Patrick Dichter

Updating my bio for new followers - I’ve acquired 3 accounting firms. Appletree provides bookkeeping, tax and consulting to small businesses nationwide. Previous background was sales and advisory. Dad of 3 boys.

@shiftj Yeah you bet

@patrickdichter 100% - mind if i shoot you a DM on the subject?

99% of LinkedIn this week was trash. But this post was interesting to see SBA loan distress data.

@shiftj A lot of us felt there’d be a rise in defaults the last few years but the only data I saw was binary…it’s good to see the numbers and different levels of distress. I have 2 SBA loans myself and believe in the program but the risk is very real

@patrickdichter What % of total SBA loans enter the distressed pipeline?

@SBA_Matthias @adamstatonsmith @Paychex @CBarrett_CPA Move to Gusto. Let me know if we can help

@adamstatonsmith @Paychex Tagging @CBarrett_CPA and @patrickdichter One of them might have a suggestion

You pay @Paychex to remit your payroll taxes. We just found out 5.5 months later they didn’t. No reason. No explanation. Their answer: “we could not find a reason.” That’s a hell of a service.

@IusEtPecator It’s usually not about regulation or compliance…it’s owners hearing they need full accrual or GAAP somewhere and thinking they need it

@patrickdichter I’ve searched but have never found specific regulatory guidance regarding the trigger point.

So many people think they need full accrual financials and it’s completely unnecessary and overkill.

@SteveWiesnerSMB 🤝

@patrickdichter Couldn’t agree more. I’ve made this mistake.

@TheRealTechCPA Light accrual with AP and AR, and an accurate balance sheet works for the bank. Some call it modified cash

@patrickdichter Generally would agree. What I’ve seen is when businesses need to start getting some big credit lines or financing and the banks want GAAP financials. Where do you see the appropriate time for accrual financials making sense?

@KurtisHanni Totally. Clicking the little toggle in QBO usually doesn’t do it either

@patrickdichter And very few who think they’re doing full accrual actually are!

@jeffarussell Yes

@patrickdichter Modified cash accrual is the way to go. 😃

B2C services like residential HVAC, auto repair, cleaning, etc doing less than $3M in revenue - go put your energy in sales and leadership.

@therobertbrooks Why tho when you’re crushing organic growth?

IOI Sent... IYKYK

@SMB_Attorney @smblawgroup That video is amazing. Congrats!!! Keep it rolling

Four years ago today, we launched the first-ever social media-driven law firm, @smblawgroup. Here’s how it’s going:

@alsciola @SMB_Attorney Sent you a DM

@SMB_Attorney I'm repping a ~$375K+ SDE Pest Control business just outside of Boston. Who should I talk to?

The two best business models in 2026: 1. RIAs 2. Pest Control

@chrissundberg @SMB_Attorney I’m in

@patrickdichter @SMB_Attorney What about RIAs with accounting firm AND pest control? Can’t lose.

@loganallec @HelenGuo_ Yeah 25% international. And we have a lot of bookkeepers who are working moms that are 25-30 hours/week vs full time. And I hire ahead a lot for growth

@patrickdichter @HelenGuo_ Are some overseas?

Last year I spoke to a guy who’d never worked a single day as an accountant, but he put 10% down to buy a $1,300,000 accounting firm. The SBA still funded it. Here’s a full breakdown of the deal: - Purchase price: $1.3M - Revenue: $1.2M/year - Team: 12 employees - Clients: 60 small businesses - Structure: 10% cash / 15% seller note / 75% SBA financing You might be wondering how he pulled it off with zero experience. Most accounting firms for sale are run by a single CPA who owns every client relationship, supported by 3-4 admins. The day that owner walks out, the firm pretty much goes up in flames because every relationship was theirs. Apple Tree was different. The previous owner had pushed himself out of all but 2 client relationships (out of 60) before listing. The team was already handling most of the work. So when Patrick stepped in, he could focus on running the business - sales, marketing, hiring, and upgrading the firm's internal tech. But it wasn't smooth sailing. @patrickdichter wasn't a CPA, and accounting brokers weren't exactly lining up to take his calls. So he went direct: 500 cold emails and 20 seller calls before the first closed deal (yes, this takes a lot of work). In our convo, we go into: - The 3 must-haves Patrick screens for before he'll look at a firm - Why 20 minutes on a seller call tells you more than 3 weeks analyzing the SIM (the documents brokers send out describing the business) - Why the $300K - $700K cash flow range is the sweet spot Watch it here ↓↓↓

I caught up with a guy at a conference saying he might sell his business…. An hour later he’s bidding on a live car auction on his phone. Seemed like he’d already mentally sold and cashed the check 😂

@loganallec @HelenGuo_ Yap. Too many? Finished last year at $4.7M and 40 team members

@HelenGuo_ $1.2 million with 12 employees???

@SteveNovak1 @HelenGuo_ I bought companies licensed as professional services firms, they weren’t licensed as CPA firms. So it depends on how the selling firm is structured and each state has different rules.

@HelenGuo_ How did get around the state’s requirement that a cpa own 51%?

@HelenGuo_ @toph_edwards Thanks! It’s been great helping business buyers in your community

@toph_edwards @patrickdichter Agreed! We’ve sent members his way who have all said positive things!