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The easing of the credit crunch is spurring sales. Banks are more willing to lend to small businesses, says Paul Merski, chief economist with the Independent Community Bankers of America, a trade group. Still, some caution remains because of increased government regulation following the financial crisis of 2008. Many sellers are financing sales
-- letting buyers pay on an installment plan -- to get deals done. Before Michael Epstein and his business partner could sell their 13-year-old video game manufacturer, eDimensional, they had to agree to finance part of the sale price. Only then did the buyer's lender approve the deal. The deal closed in July. They had hoped to sell five years ago. "We were aggressively trying to sell before the credit crunch, and took it off the market when we weren't feeling good about the buyers and types of financing available," says Epstein, whose company was located in Jupiter, Fla. Retail businesses and restaurants are especially hot. Restaurant sales more than doubled in the third quarter, BizBuySell.com says. Jeremy Bragg and Regi Ott had their eye on River City Coffee, a cafe in Little Rock, Ark., for several years. Bragg managed the cafe, and when the owner decided it was time to sell, he and Ott borrowed from their families for a down payment of about 14 percent of the $70,000 purchase price. The owner financed the rest. The deal was sealed last month. They believe that the high profit margins they'll make selling espresso and gourmet tea drinks will help pay off the loan. "Though the economy may not be that great, a lot of times, people consider that their little luxury," Bragg says.
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