- \n
- How much the company can afford to contribute to the ESOP each year<\/li>\n
- Whether part of the contribution cost can be offset by eliminating other benefit programs<\/li>\n
- How the ESOP will affect the company\u2019s earnings and cash flow<\/li>\n
- How the transaction will be structured<\/li>\n
- How it will be financed<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
If a leveraged ESOP is established, a loan must be secured to finance the stock purchase transaction. Financing an ESOP transaction<\/a> can be difficult if the lender is not familiar with ESOPs. If the seller finances the purchase transaction, the company\u2019s costs will likely be reduced.<\/p>\n
Once financing has been arranged, legal counsel should prepare the ESOP plan documents. An ESOP sponsor has many choices to make in designing a plan that will work well in its own corporate culture. For that reason, it is advisable to work with experienced ESOP counsel in designing the ESOP.<\/p>\n
The next step is to negotiate a stock purchase agreement between the ESOP fiduciary and the selling shareholder(s). The stock purchase agreement sets forth the price and other terms and conditions under which the ESOP will purchase stock from the selling shareholder(s). As in any stock purchase transaction, the stock purchase agreement typically contains representations and warranties about the company\u2019s assets, operations and financial condition.<\/p>\n
The final step before closing the transaction is an opinion from an independent appraiser. This opinion is required under DOL proposed regulations, and provides the necessary assurance that the ESOP is not paying more than fair market value for the company stock it purchases. In some cases the appraiser will also be asked to give an opinion that the transaction as a whole is fair to the ESOP from a financial point of view.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.stevenslee.com\/sesesop\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/07\/Implement-ESOP-Infographic1024_11.jpg\")
<\/p>\nSES ESOP Strategies offers services at every stage of the ESOP life cycle from assessing feasibility<\/a> to designing and installing a plan<\/a>, providing ESOP legal services<\/a> and helping in obtaining financing<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
How to Create an ESOP The first step in the [\u2026]<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3812","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-resources"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
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