A Stonehollow Lending article for dentists buying a practice in Kootenai County, ID, covering valuation, financing, the transition and the records involved, with a labeled example.
Buying a Coeur d'Alene, ID Dental Practice in Four Moves
- Find a practice and review its collections, patient base, staff, equipment and lease.
- Agree a price and the terms in a letter of intent, then a purchase agreement.
- Fund the purchase with a term loan sized against the practice's earnings, plus any equipment or working capital needs.
- Close, then manage the transition of patients and staff with the seller.
The term loan page covers amortization, and the dental office page covers equipment and build-outs.
Dental Offices in Kootenai County, ID: The Census Picture
Kootenai County, ID had 89 offices of dentists with paid employees in 2023, with 827 paid employees and $48.4 million in annual payroll; 27 had fewer than five employees (County Business Patterns 2023, NAICS 6212). Of those, 32 had an address in ZIP 83814, the office's ZIP (ZIP Business Patterns 2023). The county counted 23 dental offices without paid employees in 2024 (Nonemployer Statistics), a separate program.
How to Get a Dental Practice Loan in Coeur d'Alene, ID?
A partner reading a practice purchase looks at the seller's last three years of tax returns and collections, the production by provider, the payer mix, the active patient count, the equipment list and the lease. It also reads the buyer: clinical experience, any ownership history and personal credit. The purchase agreement sets out what is bought: equipment, supplies, patient records, the name and goodwill, and sometimes receivables.
Dental Practice Valuation Basics Before a Coeur d'Alene, ID Purchase
Practices are valued on their earnings and on what transfers: patients who stay, staff who stay, equipment in working order and a lease with time left. Valuations are prepared by brokers, appraisers or accountants who work with dental sales; the buyer's own adviser should review the figure. A partner may rely on its own review rather than the seller's valuation.
A Dental Practice Purchase Worked Through in Kootenai County, ID
Illustration only, invented figures: a dentist agrees to buy a practice for $850,000 and puts $85,000 down. The balance of $765,000 on a term loan over 120 months at an assumed annual rate of 9% has a payment of $9,690.70 a month, or $116,288 a year (our arithmetic). The practice's past earnings need to cover that, the buyer's own pay and a cushion for patients who leave in the transition.
If the seller carries part of the price as a note, the loan is smaller but the note adds its own payment. Equipment upgrades planned after the purchase can be financed on their own.
Staff, Hygiene Schedules and the First Year After Closing in Coeur d'Alene, ID
Hygienists and assistants carry much of a practice's patient relationships, and whether they stay shapes the first year's collections. Meet the team before closing, review pay and benefits, and plan how the change of owner is explained to patients.
Collections can dip while patients adjust to a new dentist and while insurance credentialing for the buyer is completed. Building that dip into the plan, and holding working capital for it, keeps the term loan payment covered while the schedule settles.
A partner reading the request may ask how the buyer plans to keep the hygiene schedule full, because recall visits are part of a general practice's revenue.
Seller Transition and Patient Records in a Dental Practice Sale
A transition period, in which the seller keeps working for a set time and introduces patients, protects the value the buyer is paying for. The purchase agreement should cover how long, at what pay, and any non-compete terms. Patient records pass under privacy rules; ask your adviser how the transfer should be handled.
Financing the Purchase Price, Equipment and Working Capital Separately
The purchase price goes on a term loan. New chairs, imaging or a sterilization upgrade after closing fit equipment financing. Payroll and supplies in the first months, while insurance claims for the buyer's work are still being paid, fit working capital. Splitting the money this way keeps each part on a term that suits it.
Checklist Before Signing a Dental Practice Purchase Agreement in Kootenai County, ID
- Three years of the seller's returns and collections reports.
- Active patient count, payer mix and production by provider.
- Equipment list with ages and service records.
- The lease, the landlord's consent to assignment and the remaining term.
- Staff list, pay and who intends to stay.
- Transition and non-compete terms.
- The financing structure for the price, equipment and working capital.
- Then call (208) 314-7609, or open the Stonehollow request form, with the figures in hand.
County tables are on the Coeur d'Alene, ID page.
By Stonehollow Lending · Updated
