Articles to help you buy or sell your dental practice.

Thinking about how to sell your dental practice? This definitive 2025 guide covers everything you need to know—from maximizing your practice’s value and understanding key market trends to preparing financially, choosing the right buyer, and navigating legal and tax complexities. Get expert tips to ensure a smooth, profitable transition and secure your legacy.

Discover the essential strategies for a successful dental practice transition and learn how to retain patients after purchasing a practice. This comprehensive guide covers due diligence, staff and patient communication, and proven retention systems to protect your investment and ensure long-term growth. Optimize your transition and secure your practice’s future with expert insights tailored for today’s dental market.

Understanding successful dental practice acquisition means also understanding that we all have different clinical styles and beliefs. Finding a practice that is close to your style can make the transition much smoother. That being said, in my experience, almost any dentist can work in almost any practice … and transform almost any enterprise to their…

When you’re thinking about buying a dental practice, there are two primary paths to ownership: a solo dental practice or partnership. Will you buy 100% of the practice or less than 100%? We are all familiar with these ownership models, especially as group practices gain popularity. 30 years ago, nearly all practices were operated by…

Performing due diligence on patient charts can be a big undertaking before dental practice sales, but it should not be overlooked. By examining the charts, you can tell what type of dentistry the seller performs, how the practice cares for and follows up with patients, how patients are scheduled, and how the practice makes financial…

In some cases, doctors who sell their practices are contractually obligated to stay and work in the practice for several weeks or months after the dental practice sale to provide treatment and “introduce the patients to the new doctor”. The benefits of such an arrangement may seem clear, even obvious. It makes sense to keep…

While closely related to personal goals, financial goals deserve a blog post of their own. When you are thinking about buying a dental practice, it is important to understand how your personal finances can affect your ability to get a loan and live the lifestyle you want. Dental practices pay for themselves. This makes the…

Dear friends, partners, and colleagues,   We are – slowly, cautiously – on our way back! In this newsletter, I’ll cover:   The CDPH Announcement PPP Loan Forgiveness Questions Re-hiring Employees (including those who decide not to return) Dental Practices for Sale Another Musical Interlude In the meantime, I cannot believe that another week has…

A practice transition letter might not be the first thing on your mind, but when most doctors purchase a dental practice, one of the big worries is always patient retention. Most of the value of a dental practice is in the goodwill with the existing patient base, and if those patients choose not to come…

Dear friends and colleagues, I’m back with another update. This will be a quick one (and I’ll still be back with my Friday email), but with everything unfolding at breakneck speed, waiting until Friday for another update seemed like a bad idea. Here’s the news in a nutshell: There are two programs for emergency lending…

This morning’s headline in the Wall Street Journal: “Mortgage Rates Hit 5% for First Time Since 2011“. If you’re thinking about buying or selling a dental practice in the next few years, it’s time to pay attention. Interest rates are one of the market forces that drive dental practice values. (Of course, the best way…

Dear friends and colleagues,It’s the end of another week. Doesn’t it feel like February was a full year ago? Or a different lifetime? I’ve received some encouraging feedback on these newsletters, and I’ll do my best to bring you important news and updates as they come out. Once again, please feel free to forward this…

You don’t always need a dental practice sales broker. Here’s when you should go it alone. You might be surprised to hear this – especially from us – but not everyone uses a broker for their dental practice transition. There will always be people who decide to go it alone. Does that mean you should…

When you buy a dental practice, some dentists worry that the patients in their new practice will not stay after the handoff. Fortunately, in our experience, this shouldn’t be a huge concern.   Why?  Well, the simple fact is that – in almost every well-managed transition – the patients stay.  When my dad sold his practice…

Dear friends and colleagues, I don’t know about you, but I feel like I’ve been using acronyms more than usual. There’s the PPP and a shortage of PPE, EIDL grants from the SBA, the CARES Act and the most recent IFR (Interim Final Rule). Even COVID-19 is an acronym for coronavirus disease of 2019. We use acronyms…

It’s a rare doctor that wakes up one morning and just decides out of the blue, “Today is the day make my dental office for sale. I am financially and emotionally ready to start the next chapter of my life, and I’m committed to making this process a success for my patients, my staff, myself,…

Update: Some months later, this article might seem somewhat outdated. But I think the fundamentals remain as true as ever. With the post-COVID recovery already well underway and dental practices producing near pre-COVID levels across America (something many other businesses cannot say), the outlook for practice ownership is as good as ever.   What smart…

Buying a practice is one of the biggest steps you’ll take during your career as a dentist. As with any life-changing decision, there’s a lot to know beforehand so you can make the right choice. Unlike buying a car, you absolutely have to get it…

Hello again from my kitchen table to yours,I hope you all are remaining healthy and well as we close the book on the 3,000 days of April 2020. What a strange month it’s been.The good news is that I have been talking to many doctors getting ready to return to practice. There is light at…

Are you ready to buy a dental practice? There are many factors that play a role in this important decision: personal, financial, and clinical. This post will focus on the personal aspects of deciding whether to purchase a dental practice. Click here to read our guide to buying a dental practice. Buying a dental practice…

Dear friends, partners, and colleagues, Another week has passed as many of you start to open your doors a little wider and see more and more patients. We are rooting for you – feel free to reach out and let us know how it’s going!In this newsletter, I’ll cover: The Practice Sales Market – Should…

CalSavers Deadline Approaching Do you have between 5 and 50 employees? If so, you need to offer a retirement savings plan to your employees by June 30th. If you have five or more employees, California Senate Bill 1234 requires that you either offer a qualified retirement plan through the private market or give your employees…

So you’ve done your due diligence and you’re just successfully closed on your new practice and you’re excited to build your dental practice team…but you’re also nervous about how the new patients (and any potential staying staff) will react to you. In this blog post, I’d like to share one of the most important…and most…

You don’t always need a dental practice sales broker. Here’s when you should go it alone. You might be surprised to hear this – especially from us – but not everyone uses a broker for their dental practice transition. There will always be people who decide to go it alone. Does that mean you should…

Dear friends, partners, and colleagues, In this newsletter, I’ll cover: CDA Respiratory Protection Program PPP Loan Forgiveness A Quick Reminder to Stay Vigilant Focusing on the Nervous Patient Dental Practices for Sale Another Musical Interlude Best Wishes on Memorial DayBelieve it or not, this Monday is Memorial Day.The de facto beginning of summer has taken me completely…

Dental practice sales are complex transitions that require multiple steps. Once you have a signed Letter of Intent, it’s time to take a closer look at your potential new practice. Due diligence is one of the most important aspects of preparing for any successful dental practice sales. There are several important indicators that offer insight…

Dear friends and colleagues,Chag Sameach and Happy Easter! Another momentous week in this on-going saga has come to a close. It is a strange time to be celebrating a holiday, but – celebrating or not – this is an especially good time to take a moment and be grateful for the many blessings that we continue to…

Once you have a signed Letter of Intent, it’s time to take a closer look at your potential new acquisition’s dental practice scheduling. After all, due diligence is one of the most important aspects of preparing for a successful dental practice acquisition. There are several important indicators that offer insight into practice performance. In this…