Stage 3 of 8
Set up & fund the search
Entity, runway, tools, and your deal bench — the boring setup that determines whether you last long enough to close.
A search is a small operation of its own: an entity, a budget with real runway, a lean tool stack, and a bench you can call — deal attorney, accountant or QoE contacts, and two or three lender relationships, even provisional ones. Funded searchers spend this stage raising their search vehicle; self-funded searchers spend it making sure their personal runway outlasts the median search.
Questions to answer before moving on
- What's my monthly search burn, and how many months can I sustain it?
- Which tools earn a place in my stack now — and which are procrastination purchases?
- Who are my deal attorney, QoE firm, and lenders, even provisionally?
- (Funded) Which investors am I raising from, on what terms?
Mistakes that cost searchers months
- Over-tooling before there's a thesis for the tools to serve
- Budgeting six months of runway for what is routinely a much longer search
- Raising from investors misaligned on size, timeline, or industry
Best current resources for this stage
Verified against primary sources, pros and cons included. Full write-ups in the directory.
The SBA's #1 7(a) lender by dollar volume, with a dedicated acquisition and search fund lending practice — 7(a) loans up to the $5M program cap and combination 7(a)+conventional structures to roughly $9M.
Our take: Start your lender conversations here — then still get a second term sheet elsewhere.
Custom pricing · Loan products (no fee to engage). SBA 7(a) up to $5M; combination structures up to ~$9M for $7–10M+ enterprise-value deals; free weekly M&A office hours for buyers targeting $500k–$12M businesses.
Verified Jul 10, 2026Full review →
Formerly the Mainshares marketplace where self-funded searchers raised acquisition equity from 1,300+ accredited investors; it rebranded to American Operator in December 2025 and pivoted to buying $2-7M businesses outright with its own cash, installing vetted operators as salaried CEOs with 10% day-one equity and a buy-up path to majority ownership. All mainshares.com pages now redirect to americanoperator.com, and the old equity-raising service is no longer offered to new searchers.
Our take: Worth a call if you would trade deal control for a funded, salaried path into eventual majority ownership of a $2-7M business — but if you came for Mainshares' investor network to plug the equity gap in your own SBA deal, that product no longer exists.
Custom pricing · Pricing not published. Vendor-published economics: American Operator funds the acquisition all-cash from its balance sheet and holds 90% at close; the operator receives 10% ownership on day one plus "full salary and benefits" (no figures disclosed) and earns/buys toward majority over an unpublished timeline; board advisors must invest a minimum of $25K for common equity. Acquisition box: $2-7M enterprise value, $3-10M+ revenue, roughly $950K+ adjusted EBITDA. FAQs titled "Is an upfront investment required?" and "Do I sign a personal guarantee?" exist on the become-an-owner page but their answers are not in the public page text.
Verified Jul 10, 2026Full review →
An SBA 7(a) loan brokerage specialized in business acquisitions — guides buyers from LOI through closing and matches deals to fitting lenders, targeting self-funded searchers borrowing roughly $500k–$5M.
Our take: The searcher-default SBA broker — free to you and deep in acquisition structures; just understand the 90-day exclusivity before signing.
Free · Free to the borrower — verbatim: 'We get paid by the SBA lender after closing, not by you as the buyer.' No borrower fees published or charged (verified on their site 2026-07-10).
Verified Jul 10, 2026Full review →
Stanford GSB's free, FAQ-style practical guide to the search fund model — the standard first document for prospective searchers and the investors who back them.
Our take: The right first 90 minutes if the investor-backed path is on your list.
Free · Free (2026 edition); download gated behind a free registration form.
Verified Jul 10, 2026Full review →
Deal-by-deal co-investment platform that pools accredited investors into a single SPV to fill the equity gap in SMB acquisitions led by self-funded searchers and independent sponsors. Searchers with a deal under LOI (roughly $1M+ EBITDA, US/Canada) apply; approved deals are shown to CapitalPad's investor network, which typically writes a combined $500K–$2.5M equity check delivered as one subscription, one wire, and one cap-table entry.
Our take: If you're under LOI on a $1M+ EBITDA business and short on your equity injection, CapitalPad is a credible, searcher-free way to raise it through one SPV — but most sub-$2M SBA deals fall below its bar, and its investor capital costs real preferred-return economics.
Success fee · Free for searchers/sponsors: "Sponsors pay nothing at any stage: your closing fee, management fee, and promote stay yours" — no placement, advisory, success, closing, or participation fees, including if the deal dies (per capitalpad.com/raise/ and /self-funded-search/). CapitalPad is paid from the investor side: investors pay a one-time 1.5% administration fee at funding (no annual management fee) plus 20% carried interest, charged only after investors receive their full capital back. Investor minimum $25,000 per deal (accredited only); institutional direct positions $750K+. Indirect cost to searchers: investors expect market-standard terms (preferred return commonly ~10–12%, possible step-up/carry), so this is priced equity, not cheap money.
Verified Jul 10, 2026Full review →
A nationwide SBA 7(a) and 504 loan brokerage covering business acquisitions ($250k–$5M), partner buyouts, owner-occupied real estate, and franchises — shops applications across a multi-bank lender network to create competing offers.
Our take: A solid second brokerage quote — make brokers compete for your deal the same way they make lenders compete.
Custom pricing · No borrower fees disclosed; the model implies lender-paid brokerage. Publishes indicative rate ranges: business loans 6.75%–11.75%, commercial real estate 5.50%–9.25% (verified on thinksba.com 2026-07-10).
Verified Jul 10, 2026Full review →
A paid, application-vetted membership program for business buyers founded by "Buy Then Build" author Walker Deibel, combining a structured onboarding curriculum, daily advisor office hours, live deal reviews, 80+ templates, 500+ broker mailing lists, and a private Slack community. Since a March 2026 "Acquisition Lab 2.0" rebrand it also houses a capital arm (dedicated fund plus an EIR program with $500k–$1M pre-committed capital) and separate paid post-close operations services.
Our take: The most credible brand-name accelerator for committed self-funded SBA searchers — the daily advisor access and live deal reviews are what you're really buying — but at $12,500 one-time with no financing, self-directed learners should start with the $20 book and free communities and join only if they want paid accountability and deal feedback.
One-time · $12,500 USD one-time for lifetime access (vendor pricing page, July 2026). No discounts or financing ("We don't have flexibility on pricing"; fee may be lender-reimbursable at closing); 30-day money-back window, non-refundable after, and refunds can be denied if a member "fully downloads materials, accesses substantial program content, or attempts to retain proprietary resources." Admission requires an application and a vetting call with a Membership Committee member. Separate paid add-ons at member-discounted rates: "Search Assistant" (during-search deal sourcing) and post-close "Operator Services" (finance/hiring back office, contact for pricing); basic Search Entity setup (~$600 value) is included with membership. Note: third-party reviews still cite $8,500–$10,000 — outdated; the fee has been raised repeatedly ($8,500 → $10,000 → $12,500).
Verified Jul 10, 2026Full review →