Sell, Transition or Create a Succession Plan for Your Medicare Book
Private, confidential options for Medicare agents, agency owners and firms thinking about retirement, slowing down, disability, death, client continuity or selling a Medicare book of business.
You built more than renewal commissions. You built relationships, service expectations and a reputation. Brickhouse Agency helps select agents and firms explore a responsible next step — whether that means selling now, creating a future continuity plan or designing a transition around the outcome you want.
Please do not send client lists, Medicare numbers, health information or policyholder data in a first email. A simple note is enough.
Protect the Book You Built — and the People Behind It
You answered the calls. You helped clients through plan changes, billing issues, drug changes, doctor questions, AEPs, family concerns and all the things that never fully appear on a commission statement.
At some point, every agent has to answer a practical question: What happens next?
What happens if you retire, slow down, become disabled or die unexpectedly? What happens if your spouse, children, staff or estate must figure out carrier contracts, commission deposits, client records and ongoing service under pressure?
A responsible succession plan protects four things:
Your clients
So they know who will help them and why they can trust the handoff.
The value you built
So recurring income and transferable relationships are documented and treated seriously.
Your family or estate
So they are not left reconstructing the business during an emergency.
Your reputation
So the transition reflects the way you served people throughout your career.
You do not need to be ready to sell today. But the best time to create a plan is before someone else is forced to create one for you.
Four Ways a Transition Can Work
1. Sell and Transition Now
For agents who are ready for a clean exit, Brickhouse may purchase a qualified Medicare book and work with the seller on an orderly client and carrier transition.
2. Share Renewal Income During a Structured Transition
Some agents prefer ongoing income rather than relying only on an upfront payment. A structured transition may allow the seller and Brickhouse to share renewal economics for an agreed period or until an agreed purchase amount is reached.
3. Create a Continuity Plan for Retirement, Disability or Death
An agreement made in advance can give an agent, spouse, family or estate a defined path if the agent retires, becomes disabled or dies before completing a sale.
4. Design a Customized or Phased Transition
Depending on the goals and the book, a transition may include a phased exit, selected products or client segments, a post-sale referral relationship, continued limited production, or another clearly documented arrangement.
The right structure depends on what you are trying to protect: cash now, ongoing income, reduced workload, family value, continued involvement, client continuity or a clean exit.
All structures are subject to fit, due diligence, carrier and hierarchy rules, legal documentation and tax review.
How Brickhouse Protects What You Built
Buying a Medicare book is the easy part. Preserving the relationships behind it is the work.
Brickhouse did not begin by trying to acquire as many books as possible. We began by building the operating system required to receive a book, understand what is really there, communicate with clients, reconcile the revenue and retain the relationships.
We do not acquire a book simply to collect renewal deposits while service fades. Our transition process is built around communication, named human service, financial accuracy and long-term retention.
Verify the book
Review commission statements, products, carriers, writing numbers, hierarchy rules and transferability before assigning value.
Organize the data
Create clean book-level records, identify client households and tag the acquired book so performance and service can be monitored separately.
Plan the communication
Develop seller-approved letters, introductions and talking points so clients understand what is changing, what is not changing and who will help them.
Provide structured human service
Clients receive access to real people by phone and video, supported by scheduled appointments, service triage, notes and a documented follow-up process — not a revolving call-center queue.
Reconcile the revenue
Track expected versus actual commissions, identify missing or reduced payments and preserve attribution to the acquired book.
Monitor and improve retention
Use proactive communication, annual and AEP outreach, service history, education and book-level reporting to protect the relationship after closing.
We may evaluate a book conservatively because every transition includes risk. But we do not operate acquired books as passive, declining revenue streams. A passive buyer purchases deposits. Brickhouse accepts responsibility for the people behind them.
You Do Not Need Perfect Records to Begin
Many strong Medicare books were built one relationship at a time — not inside a perfect CRM. If your records are spread across carrier portals, commission statements, spreadsheets, paper files and memory, you are not alone.
You do not need perfect records for a first conversation. But a responsible valuation and transfer must eventually be supported by information that can be verified.
