This is general guidance, not legal or tax advice. A business sale needs a solicitor and an accountant.
What a buyer actually values
Revenue matters, but solar buyers dig into quality. Expect questions on:
- Claims history. Rejection rates, any CER audits or notices, and how issues were fixed. See how the CER audits installers.
- Evidence. Whether each job has a complete photo set, signed forms and serials. Missing records are a liability the buyer inherits.
- Warranty and workmanship exposure. Systems installed in recent years are the buyer’s concern if the entity is sold.
- Pipeline. Signed, scheduled jobs with confirmed stock and finance.
- Contracts. Trader agreements, distributor accounts, leases and staff entitlements.
- Customer base and reviews. A repeatable lead source is worth more than a one-off boom, particularly after the 2025 to 2026 battery surge.
Accreditation does not transfer
Installer accreditation is personal. A buyer needs accredited installers on staff or must obtain accreditation. The businesses also need to be set up correctly with their trader or registry arrangements. Check the current position with Solar Accreditation Australia and the CER.
Share sale or asset sale
In a share sale the buyer takes the company, including its history and obligations. In an asset sale the buyer takes selected assets and contracts and the seller keeps the historical liabilities. Each has tax and risk consequences, which is why advice matters. If past STC claims are exposed to audit or clawback, expect warranties and indemnities in the contract.
Prepare before you list
- Audit your own files for 24 months of jobs and fix gaps now.
- Reconcile STC payments to invoices; see RCTI, GST and ABN.
- Document your processes: photo checklists, claim workflow, trader terms.
- Clear outstanding rejected claims.
- Keep your cash flow history clean; see installer cash flow and STCs.
Timing the sale
Buyers pay more for a business with a stable year behind it than for one at the peak of a rebate-driven rush. With the deeming period and battery factor stepping down towards 2030, a buyer will ask how much revenue depends on certificate income and how the business would look at lower rebate levels. Show diversified work (service, commercial, batteries) and a record of cost control, not only top-line growth.
What this means for installers
Whether you sell or not, run the business as if a buyer will read the files. Energy Merchants’ compliance desk pre-checks each claim and keeps lodgement history in one place; see how it works, the partner program and the installer business hub. For responsibility questions, read who is responsible for a failed STC audit.