Why Not Sell the Practice Yourself and Save a Success Fee?

Some dentists may consider the “FSBO” (For Sale by Owner) path when they decide to sell their successful practice. No one knows their practice better than they do.

You shall save money. You shall achieve the best price. And the process will be simple. By all means, if this is your mindset, go for it! Our skillset has been honed over 50-years and we think differently. We wish you well.

Yes, you can indeed go this route, and you will definitely save a success fee if you conclude your sale. But at what risk and cost? This page addresses some thoughts you may want to consider before you go down that path.

First, consider how you might go about setting a target price for your practice. Improper expectations may result in your underpricing your practice—or you may end up discouraging the best candidates because your target bar is way too high.

Neither your accountant nor your attorney is suited to be your lead advisor for this unique project. They are not equipped nor focused to be working on your project 24/7. With intermittent involvement, they will have no understanding of how you got to a particular intersection in your sales journey. This is an engagement where you need hands-on guidance from start to finish.

When it comes to handling negotiations, there needs to be some “give and take” in order to accomplish the sale in an amicable manner. These parties may not understand the trade-offs in the sale of a dental practice. If your posture is: “This is what I want!” and then draw a line, you will lose your best candidates. There are ways to give both parties what they need, but only the experienced will know this.

How Many Dental Practices Have You Sold?

There is a tremendous learning curve in this activity, and it is never over. Are you willing to risk the real value of your practice?

It will be far more difficult for you to maintain the requisite confidences required for this task if you handle your own sale. Is it your intent to have your sale be public information? Do you understand that the FSBO avenue takes longer to conclude, and why? And you will never be able to create a competitive market for your practice.

How can you be objective and properly analyze the twists and turns in your sales journey if you handle the task yourself. Objective perspectives are invaluable as buyers do not make compulsive purchases?

It is impossible to be objective and analyze the sales journey if you handle the task yourself.

It will take considerable time for you to fully market your practice, and you will most likely miss most of the best candidates available. What an experienced advocate can do in weeks will take you months—and still not be as extensive.

In fact, just as you are starting to get nibbles on the practice from your own efforts, your advocate could already be tendering you Letters of Intent.

Will You Forfeit the Leverage that an Experienced Advocate Can Bring?

By handling your own sale, you will lose the advantage of leverage. Without engaging that experienced advocate, you will lose that valuable leverage and the associated benefits that are mandated for this special event. This is not an exercise where you go bare.

There is no one party who has been engaged to facilitate this event. Who is the designated point person juggling all of the balls, interest and understanding where all of the players are at that critical time when you need to make an important decision? You require a trusted advocate where everything flows through their desk. Someone with a greater global vision. Will you know when to pull the proverbial trigger, which is ratifying the right Letter of Intent? And once that trigger has been pulled, what next? This will be the biggest procedure you will ever experience in your practice. Can you close the deal?

How will you maintain the important element of trust with an interested prospect when it becomes apparent that you are trying to create competitive interest in your practice?

How will you handle the dilemma of dealing with multiple Letters of Intent? As attractive a situation as this seems, it is a very delicate area. Great care needs to be taken. One needs to tread lightly. If not handled properly, you might lose your best opportunity and the leverage you are presently afforded.

Client Comments

“Professional Practice Sales successfully marketed and closed the sale of my pediatric dental practice in four months bringing in multiple offers and a final sales price above asking. Ray Irving delivered an exceptional level of personal service, with attention to the legal as well as emotional aspects of this difficult process.

His thorough preparation of all pertinent documentation afforded the buyer an accurate and complete representation of the practice performance and provided me with security and legal protection. Initially, I did not realize that there are many unforeseen complications that can arise in this complex transaction. Ray’s vast wealth of experience was vital to bringing the process through to completion.

He provided useful sage advice and counselling to both seller and buyer. This is a highly specialized market, and is no place for amateurs, discounters or impersonal corporations. I highly recommend the incomparable expertise of Ray Irving to orchestrate and conclude the sale of a dental practice.”

—George Mednick, DDS