Published 2 November 2026 · By Jatin Dua, Broker of Record, RE/MAX Quantum Realty
To sell a funeral home in Ontario, plan years ahead, clean up three to five years of records, reconcile every prepaid contract, market it confidentially to screened buyers, then time closing to the buyer’s own Bereavement Authority of Ontario licence, because the licence does not transfer. Expect more than a year once you go to market.
This guide is for owners of independent Ontario funeral homes who are thinking about selling, retiring or handing the business on in 2027. You will get the full selling process in order, from the first year of preparation to the day the buyer’s licence is issued, with the numbers and Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) steps that matter along the way.
What does selling a funeral home in Ontario involve?
Selling a funeral home is not like selling a store. You are selling a licensed business that families trust, a set of promises made to families who prepaid, a team of licensed staff, and often a special-purpose building. Each of those pieces has its own rules.
The licence itself does not move to the buyer. The buyer applies to the BAO for its own operator licence, and the BAO’s business licence application has a box for “Purchase of Existing Business”, with a choice of share purchase or asset purchase. That means your sale and the buyer’s licensing have to be planned together. I covered the buyer’s side, including licence transfer and prepaid trusts in detail, in my guide to buying a funeral home in Ontario. This post is the owner’s side.
In my work I handle the sale of the business and the real estate. I work alongside your lawyer, your accountant and the buyer’s lender. I am not a lawyer, accountant or business valuator, so each of those people has a job in the steps below.
How long does it take to sell a funeral home?
Plan in years, not months. BDC, the federal business development bank, suggests starting exit planning ideally at least five years before you retire, because most of the steps that raise value need time. Buyers will also want at least three years of financial results.
The marketing stage alone can be long. In the United States, funeral and mortuary businesses sold through BizBuySell, a large online business-for-sale marketplace, took a median of 297 days on market for sales from 2021 through 2025. No Canadian figure is published, but I would not plan on less.
| Stage | What happens | Numbers to know |
|---|---|---|
| Plan | Decide your goal: family, staff or outside buyer | Start ideally 5+ years before retiring (BDC) |
| Prepare | Clean financials, reconcile prepaid contracts, fix the building | Buyers review at least 3 years of results (BDC) |
| Market | Confidential approach to screened buyers | Median 297 days on market, US funeral homes, 2021–2025 (BizBuySell) |
| Offer and diligence | Letter of intent, buyer review, purchase agreement | Full cash at closing is rare for small and mid-sized companies (BDC) |
| Licence and close | Buyer applies to the BAO; closing is timed to the licence | BAO application fee $611.17 plus $270 Compensation Fund payment (form dated May 2025) |
Source: BDC exit planning and sale financing guides; BizBuySell funeral home valuation benchmarks (US data); BAO Business Licence Application, May 2025.
Step 1: How do I get my funeral home ready to sell?
Preparation is where most of the money is made or lost. A buyer pays for earnings they can see and trust, so the first job is to make your numbers easy to check.
Clean up the financial story
- Pull three to five years of financial statements and tax returns. If you have no audit, BDC notes that review-engagement statements prepared by an accountant are usually acceptable.
- List the personal or one-time costs that run through the business (a family vehicle, a relative on payroll, a one-off roof repair). Your accountant can show these as “add-backs” so a buyer sees true earnings.
- Track your annual call count by service type: full service with burial, service with cremation, direct cremation, and transfers. Buyers and lenders look at volume and mix as closely as revenue.
Reconcile the prepaid book
Every prepaid contract should match a trust statement or an insurance policy. Under Ontario’s current rules, every prepaid contract signed on or after July 1, 2012 must be guaranteed, according to the BAO’s consumer guide. That means the home must deliver the contracted goods and services even if prices have risen more than the trust or policy has grown. A buyer will test that gap, so test it first.
Look at the building with a buyer’s eyes
Deferred repairs show up in every offer. Check the holding and embalming rooms, the ventilation, the garage and any lift, because the buyer’s licence application needs an occupancy permit, proof of zoning and, if there is a lift, a TSSA licence. My post on funeral home premises in Ontario lists the room rules.
Step 2: What exactly am I selling: shares, assets or the building too?
Decide the structure early, because it changes tax, licensing and who carries old obligations.
- Share sale. The buyer buys your company. Everything inside it moves, including its history and its prepaid obligations. A share sale can carry tax advantages for the seller if the shares qualify, which is a question for your accountant.
- Asset sale. The buyer picks the assets and liabilities it wants. The BAO asks the buyer in an asset purchase for a proposed letter to your prepaid purchasers, so families are told what is happening.
- The building. If you own it, you can sell it with the business, keep it and lease it to the buyer, or sell it separately. Each choice changes the price and your income after the sale.
