I don’t know the answer to your question that I would be 100% confident would be accurate. What I do know is that the FAA has rules and regs they have to live by. I am a trial lawyer by trade, so I have always approached my FSDO team with firm respect. I have a discussion with them of our respective obligations. They always agree they are present to serve us. I remind them that if I violate the regs, they will surely take action against me. And I let them know that I will do the same if they violate their obligations under the regs. (In much more diplomatic words and phrases). Essentially, I remind them we ALL are required to “play by the rules”. it’s undeniable and it has resulted in me getting off on the correct foot with my FSDO team. In short, the FAA is on notice of mutual strict adherence to the regs, rather than a one way dictatorship relationship. I might be willing to stay on through the transition if the arrangement worked for the buyer, just to make sure the new FSDO took over and help the new buyer get closer to its own goals. Let me know. (As an aside, the Long Beach FSDO has historically been easy to deal with. I moved out of SoCal in 2020 and worked with them on a few issues unrelated to this certificate. )