What is a conservation easement?

A permanent restriction on land use, donated to a qualified land trust. The trust holds the restriction in perpetuity; the landowner retains compatible uses. The donation creates a charitable deduction equal to the diminished land value.

How much can I deduct?

Equal to the diminished value of the land caused by the easement (determined by qualified appraisal). Typically 30-70% of land value depending on property. Deduction subject to AGI limits (50% for most donors, 30% for landowner-developers). Excess carries forward 15 years.

Will the IRS audit me?

Conservation easements have been an audit focus. Legitimate easements with quality engineering, MAI-credentialed appraiser, and reputable land trust hold up. We use the highest-quality service providers to minimize audit risk.

Can I still use my land?

Yes, in ways compatible with the easement. Typically: agriculture, ranching, residential use within limits, hunting and fishing. Restricted: development, subdivision, commercial operations not present at easement. Each easement is custom-designed.

Does the easement run with the land?

Yes, in perpetuity. All future owners are bound by the same restrictions. The land trust monitors compliance and can enforce against violations.

What about syndicated conservation easements?

Syndicated easements (where investors buy into a partnership that donates an easement) have been heavily targeted by the IRS. Many syndicated easements have been disallowed. We do not work on syndicated easements; only direct landowner donations with legitimate conservation value.

What does M&A Due Diligence Service involve?

This page covers M&A Due Diligence Service — including what it is, who needs it, how to file or apply, typical costs, deadlines, and how File.Business handles it for you end-to-end.

How much does M&A Due Diligence Service cost with File.Business?

Pricing is shown on this page. We always disclose state filing fees separately from our service fee, with no surprise add-ons at checkout.

How long does M&A Due Diligence Service take?

Turnaround depends on the state agency. Standard processing typically takes a few business days; rush options are available where the agency offers expedited service.

Is this service available in all 50 states?

File.Business handles filings across all 50 US states and DC. State-specific rules, fees, and forms are built into the workflow so you don't have to research them yourself.

Home/Legal forms/M&A Diligence

M&A

Buy-side or sell-side

M&A Due Diligence. Find what kills the deal early.

Due diligence kills more deals than price disagreement. Buy-side: surface the liabilities, risks, and price-affecting issues before signing. Sell-side: organize your house so diligence does not crater the deal. We run structured diligence across 9 workstreams (legal, financial, tax, IP, HR, IT, commercial, regulatory, environmental), prioritize by deal impact, and deliver a counsel-supervised report. For buyers: use at the negotiation table. For sellers: control the narrative.

Start diligence

All 50 states + DC 60-day money-back SOC 2 Type II

⌗

Buy-side Diligence

Vega Analytics · week 3 of 4

$24.8M

✓

Legal

complete

✓

Financial

QoE done

Tax

2 flags

IP / Tech

1 flag

✓

complete

⟳

Commercial

in progress

✓

Regulatory

clean

⟳

in progress

✓

Environmental

n/a

Sales tax exposure$420K back-period · 5 states

Price -$420K

IP assignment gap3 contractors · 2019-2021

Cure pre-close

3 flags · deal proceeding with price adj. Counsel-led

How it works

How we handle Conservation Easement, end-to-end.

A conservation easement is a permanent restriction on the use of land, typically donated to a qualified land trust to preserve the land's natural or open-space character.

Eligibility review

Land must have conservation value: scenic, ecological, historic, open-space, or recreational. We assess whether your land qualifies. Most rural and undeveloped properties do; urban properties rarely.

Land trust selection

Donation must be to a qualified land trust (501(c)(3)). We refer to local and national land trusts (Land Trust Alliance, The Nature Conservancy, regional trusts). They accept the easement and hold the restriction in perpetuity.

Engineering + appraisal

Engineering work documents the conservation value. Qualified appraisal determines diminished land value (the deduction amount). IRS scrutinizes appraisals; we use highly credentialed appraisers with conservation easement experience.

Legal documentation + closing

Easement document recorded with county recorder. Permanent restriction runs with the land. Donor receives appraisal-supported deduction. Coordination with attorney specializing in conservation easements.

What we'll set up for you

A clean handoff, in four steps.

You give us the basics. We handle the state, the IRS, and the compliance clock so you can focus on the business.

01 · Name + Brand

A name that's actually available.

Real-time check against the state register, USPTO trademark database, and matching domains.

02 · State filing

Filed with the Secretary of State.

We submit your Articles, pay the state fee on your behalf, and return the stamped certificate.

03 · Federal IDs

EIN + the right tax setup.

Federal Employer ID with the IRS, plus state tax accounts when your business needs them.

