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Tennessee Childcare Business Brokerage

Sell Your Tennessee Childcare Center, Preschool, or Private School With Complete Confidentiality

With 37+ years of exclusive early-education transaction experience, SIP and its Tennessee-licensed broker help owners maximize exit value while protecting staff, enrolled families, and legacy.

Request a Confidential Tennessee ValuationCall (888) 881-0118 (Hablamos Español)
  • 37+ YearsEst. 1989
  • 1,000+Centers sold
  • $1B+In closed sales
  • ConfidentialBlind-profile process

Why Selling a Childcare Business in Tennessee Requires a Specialist Broker

Selling a licensed child care agency in Tennessee requires coordinating a new Department of Human Services (DHS) license for the buyer, TBI fingerprint background checks, Voluntary Pre-K partnerships, and Child Care Certificate Program families. General business brokers often overlook these regulatory triggers, risking closing delays or enrollment loss.

Strictly speaking, a Tennessee childcare license does not move with the business. DHS's licensing rules (Rule 1240-04-01-.04) say a license is not transferable to a new address or a new owner, so the buyer applies for its own. That one rule sets off a chain of steps the buyer, the lender, and you all have to plan around:

  • A new license. Issued by DHS to the new owner, who applies as a new licensee.
  • TBI fingerprint checks. Everyone who works in a licensed child care agency completes a criminal history check through the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
  • Voluntary Pre-K partnerships. Pre-K classrooms in community centers run under contracts with the local school district.
  • Child Care Certificate families. Families paying through DHS's Child Care Certificate Program need continuity under the new owner.

SIP has focused on childcare and private-school transactions since E.T. and Pam Strickland founded the firm in 1989, and our Tennessee broker, Jason Strickland, has owned and operated five preschools and a K–12 private school. We build these steps into the purchase agreement and closing schedule from the start, so licensing and funding deadlines are planned for, not discovered late.

How We Value Tennessee Daycares, Preschools & Educational Real Estate

A defensible price starts with the right earnings measure and a clear view of the real estate. We work through both with you before your business goes to market.

SDE or EBITDA

Owner-operated centers are usually valued on seller's discretionary earnings (SDE): profit with the owner's salary, benefits, and one-time or personal expenses added back, because the buyer will usually step into the owner's role. Larger centers and multi-site groups with a director and management team in place are usually valued on EBITDA, the measure multi-unit operators and investors use to compare acquisitions.

Leased Facility or Fee-Simple Property

In a leased center, much of the value rides on the lease: the term remaining, renewal options, rent, and whether the landlord will consent to an assignment or a new lease for the buyer. When you own the building outright (fee simple), the real estate is valued separately from the business, and the two can be sold together or separately.

Keep the Building, Become the Landlord

Owners who want ongoing income can sell the business, keep the real estate, and sign the buyer to a new triple-net (NNN) lease, under which the tenant pays property taxes, insurance, and maintenance on top of rent. The rent you set works on both sides: it is an expense in the business's earnings and the income that sets the building's value as an investment.

Multiples vary widely: two Tennessee centers with similar revenue can be valued very differently once enrollment, staff tenure, licensing history, Voluntary Pre-K partnerships, Certificate Program participation, and the lease are taken into account. How our confidential valuation works

Navigating Tennessee DHS Licensing, Pre-K Partnerships & Certificate Families

What changes hands in a Tennessee childcare sale, what doesn't, and who signs off.

Who licenses the new owner

The Tennessee Department of Human Services (DHS) licenses child care agencies, including centers. Its rules say a license is not transferable to a new address or a new owner, so the buyer applies as a new licensee. We check current application requirements with DHS early, so the closing date reflects them.

TBI background checks

Everyone who works in a licensed Tennessee child care agency must complete a fingerprint-based criminal history check through the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (T.C.A. § 71-3-507), and out-of-state checks apply to anyone who lived, worked, or attended school outside Tennessee in the past five years. Starting the buyer's checks early keeps them off the critical path.

Voluntary Pre-K partnerships

The Tennessee Department of Education funds Voluntary Pre-K through school districts, which may contract with private child care agencies. If your center hosts Pre-K classrooms, that contract is with the district, so we ask the district early how a change of ownership affects it.

Child Care Certificate Program

DHS's Child Care Certificate Program helps eligible families pay for care at participating providers. If certificate families are part of your enrollment, we confirm with DHS how the buyer keeps participating, so families aren't caught by a gap.

Visit Tennessee DHS Child Care Services

General information, not legal advice. Agencies update their forms and rules, so confirm current requirements with your licensing office.

Statewide Representation Across Every Major Tennessee Market

SIP's Tennessee-licensed broker represents sellers across the state. DHS licenses child care agencies statewide, so the same rules apply in every market.

  • Nashville & Middle Tennessee

    • Nashville
    • Murfreesboro & Franklin
    • Clarksville

  • Knoxville & East Tennessee

    • Knoxville
    • Tri-Cities
    • Maryville

  • Chattanooga & Southeast

    • Chattanooga
    • Cleveland
    • Athens

  • Memphis & West Tennessee

    • Memphis
    • Germantown & Collierville
    • Jackson

Don't see your area? Our Tennessee broker works statewide; call (888) 881-0118.

Tennessee Childcare Sellers: Common Questions

Private. Confidential. No Obligation.

Request a Confidential Tennessee Valuation

Tell us about your Tennessee center and what you are considering. Your inquiry is confidential and puts you under no obligation.

Jason Strickland, Broker at School Investment Properties, childcare business brokerage

Broker | Multi-State

Jason Strickland

Jason has owned and operated five preschool facilities and a K–12 private school, and evaluates a school from both the financial and the educational side, so every fact that affects the sale is found and weighed.

Meet our team

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(888) 881-0118

Hablamos Español

Headquarters: 3309 Northlake Blvd, Suite 107, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33403

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