Enough to start
- Twelve to twenty-four months of carrier or upline commission statements
- An approximate client or policy count
- A general product and carrier mix
- Writing numbers, agency names or hierarchy information you know
- Your timing, goals and biggest concerns
Ideal acquisition-ready state
- Reconciled expected-versus-actual commissions
- A current client and policy roster
- Clean household relationships and contact data
- CRM notes or documented service history
- Persistency or retention information
- Carrier contracts, writing numbers and hierarchy documentation
- A repeatable client communication and servicing process
We will not talk down to you because the book is imperfectly organized. We will tell you what information matters, why it matters and what needs to be cleaned up before a transaction can close.
Medicare Book Value Is More Than a Multiple
It is reasonable to ask what a Medicare book of business is worth. But a responsible valuation cannot be produced from one deposit, one policy count or one generic multiple.
Factors may include:
- Verified trailing and current renewal commissions
- Medicare Advantage, Medicare Supplement, Part D and ancillary product mix
- Carrier and geographic concentration
- Transferability and hierarchy rules
- Data quality and ownership clarity
- Persistency and client relationship strength
- Seller participation in the handoff
- Service expectations and operational complexity
- Compliance, complaint and replacement history
- Current carrier, product and commission risk
A relationship-driven Medicare Supplement book is not identical to a Medicare Advantage block. A book built through long-term personal relationships is not identical to a transactional telesales block. The details affect both value and the structure of a responsible offer.
We would rather give you a realistic answer after understanding the book than offer a fast number that does not survive diligence.
How the Private Process Works
1. Start privately
Request the guide or email Matt with a high-level note. Do not send client-level data.
2. Put confidentiality in place
If there may be a fit, the next step is a mutual confidentiality agreement before detailed commission statements, rosters or client information are shared.
3. Define the outcome
We discuss what you are trying to accomplish: a full exit, ongoing income, reduced workload, family protection, emergency continuity, continued production or another goal.
4. Review the book
Brickhouse reviews commission history, products, carriers, geography, writing numbers, data quality, transferability, servicing needs and concentration risk.
5. Select a structure
If there is a fit, we determine whether a current sale, shared-renewal transition, continuity arrangement or customized path best supports the goal.
6. Document and coordinate the transition
The parties complete the appropriate proposal and legal agreements, then coordinate hierarchy, carrier, commission, data and client-communication steps.
7. Onboard, serve and monitor
Brickhouse executes the client communication plan, organizes the book in its systems, monitors commission transfers and focuses on service and retention after closing.
The first call is a fit and goals conversation — not a demand for a perfect data room and not a promise that every book will receive an offer.
Who May Be a Fit
A conversation may make sense if:
- You are an independent Medicare agent or small agency owner.
- Medicare sits inside a financial planning, P&C, health or group-benefits firm and no longer fits the core business.
- Your clients know you and rely on you for ongoing help.
- You care about how clients are introduced to the next agency.
- You can provide — or are willing to help organize — commission and client information.
- You are willing to participate in a clear, respectful handoff.
- You want a real Medicare agency to serve clients rather than place them into a mass call-center model.
Another path may be better if:
- Ownership, writing numbers or commission rights cannot be established.
- There are unresolved compliance or complaint issues.
- The book was built primarily through one-call transactions with weak client relationships or documentation.
- The seller wants to keep replacing or rewriting the same clients after closing.
- The only priority is the highest headline number, regardless of client care or transition risk.
- Carrier, hierarchy, data or transfer restrictions make the transition impractical.
Brickhouse is selective. If we are not the right fit, we will say so respectfully. That does not mean the book has no value; it may simply need a different buyer or path.
A Full-Book Transition Built Around Continuity
A longtime independent Medicare agent wanted to step away from the business without leaving clients, commissions and carrier relationships for someone else to untangle later.
After confidentiality was in place, Brickhouse reviewed commission statements, products, carriers, writing numbers and client records. The parties separated transferable business from business that required a different path, agreed on a transition structure and developed a communication and handoff plan.
The agreement was only one part of the work. Brickhouse also had to organize the data, coordinate hierarchy and carrier steps, prepare for ongoing client service, monitor commission transfers and create a reliable home for the relationships after closing.
The experience reinforced a core Brickhouse belief: the contract transfers the asset, but the operating system protects it.
Why Brickhouse
Brickhouse Agency is a family-owned, independent Medicare agency built around clear guidance, modern operating systems and person-to-person service.