04 · Stay compliant

Registered Agent + deadline tracking.

Your agent on file in every state, with every renewal and annual report tracked in one calendar.

Pricing

Transparent conservation easement pricing.

Government fees pass through at cost. No upsells.

Targeted diligence (single area)

$3,499

1 workstream

Deep dive in 1 area (typically IP, tax, or legal). Useful for spot risk assessment or when other areas covered by other firms.

Get started

Standard diligence (full)

$9,999

9 workstreams

Full diligence across 9 areas. Risk-prioritized report. Coordination with QoE provider. Real-time deal-killer alerts. Counsel-supervised.

Get started

Complex / regulated diligence

$24,999

$50M+ or regulated

Standard + regulatory deep dive (healthcare, financial, ITAR, environmental), antitrust (HSR), specialized IP (FDA, patents), international subsidiary review. For institutional buyers.

Get started

FAQ

About the Conservation Easement Service.

How does diligence differ buy-side vs sell-side?

Buy-side: looking for problems to reduce price or kill the deal. Sell-side: surfacing problems before buyer finds them, so they can be fixed or disclosed strategically. Both use the same checklist; emphasis differs.

How long does diligence take?

Standard: 3-5 weeks from data room access. Compressed: 2 weeks (with full team). Phased: 6-8 weeks (more iterative). Speed depends on data quality, response time, and whether sellers are diligent (organized) or scrambling.

What is a Quality of Earnings (QoE) report?

Audit of the financials adjusted to show 'true' earnings (back out one-time items, owner perks, accounting choices). Used to validate the EBITDA used in the purchase price multiple. Typically delegated to a CPA firm; we coordinate the legal + tax tie-ins.

What are typical 'deal-killer' findings?

Unassigned IP from past contractors (kills tech deal); undisclosed regulatory action (kills regulated deals); large customer dependency about to terminate (changes the valuation); sales tax + use tax exposure 100K+ (negotiable but painful); unfunded pension or employee liability.

What does 'representations & warranties' (R&W) coverage have to do with diligence?

Insurer requires diligence done before binding the policy. Buyer-side firms get a copy of the diligence reports. Sellers benefit from clean diligence (lower premium, better terms). We coordinate with the underwriter.

Can I do diligence myself?

For small deals yes; for institutional deals you need a coordinated team. The bigger risk is missing the deal-killer - and missing it means either you walk away when you should have stayed, or you stay when you should have walked away. We bring 9 workstreams + repeated playbook.

Bundle & save

Recommended add-ons

Most customers add these to keep their business compliant year-round.

Registered Agent

Most ordered

Required for every registered business entity in every state.

$99 /year Add →

Compliance Monitoring

Best value

Track every annual report, registered agent renewal, and license deadline.

$19 /month Add →

Annual Report Filing

Recommended

Auto-file your state annual report. Never miss a deadline.

$99 /year Add →

Why File.Business

Premium compliance, no service-fee markup.

Trust you can verify

SOC 2 Type II audited platform. 220,000+ businesses served. 60-day money-back on service fees. State fees passed through at cost with no hidden markup. Explicit AUP on restricted industries.

A compliance partner, not a transaction

Most providers go quiet after checkout. We auto-track every annual report, registered agent renewal, and license deadline across your entities. The Business OS dashboard keeps your compliance score visible year-round.

Premium experience competitors cannot match

Premium positioning, transparent pricing, no service-fee markup on state or federal filings. Premium positioning, transparent pricing, no service-fee markup on state filings.

I'm starting something

I have a deadline

Something is changing

I need to prove / protect

I serve clients

I run a [industry]

I manage multiple entities

I'm integrating or referring

I want intelligence

I need communications

I run money & people

I operate at scale

I want to learn

I want to compare / calculate

I want to research deeper

I need help

M&A Due Diligence. Find what kills the deal early.

How we handle Conservation Easement, end-to-end.

Eligibility review

Land trust selection

Engineering + appraisal

Legal documentation + closing

A clean handoff, in four steps.

A name that's actually available.

Filed with the Secretary of State.

EIN + the right tax setup.

Registered Agent + deadline tracking.

Transparent conservation easement pricing.

Targeted diligence (single area)

Standard diligence (full)

Complex / regulated diligence

About the Conservation Easement Service.

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Michigan Secretary of State filings, deadlines, and how to do them right.

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Recommended add-ons

Registered Agent

Compliance Monitoring

Annual Report Filing

Premium compliance, no service-fee markup.

Trust you can verify

A compliance partner, not a transaction

Premium experience competitors cannot match

Start your business in the next 5 minutes.