Financial Management
Fact or Fiction? Young Doctors Are Not Purchasing Dental Practices By Wesley W. Lyon II, CPA, CFP
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y company has seen more change in the business side of dentistry over the last decade than we saw in the previous few decades combined. Most of this change is centered around private equity entering the marketplace, looking to acquire practices. Equity firms’ strategy revolves around creating economies of scale and receiving higher multiples on much larger businesses — versus lower valuations of single dental practices. While I am not for or against private equity in dentistry, I am very much for transparency. The cold reality is that many private practices have sold to private equity firms based on misleading information. This results in an influx of associates willing to work for private equity dental practices that might not offer them the possibility of ownership. This means that big money is being funneled into messaging that may not be in the best interest of dentists. In this quarter’s column, I will try to debunk some of the biggest myths around practice ownership.
Myth 1: Young Dentists Are Not Buying Practices I recently spoke to a dentist here in Charlotte, North Carolina, who was considering selling to private equity based on the notion that young dentists aren’t purchasing practices. She was shocked when I told her that I could have the practice sold within five minutes, even more so when she realized I was serious. Here in Charlotte, five minutes might have been an overestimate of the time required to sell a practice at 100% of revenue. The truth is, there are more private buyers in Charlotte than there are sellers — it’s not even close. My company estimates there are at least 15 buyers in Charlotte for every practice for sale. Diving a bit deeper into our internal data nationally, we found that practices took, on average, 305 days to sell privately in 2023. In 2024, that number decreased to only 177 days. Through September 2025, practices on average took only 162 days to sell. What is driving this trend? The answer is simple: Inquiries from buyers on good practices are up, indicating more buyers in the marketplace. According to the American Dental Association’s Health Policy Institute, practice ownership has been delayed, not reduced, with over 80% of dentists owning practices 15–19 years after graduation.1 The bottom line is that young dentists are buying practices, but the definition of “young” has changed. A 28-year-old is unlikely to be in the marketplace, but a 35-year-old is.
Myth 2: Young Dentists Cannot Afford to Buy Practices According to the American Dental Education Association, the average student loan debt for the dental Class of 2024 was $312,700.2 Most dentists assume that this means they cannot afford more debt. This couldn’t be further from the truth; the fastest way to get out of student loan debt is to increase your income by purchasing a practice. Over the last few years, one of the most sought-after presentations I have given is “Why You Can’t Afford to Not Buy a Practice.”
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AGD IMPACT
DECEMBER 2025
Unfortunately, for the last seven to 10 years, young dentists have heard they can’t afford to buy practices, often lured by large signing bonuses and salary expectations from corporate groups that may not always come to fruition. While the increased student loan debt and corporate offers have certainly had an impact on young dentists, have they really stopped buying practices?
Why Are Dentists Delaying? My next point is pure speculation. A 28-year-old dentist making $200,000 per year is not going to feel squeezed until they start a family. With Americans today in general waiting longer to have children than previous generations, additional responsibility may not be top of mind. For those readers with children, we all know how quickly your income can disappear with a mortgage, car payment, daycare, etc. Eventually, reality strikes, and increased income becomes a priority. I have also heard from many young dentists who started to work for corporate dental offices that they have become increasingly unhappy. Common complaints include excessive workloads, lack of independence regarding decision-making, lackluster staff and lack of income. In good news, the tides seem to be shifting. In my experience over the last decade, my speaking engagements had been largely eliminated from dental schools in favor of donors that have a different message. Over the past two years, however, I have been invited back by part-time faculty senior dentists looking to get the message of ownership instilled in the younger generation. The younger generation also seems to be learning from the experiences of their slightly older peers. I recently spoke to a group of young dentists and full-heartedly believed I’d hear them say that corporate dentistry was their only option. To my surprise, most of them had stories to tell about friends regretting not purchasing a practice earlier.