The general trade-offs are similar across businesses, and I explain them in plain terms in asset sale versus share sale. Confirm the tax result with your accountant and the legal structure with your lawyer before you go to market.
Want a private, rough range for your own funeral home before you talk to anyone? Try the estimator below.
Step 3: How do I find buyers without the whole community knowing?
A funeral home runs on trust. If families, staff or a competitor hear “for sale” too early, calls can drop and good people can leave. I run these sales quietly.
- Build a short list first. Likely buyers include large funeral companies, regional groups, nearby independent homes and licensed funeral directors who want to own. I explain each group in a separate guide in this series.
- Use a blind summary. A one-page profile with the region, call range and service mix, but no name or address.
- Sign a confidentiality agreement before names. Only screened buyers who sign get the name, the financials and a tour, usually after hours.
- Control site visits. No walk-throughs during visitations, and no conversations with staff until you decide the timing.
The same playbook works for other owner-run businesses. My guide to selling a business confidentially covers the wording and the order in more detail.
Step 4: How do offers, deal terms and due diligence work?
Most serious buyers start with a letter of intent. It sets the price, what is included, the deposit, how long the buyer has to investigate, and when you will close. It is usually not binding on price, but it often includes a period where you agree not to shop the deal.
Price is only one line
Two offers with the same headline can be very different. Look at:
- Cash at closing versus payments later. BDC notes that a full cash payment at closing is rare in sales of small and mid-sized companies. Sellers often carry a vendor note that is repaid over time with interest.
- Earn-outs. Part of the price paid later if the business hits targets such as volume or profit.
- Your role after closing. Large buyers often sign non-compete and consulting agreements with former owners. Carriage Services, a US funeral company, reports that its agreements with former owners generally run from one to ten years.
- The building. Purchase, lease or option, and at what rent.
What the buyer will check
Expect requests for financial statements, call logs, price lists and contracts, the prepaid list with trust and insurance statements, staff and licence details, the lease or title, and the BAO public register entry. Have a clean data room ready before the letter of intent, not after.
Step 5: What has to happen with the BAO before closing?
Because the licence is not transferred, the closing date depends on the buyer’s licence. The BAO’s application checklist for a purchase of an existing business includes evidence of transfer of ownership (for an asset purchase), corporate records, police record checks for officers, directors and shareholders, debt financing information, proof of zoning, the occupancy permit, the lease, the prepaid contract list and, for an asset purchase, the proposed letter to prepaid purchasers.
The application also names the person in charge of day-to-day operations, with their licence number. So the buyer needs a licensed funeral director lined up to manage the home. If that person is you during a transition period, put it in the purchase agreement.
I build the closing date around the licence, not the other way around. The agreement should say what happens if the licence is delayed.
What happens to my staff, prepaid families and family name?
These are usually the questions owners care about most, and each can be negotiated.
- Staff. Under Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, staff the buyer keeps usually carry their years of service over, unless they are rehired more than 13 weeks after leaving or after the sale. That affects severance math for both sides, so your lawyer should map it.
- Prepaid families. Their money stays in trust or in the insurance policy. On an asset sale, the BAO expects a letter to them. A calm, well-timed letter protects the name you built.
- The name. Many buyers keep a respected family name, because families know it and trust it. If the name matters to you, put it in the purchase agreement rather than relying on a promise.
The owners who do best start two to three years before they want to leave. They tidy the books, reconcile every prepaid contract, fix the obvious repairs and keep running the home as if they were not selling. Buyers pay for momentum. A home whose calls are steady and whose owner is still engaged will draw stronger offers than the same home a year after the owner has mentally retired.
What do sellers get wrong most often?
A long, stop-start sale can cost you more than a lower first offer. In a case study published in American Funeral Director in July 2026, a three-location US operation turned down an offer of about 8.2 times EBITDA in 2022. By late 2025, after volumes normalized and the owner stepped back, the best offer was about 5.6 times a smaller EBITDA, and the value fell by nearly 60%. US example only, but the lesson travels.
Other common mistakes I see:
- Telling staff or a competitor before a buyer is chosen.
- Guessing the value from a neighbour’s sale instead of the home’s own earnings.
- Ignoring a gap between prepaid trust balances and current prices.
- Not deciding what happens to the building until a buyer asks.
- Leaving the executor to sell the business after an owner dies. If that risk is real, read my notes on what an executor actually does and plan before it happens.
What to do next
- Write down your goal: the price you need, your timing, and whether family, staff or an outside buyer is your first choice.
- Ask your accountant for three to five years of clean statements with add-backs, and a call count by service type.
- Reconcile every prepaid contract against its trust or insurance statement.
- Get a building check: rooms, ventilation, lift, roof and parking.
