RIA deal report maps what buyers reject

Advisor Growth Strategies has published the 2026 edition of its RIA Deal Room report, an eight-year archive of proprietary M&A research the firm calls its most comprehensive yet. Sponsored by BlackRock, the report looks at how RIA deals get structured, why buyers walk away, and what it takes to command a premium.

For an advisor weighing a sale, the report works best as a filter. Deal structure determines real take-home as much as the multiple on the cover does. Earn-outs, seller notes, and equity rollovers shift risk from one side to the other, so two offers with the same sticker number can cash out very differently. The walk-away list is the part sellers tend to save for last; it deserves first read. It separates a credible buyer from a tire-kicker and shows which practice characteristics kill a deal before letters of intent get signed. The structure section then shows how to compare offers on those terms.

The report joins a wider body of seller-readiness research. DeVoe & Company's 2024 talent report tied a drop in succession planning to a next-generation bench under pressure; a practice that cannot retain its next leaders has a harder sale ahead.

Premium drivers are the other half of the benchmark. A practice without them has to price itself accordingly. Sellers who know where they stand on each driver can fix weaknesses before going to market, or at least negotiate with evidence instead of hope. Advisor Growth Strategies says the report draws on eight years of proprietary data.

A deal report that spans eight years is only as good as the questions it makes an owner ask. The obvious one is price. The better ones involve structure, buyer motivation, and the post-close life of the practice. The most useful number in any deal report is rarely the average multiple; it is the reasons deals die.