Considerations in Purchasing a Dental Practice

Deciding where to buy, how to handle it, and what kind of dental practice to purchase is a crucially important step in the career of a dentist. There are many essential decisions to make and key factors to examine as you search for the perfect dental practice that meets all of your needs.

Do Your research

Pace yourself. You are building the foundation of your future. Where do you want to live, how responsive will the community be to your new practice, how much of a rapport do you already have with the community?

Find the Best Location

Where do you want to live? Being a practice owner is a big commitment, and being a part of the local community is a big part of that. Participating in local activities and mingling with neighbors will help your business grow. A short to medium commute is an important consideration. No one wants to face a long round-trip commute year after year.

Establish yourself amongst people you can relate to and people you can enjoy. Your practice and your interpersonal life will reap the benefit. Suburbs? Intercity? Rural? Consider where your competition is. This is a major indicator of your likelihood of running a successful dental practice. Other issues are whether or not your spouse needs to find work, and the quality of the school system in the area.

Deciding on the Ideal Practice for You

Are you pursuing a specialized dental practice or a generalized dental practice? Who is your competition? Will you be able to gain referrals from local practices (and likewise return the favor)? Who is your competition and is there room for your particular niche? You’ll want to set in place a business plan that is forward-thinking and detailed.

Seek a Valuation

Seek the counsel of a certified public accountant prior to purchase. They can find out how much other dentists have paid for similar practices. This is going to give you a leg up in negotiating your purchase.

Establish a Support Net

Trying to save money by being completely self-sufficient is a poor decision when you plan on purchasing a dental practice. In the long-run, investing in advisors will save you a lot of trouble. Here are a few people you’ll need:

• A tax accountant who has experience advising dentistry practices and other small businesses on saving tax dollars and remaining tax compliant. You want an accountant who does more than tax returns. Seek a cpa to advise you on how to structure your dentistry practice (S-Corp, C-Corp, LLC, PLLC, Sole Proprietorship).
• A Bookkeeper who is experienced in a small business accounting system like Quickbooks. A certified Quickbooks Advisor means they are certified by Quickbooks as proficient with the bookkeeping program.
• An attorney at law to protect your interests and review documents.
• A consultant for your new dental practice will most probably prove useful in helping you keep on schedule and achieve goals.
• Establish a relationship with a bank early on. Getting prequalified, and ready to finance, puts you in the know in terms of how to put in a good offer and how much you can afford.
• Your insurance needs will increase ten-fold once you’re a business owner. An insurance representative will evaluate risk and assess the value of your business to see just how much coverage you’ll require.
• It is smart to seek the counsel of a mentor that has experienced similar circumstance to those you’ll face.
• A marketing expert-preferably someone with knowledge of internet marketing.

Purchasing your very first dentistry practice is a major step for a DDS. Be prepared and fully understand the process you face on your way to becoming a business owner.

Tax CPA John Huddleston has a law degree and masters in tax law from the University of Washington School of Law. He has been a guest tax expert on the radio. He advises small businesses in the Seattle Bellevue Tacoma & Everett area on various tax and accounting issues. His firm, Huddleston Tax CPAs, also provides tax preparation service, quickbooks consulting, business valuation, general accounting and bookkeeping service. Profile information on CPA John Huddleston and the CPAs employed by Huddleston Tax CPAs is available at CPA Tax Accountant Profile. Seattle Bellevue Tax CPA John Huddleston is a frequent publisher of tax saving ideas.