A buyer reached out. They know your market, they move fast, and they mention that going direct saves everyone the hassle of a process. It sounds reasonable. It isn't. In two behavioral health transactions — one that went from $7.5M to $15M, another from $37M to $52M — the seller's preferred buyer paid significantly more simply because they knew others were at the table. Same buyer. Same company. Same diligence. The only difference was competition.
