretionary benefits, $11,000 of accepted one-time cost, and $11,000 of personal expenses that a buyer will not run. Then subtract $24,000 of replacement labor if the owner still diagnoses, sells, or closes the books.
Adjusted seller’s discretionary earnings are $220,000. At the planning range 2.5x–4.0x, enterprise value is $550,000 to $880,000. Mid-range 3.25x is $715,000 before debt, working capital, holdback, and tax. A Waukegan buyer will argue the multiple after they ride with the staff and read the lease.
At 3.25 times $220,000 of seller’s discretionary earnings, enterprise value is $715,000 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 Waukegan auto body shop — not a quote
Net profit
$127,000
Owner W-2
$79,000
Benefits
$16,000
One-time
$11,000
Personal
$11,000
Replacement labor (subtract)
−$24,000
Recast SDE
$220,000
Planning EV at 3.25x
$715,000
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.
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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.
Lake County closings use state CBS-1 plus municipal licenses (Waukegan, Gurnee, Libertyville, and North Shore villages each differ). No Chicago 45-day notice unless you also have a Chicago location. Lake County health and contractor registrations are common diligence items for food and trades.
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 Waukegan
For a auto body shop in Waukegan, the first labor question is: Assignable or re-appliable DRP relationships.
I-94 is the spine. Route density is real between Buffalo Grove and Gurnee and thinner toward the Wisconsin line. Leases in outlet and tourism corridors can be franchise- or landlord-controlled. Winter lake-effect operations matter for home services.
Lake mixes Fortune-campus remnants, naval payroll, and bedroom suburbs. Do not price a Waukegan industrial book like a Libertyville professional practice.
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 Waukegan 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 Waukegan 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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yrs
Down Payment Required—
Loan Amount—
Est. Monthly Payment—
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 Waukegan auto body shop for sale
Recast this Waukegan auto body shop. Start with the tax return. Add owner pay. Subtract replacement labor if the seller still does the work a Waukegan 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 Waukegan, and whether that person stays. Personal licenses do not transfer with the assets.
Tell the truth about the Waukegan 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 Waukegan limit.
Open the lease and the labor file. Remaining term and assignment in Lake 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 Waukegan file. Confidential consult — no upfront listing fee.
Answers for owners and buyers in Lake 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 Waukegan asset sales file Illinois Form CBS-1 at least 10 business days before closing. Lake 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.
Buyers in Waukegan are often SBA owner-operators and neighboring operators along the same corridor. Larger recurring books can draw a platform. They will compare this suburb to the next town in Lake County.
No. The planning multiple for auto body shops is a statewide starting point, not a Waukegan appraisal. Buyers in Lake County still adjust seller’s discretionary earnings, then argue the lease, licenses, labor, and owner dependency.
Service Area
Auto Body Shop Brokerage Near Waukegan
We serve auto body shops owners and buyers across Lake County and the surrounding region.