Niki Feret owns and runs Brickhouse and leads the agency’s client-care model. She built the agency around a simple idea: Medicare guidance should feel clear, calm and human.
Matt Feret began his Medicare career in 2001 as a $10-an-hour customer service representative and rose through sales, marketing, distribution, operations and P&L leadership roles at organizations including Humana, HCSC and Aetna — serving along the way as Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Chief Sales Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President. He is the founder of Prepare for Medicare® and author of five books.
Together, Matt and Niki are building Brickhouse for the long term: a selective Medicare agency that combines education, structured technology and human service. Brickhouse operates in more than 35 states and serves local consumers through Chicagoland Medicare.
Matt works directly with independent agents and agency owners on book-of-business acquisitions, succession planning and customized transition arrangements designed to protect the value they have built, preserve the trusted client relationships behind that value and provide continuity of service through retirement, transition or the unexpected.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to be ready to sell now?
No. Many agents begin one, two or three years before they expect to transition. You may only want to understand your options, create a disability or death plan, or learn what records would be needed later. A first conversation does not obligate either side.
What is my Medicare book of business worth?
It depends on verified renewal commissions, product and carrier mix, transferability, data quality, persistency, geography, client relationships, seller involvement, service needs and current market risk. Brickhouse does not publish a generic multiple or promise a valuation without reviewing the book.
What if I do not have a CRM or reconciled commission statements?
You are not alone. A book may still be worth discussing if records are spread across statements, portals, spreadsheets or paper files. You do not need to clean everything before the first call, but a transaction will eventually require enough verifiable information to understand ownership, commissions, clients and transferability.
What happens to my book if I become disabled or die?
The outcome depends on how contracts and commissions are owned, whether they are vested or transferable, whether an agency entity exists, and whether your family or estate has access to the right records and authority. A continuity agreement made in advance can provide a clearer path than asking a family to reconstruct the business during an emergency.
Can my spouse, children or estate sell the book after I am gone?
Possibly, but the process is usually more difficult without planning. They may need access to commission statements, contracts, writing numbers, client records, passwords, tax information and legal authority. A documented plan and named contact can preserve options and reduce confusion.
Can I keep working after I sell or transition the book?
Sometimes. Depending on the goals and structure, an agent may complete a defined transition period, continue limited future production, refer new business or work under another clearly documented arrangement. Client ownership, compensation, communication and post-closing expectations must be explicit.
Do you consider Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement books?
Yes, depending on fit. Medicare Advantage, Medicare Supplement, Part D and related senior relationships are evaluated differently because commission schedules, transferability, product stability, replacement patterns, service needs and current market risk are different.
What happens to my clients after a transition?
The communication plan is developed before closing. It may include a seller-approved letter, joint introduction, clear contact instructions, a defined transition period, book-level tagging, proactive outreach and a plan for calls that continue to reach the seller. Clients are served by real people through the Brickhouse model.
Is this an FMO recruiting pitch?
No. The purpose of this page is Medicare book acquisition, transition and succession planning. Brickhouse is not using succession language simply to move an agent’s contracts under a new hierarchy. In some customized situations, continued production or alignment may be discussed, but it is not the default purpose of the conversation.
Is the conversation confidential?
Yes. Early conversations can remain private and high level. Brickhouse does not ask for detailed client or policyholder information before the appropriate confidentiality protections are in place.
What should I send in the first email?
Send your name, agency name if applicable, state or market, approximate Medicare client or policy count, general product mix if known, your expected timing and what prompted you to reach out. Do not send client lists, Medicare numbers, health information or detailed policyholder data.
What if my book is not a fit for Brickhouse?
Brickhouse will tell you respectfully. Being declined by one buyer does not mean the book has no value. The data, market, structure or client needs may simply require another path.
Request the Free Succession Guide
Tell us a little about your book. Matt will send the guide and a personal note.
Please do not include client names, Medicare numbers, policy numbers, health information, dates of birth or other client-level data in this form.
You do not need to be ready to sell. You do need a plan before someone else has to make one for you.
Request the free Medicare Agent Succession & Book Continuity Guide to understand what affects value, what records matter and what transition options may be available.
Already thinking seriously about a transition?
Use the subject line: Medicare Book Conversation. Please do not send client lists, Medicare numbers, health information or policyholder data in a first email.