- Book a confidential call with me to talk through buyers, structure and timing before anyone else knows.
Need help with this? Talk to me.
I’m Jatin Dua, Broker of Record at RE/MAX Quantum Realty, and I’m the best agent to do this kind of work for you in Toronto and across the GTA. Over $100 million in GTA sales and 100+ families helped sell. Feel free to contact me any time: call or text 833-330-1925 or email [email protected].
Frequently asked questions
How do I sell a funeral home in Ontario?
You sell a funeral home in Ontario in five stages: plan, prepare your records and prepaid book, market it confidentially, negotiate offers and due diligence, then close once the buyer gets its own Bereavement Authority of Ontario licence. The licence does not transfer, so the buyer applies as a purchase of an existing business. Plan on more than a year from start to close.
Is there a funeral home for sale in Ontario right now?
Funeral homes do come up for sale in Ontario, but most are sold privately rather than listed publicly, to protect families, staff and the home’s reputation. As of November 2026, buyers usually find them through confidential approaches by owners or their advisors. If you want to buy, register your criteria privately; if you want to sell, plan a quiet process before anyone is told.
Can I transfer my funeral home licence to the buyer in Ontario?
No. In Ontario a funeral establishment licence does not transfer with a sale. The buyer applies to the Bereavement Authority of Ontario for its own licence, choosing “Purchase of Existing Business” and either a share or an asset purchase on the application. As of the May 2025 form, the fee is $611.17 plus a $270 Compensation Fund payment.
What happens to prepaid funerals when I sell my funeral home?
Prepaid money stays in trust or in the insurance policy that funds it, and the obligations go with the business. In Ontario, the BAO asks a buyer in an asset purchase for a proposed letter to prepaid purchasers and a list of contracts in force. Contracts signed on or after July 1, 2012 must be guaranteed, so any funding gap matters.
Do I have to be a funeral director to sell a funeral home?
No. Any owner can sell, including an estate or an investor. What matters is the buyer’s side: the BAO application must name a person in charge of day-to-day operations with a licence number, and a home in Ontario must be managed by a licensed funeral director. Many sellers stay on for a short transition under a written agreement.
Should I tell my staff I am selling the funeral home?
Usually not until a buyer is chosen and terms are close. Telling staff too early can lead to departures and rumours that reach families. In Ontario, staff kept by a buyer usually carry their years of service under section 9 of the Employment Standards Act, so plan the announcement with your lawyer and the buyer, and tell key people first.
How long does it usually take to sell a funeral home in Ontario?
Expect at least a year once you go to market, and longer if you count preparation. BDC suggests planning an exit at least five years ahead. In the United States, funeral homes sold on BizBuySell from 2021 to 2025 took a median of 297 days on market. No Ontario figure is published, so treat these as guides.
Will the buyer pay all cash for my funeral home?
Not always. BDC says full cash at closing is rare in sales of small and mid-sized companies, so many deals include a vendor note repaid over time, an earn-out tied to results, or a consulting agreement. Carriage Services reports its agreements with former owners run one to ten years. Compare offers on cash at closing, not just headline price.
Can a funeral home keep its family name after it is sold?
Yes, if the purchase agreement says so. Many buyers of Ontario funeral homes keep a respected local name because families know it, and the name is part of the goodwill they are paying for. If keeping the name matters to you, negotiate it in writing before you sign, including how long it must be used and on which signs and documents.
Sources
- Bereavement Authority of Ontario: Business Licence Application, Funeral Establishment and Transfer Service (May 2025)
- Bereavement Authority of Ontario: Consumer Information Guide (July 2025)
- BDC: How to plan your exit from your business
- BDC: How to finance the sale of your business
- BizBuySell: Funeral home valuation benchmarks (US, 2021–2025)
- American Funeral Director: Business Reality Check, Better a Certainty than an Uncertainty (July 2026)
- Carriage Services Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 (SEC)
- Government of Ontario: Your guide to the Employment Standards Act, continuity of employment
Related reading
- How Much Is a Funeral Home Worth in Ontario? Valuation Explained (2027)
- Who Buys Funeral Homes in Canada? Consolidators, Independents and Family Buyers
- Funeral Home Succession Planning in Ontario: Selling to Family, Staff or an Outside Buyer
- Selling a Funeral Home With the Building: Real Estate vs Business in Ontario
About the author — Jatin Dua, Toronto and GTA real estate broker
I am Jatin Dua, Broker of Record and co-founder of RE/MAX Quantum Realty Inc., Brokerage, Unit 101, 799 The Queensway, Toronto. I work with buyers and sellers across Toronto and the GTA and have helped more than 100 families sell. Four-plus years of active GTA transactions and over $100 million in sales volume.
Reach me at [email protected] or 833-330-1925, or book a call.