How to find a dental practice to buy is the search question, and the honest answer is that most practices change hands through a small number of channels: transition brokers who represent the seller, dental supply representatives who hear first, the state dental association's classifieds, lenders who know which owners are retiring, and the direct letter to a practice you already know. This page is about working those channels as a buyer and, more usefully, what to do in the first week after one answers.
The channels, and who they work for
A transition broker is paid by the seller and shows you the seller's price; that is not a reason to avoid them, only a reason to run your own numbers. Supply representatives and lenders are paid by nobody in your deal and often know a year ahead who is thinking of selling. The state association's listings and a plain letter to a practice you admire cost postage. Keep every lead as a target in one place so the second conversation starts from the first.
The three figures to ask for before you visit
Annual collections, active patients and the lease term remaining. With the first two the checklist sheet returns the asking price as a share of collections and per patient, 75% and $416.67 on the worked example, before you have spent an afternoon in the operatories. With the third you know whether there is anything to buy at all.
The first week after a yes
Send the document list, dated, before the letter of intent so the seller knows what a real buyer asks for. Talk to an SBA lender about the stack you can carry; the calculator's example shows $110,000 at the keys on a $450,000 price. Record the practice, the seller and the three figures as a target in the register, so the practice you find in month four is compared with this one and not remembered against it.
Questions people ask about how to find a dental practice to buy
Do brokers charge the buyer?
Usually not; the seller pays. Some buy-side advisors charge a retainer or a share of the price to search for you. This site does neither and finds nothing; it keeps what you find.
How many practices should I look at?
Enough that the ratios mean something. Three targets with their collections, patients and price beside each other tell you more than one target and a feeling.
What does Pro do for the search?
It is the register of every dental practice to buy that you have looked at, with its figures, its status and the seller's details, for $14 a month.