13 pages. " Selling to an ESOP is expensive, usually costing 2% to 4% of the sale price,... The cost of selling to a non-ESOP buyer generally ranges from 4% to 9% of the deal, ... [M]any sellers balk at the costs of setting up an ESOP, even if they will ultimately pay more to sell to another buyer.... In an ESOP sale, the company pays some of the fees up front and the rest at close. While these fees are tax-deductible and thus have a significantly lower real cost, they still come up front."  MORE >>