How Critical Is My Transition Timing?

15 Sep How Critical Is My Transition Timing?

By Tabitha Jaquay Fernandez

Still thinking you want to practice another 3 years?  Even though you have said this for the last 5 to 7 years?  Here’s the problem…buyers now have more options than they did 5 to 7 years ago.  There are more and more practices going on the market. Buyers now have the luxury to forgo the practice that hasn’t gone digital yet.  Also passed by are the practices that have older albeit usable equipment and an aging patient base with minimal new patients.  If the buyer is presented with the option to purchase a highly modernized practice with all the bells and whistles plus a team trained for selling high end dentistry, or one of the other options we mentioned, which one do you think they will lean toward?  The good news is that there aren’t a ton of those super modern practices for sale AT THIS TIME.  You keep thinking you will continue to practice until you are just ready to close the doors, then you will sell.

Let me caution you about this train of thought.  A sale doesn’t happen overnight.  The market is changing rapidly- especially if your practice is located outside the metro or in a less prime area.  This means it will take longer to find a buyer who sees the same value in your practice and your location as you do.  So just because you are ready to sell NOW and want it gone in 60 days, doesn’t mean this can happen.  If you are a specialty practice or have developed a niche in your practice, this will increase the time it takes to find the “right” buyer for your office.  That doesn’t mean you did anything wrong by developing that niche. It DOES mean you have to start planning your exit strategy earlier!

The dental profession experienced a huge surge of new graduates in the late 70’s and 80’s and then a tremendous drop in graduates after several universities closed or reduced their class sizes in subsequent years.  This has put us in a reversed market wave where we have more doctors retiring than we have graduating to replenish them.  The result is a strong buyer’s market. Sellers are merging with practices nearby because there are simply not enough buyers to go around.  Don’t keep your head stuck in the sand. Know your options, make a plan, and call Jaquay Enterprise for your complimentary consult at 405-834-8653.

Tabitha Jaquay Fernandez
Email JaquayEnterprise@gmail.com
Phone (405) 834-8653