The loan is rarely the reason a deal dies
Practice lending is its own world. A bank that will not write you a $60,000 car loan will write a $900,000 practice loan against goodwill, because the numbers behind a working practice are more predictable than almost anything else they fund.
What practice lenders actually look at
Buyers assume it comes down to their savings. It rarely does. Specialist lenders underwrite the practice first and you second.
The practice’s cash flow
Can the practice service the debt, pay a market associate wage, and still leave a return? This is the whole test. A healthy practice largely finances itself.
Your production history
What you produce as an associate is the best predictor of what you will produce as an owner. Bring your production reports, not just your tax returns.
Credit, not collateral
Most practice loans are underwritten on credit history and cash flow rather than hard assets. Student debt is normal in this market and is not the barrier buyers fear it is.
The lease or the building
Lenders want the location secured for at least the loan term. A short lease with no options will hold up funding faster than a weak balance sheet.
How these deals get funded
Conventional practice acquisition loan
Written by banks with dedicated healthcare lending teams. Typically covers the practice purchase in full, often with working capital on top. Terms usually run ten years. These lenders understand that most of what you are buying is goodwill, not equipment.
Combined practice and real estate
Where the seller owns the building, the practice and the property can be financed together, with the real estate portion amortised over a longer term. This changes both your monthly obligation and the tax treatment, and is worth modelling before you commit either way.
Seller carry-back
The seller finances part of the price themselves, paid out of future collections. It bridges a valuation gap and keeps the seller invested in a clean handover. We raise it where it makes sense for both sides rather than as a last resort.
SBA-backed lending
Useful for buyers who need a lower down payment or a longer amortisation. Slower to close and heavier on paperwork, so it suits some transactions and not others.
Get pre-qualified before you fall in love with a practice
Sellers take offers seriously when the buyer is already approved. Buyers who start financing after they find the practice are the ones who lose it to someone who started earlier.
- It costs nothing. A pre-qualification conversation is free and does not commit you to that lender or to any practice.
- It tells you your real number. Most buyers are approved for more than they expect, and knowing the figure stops you dismissing practices you could actually afford.
- It makes your offer credible. On a practice with competing interest, a funded buyer beats a higher unfunded one more often than not.
- It surfaces problems early. A credit issue found in week one is fixable. Found in escrow, it kills the deal.
How we are paid. We introduce buyers to lenders who fund practice acquisitions. Some of those lenders compensate us when a buyer we introduce closes a loan. That costs you nothing, does not change your rate, and you are under no obligation to use anyone we suggest — you are free to bring your own bank, and plenty of our buyers do.