What Should You Look for Before Buying an Optometry or Podiatry Practice?

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What Should You Look for Before Buying an Optometry or Podiatry Practice?

Finding the right optometry or podiatry practice is a tough challenge. Even if you are not swimming in five or six-figure debt after finishing your studies, just buying your own practice will require you to invest at least a few hundred thousand dollars.

If you are going to invest money to buy a practice anyway, you need to make a purchase decision that is worth the splurge. 

Here are the top four factors you should keep your eyes on that will help you find the right optometry or podiatry practice.

Let’s dig in.

1. Cash Flow

Many optometrists and podiatrists tend to make a purchase decision in a hurry, just after looking at the outward appearance of the practice. They check the practice’s furniture, tools, and other visible assets.

However, that’s not where your main focus should be. Instead, you should focus on something vital that is invisible to the naked eye: the practice’s cash flow.

To do that, you must flip the financial records of the optometry or podiatry practice before making a purchase decision.

By doing this, you will get access to the intel about:

• The way the customers make the payments for the services in the practice
• The procedures that generate the most revenue
• The income of the practice, as well as the costs of operation
• The moves that bring a large number of patients to the practice

Understanding the cash flow of the optometry or podiatry practice is very important. It will help you understand how fast you can break even after the purchase. 

Plus, if you had taken a loan to purchase the practice, you would be able to make a solid debt payment plan.

2. Your Seller’s Engagement Level

Not all optometrists and podiatrists choose to sell their practice to others when their businesses are growing well. In fact, many put their practices on the sales list only when their businesses start plummeting.

A practice’s business may plummet for multiple reasons. But in most cases, it happens because there are other specialists in the area promoting their services more effectively.

In this case, the practice on sale is likely losing its customers and revenue to a new practice.

If you are confident in your marketing skills, buying a declining practice may help you seal a deal at a low cost. Otherwise, it’s better to avoid buying declining practices.

You can check the listings in OptiRova to find an optometry practice that meets your needs and budget. Here, you can buy an optimal practice that will help you create a steady stream of income.

3. Patient Base

You need to understand the patient demographics of the practice you are planning to buy. By evaluating the practice’s patient base, you can:

• Find better ways to attract more local patients to your practice
• Offer the right procedures and make solid plans for the future
• Understand whether you can change the practice’s location without suffering from revenue loss

Clearly, learning about the patient demographics will help you take over the practice without disrupting the business.

So, before you make a purchase decision, don’t forget to review the patient bases of multiple practices.

4. Procedures

Different optometry and podiatry practices are bound to have different tools and procedures. The owners of the practices often offer a specific range of services, depending on the location, patient base, and available tools.

That’s why you need to check what procedures the practices you are planning to buy are offering. You must evaluate whether the procedures they are offering are compatible with your expertise.

This way, you can offer services you are best at right after taking over the practice.

No delays. No disruptions.

Don’t hesitate to contact the owners of the optometry or podiatry practices to ask for detailed reports on the procedures. It will help you save money, time, and a load of headaches.

Conclusion

Purchasing an optometry or podiatry practice is a significant investment on your end. You will be paying several hundred thousand dollars for buying the practice and organizing your tools.

Naturally, whether you are buying it in a lump sum or taking a loan for it, you can’t take this step lightly.

Before you finalize your choice, make sure to check:

• The practice’s cash flow
• Its procedures
• The seller’s engagement levels
• Patient demographics

Evaluate these factors carefully, and they will help you find the practice that benefits you the most.