what should you expect to see in a letter of intent, and how can you ensure it’s written in your favor? during this time, you have to stop marketing your business to other possible buyers, so they have plenty of time to review it and make a decision on whether to purchase. while it’s not a legally-binding commitment, if you make promises to your interested buyer about the price or what’s included in the sale, it’ll be hard to change those later. don’t wait until you get to the sale contract to get a lawyer’s input.

a letter of intent (loi) is an initial, non-binding agreement between the parties in a proposed business deal. that means the seller may not reach a definitive agreement to sell itself or its subsidiary (or whatever the agreement is about) to another entity before it reaches such an agreement with this buyer. in addition to setting the stage for a possible final agreement, the letter of intent typically enables the buyer to begin its formal due diligence. the introduction of an loi will include a statement of the purpose of the document.