The day your practice goes on the market is quieter than most medical practice owners expect. No sign goes up, your name is nowhere, and your staff sees nothing.
This article walks through what happens from the day you go to market until due diligence starts, from your side of the table: what happens, what you will see, and where you come in. It is based on more than 134 closed transactions.
What “on the market” actually means
Your practice does not go to market by name. It goes out as a profile: specialty, metro area, revenue, earnings, asking price, reason for sale, a paragraph on what makes it worth buying, and one photo that could be any clinic in Florida. The headline reads something like “Primary Care Practice, Miami, $1,250,000 EBITDA.” It never says who you are.
From there, the practice goes out in two steps, and the order matters.
First: the buyers we already know
Before the practice appears anywhere public, we go to the buyers we have identified as a strong fit for your practice: the strategic buyers in your specialty. They go first for a reason. Strategic buyers tend to make more comprehensive offers.
Alongside them, the practice goes to the buyers in our network, a network of qualified healthcare buyers. Some have acquired practices through us before. Others we know already own practices in the space, are looking to acquire more and have the means to do it. We speak with them all the time because they are actively buying. One of the benefits of being part of our network is that they hear about a practice before it goes live on the marketplaces.
Second: the marketplaces
Then the anonymous profile goes up on the business-for-sale marketplaces that serious buyers search. We invest about $1,000 a month per listing in paid visibility so the profile sits where buyers see it instead of on page six. This brings in the buyers who are actively looking but are not yet in our network.
Your patients, your staff, your landlord and your competitors see none of this. If you want to understand why most listings sit for a year and never sell, read Why Most Medical Practice Listings Never Sell, and Why Ours Do.
The first 24 hours
Once the profile is live, inquiries start coming in quickly. The marketplace form takes a buyer about two seconds to fill out, so the first wave is mixed:
- Some have genuine interest in a practice like yours.
- Some are investors who do not know yet whether they are interested and need more information to decide.
- Some are brokers looking for clients, and some will never buy anything.
Every one of them signs a non-disclosure agreement before learning anything about you.
On your side, it is quiet. You will not get calls from unknown numbers about the practice being for sale. No buyer emails you directly, at your address, your staff’s or your patients’. You will hear from us, with the numbers we are seeing: how many inquiries came in, how many buyers signed the NDA, and who is moving forward. Otherwise, you keep seeing patients.
What comes next happens mostly on our side: interviewing the buyers.
Interviewing and qualifying the buyers
Over the following weeks we speak with the buyers one by one. Some of them we have known for years and they have acquired practices through us before. Others are new to us. Either way, those conversations do two things.
We qualify the buyer. We confirm the buyer fits what the deal requires. For example, if the practice needs a physician as the buyer, that is a requirement, and a buyer who cannot meet it does not move forward. We also confirm the buyer has the means to complete the acquisition, whether that is their own funds or financing.
We answer their questions so you do not have to. We are the first line of defense for every information request. In most cases we have already collected the data points a buyer will ask for. When there is no report that answers a question, we usually already know the answer from the conversations we had with you while preparing the practice, and we put it in writing for the buyer. Specific reports, financial clarifications, context about the type of deal you are looking for: we provide all of it. When we do not have something, we work with you and your team to get it, and when needed we build the report or the analysis ourselves.
A buyer has to be qualified before they can meet you or put in an offer.
Meeting the buyers
We always recommend that you speak with the buyers before choosing one. Once you accept an offer, you reach a point where turning back is difficult. At a minimum, you will work closely with that buyer through due diligence, and in most cases through a transition period after closing, which physicians typically set at a year or more. You should know who you will be working with and whether you want to do business with them.
Those conversations happen after the buyer has asked their questions and has been qualified, so the time you spend is with buyers who can actually close.
Offers, acceptance and due diligence
This is where offers start coming in. Each one comes with its own price, structure and terms, and we analyze and compare them side by side with you. How to compare offers, and what to look at beyond the price, deserves its own article, and we will cover it separately. In the meantime, What You Actually Keep When You Sell Your Medical Practice explains why the headline price and what you receive can be very different numbers.
When you choose an offer, you accept it, usually by signing a letter of intent. Sometimes it makes sense to work with an attorney before accepting, especially when the offer includes a seller note, an earnout, equity rollover or the real estate.
Acceptance is when due diligence begins. What happens from there is covered in What Actually Happens After You Sign the Offer, which picks up where this article ends.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to get an offer after listing a medical practice?
It depends on the specialty, the market and how well the practice is prepared. Well-prepared practices in active markets have drawn first offers within two weeks of going to market; others take two to three months. Missing documents, lack of clarity and mispricing are the most common reasons it takes longer.
Will my staff or patients find out my practice is for sale?
Not from the listing. The practice is marketed as an anonymous profile, every buyer signs a non-disclosure agreement before learning anything about you, and buyers do not contact you, your staff or your patients directly.
Do I have to talk to every buyer?
No. We interview and qualify every buyer first. You only meet buyers who meet the requirements of the deal and have shown they can fund the acquisition. We do recommend meeting them before you accept an offer.
Who answers the buyers’ questions?
We do. Most questions are answered with information we collected while preparing the practice. When something is missing, we work with you and your team to produce it, including building reports or analysis when needed.
Do I need an attorney to accept an offer?
Not always. When the offer includes a seller note, an earnout, equity rollover or real estate, we recommend having an attorney review it before you sign.
Considering a sale, or want to know what your medical practice is worth? Book a free, confidential discovery call to talk through your options.
