Opening a dental practice comes with lots of barriers to overcome. One challenge people often fear is funding. 

How do you finance a startup? How do you secure funding? Who will banks choose to lend money to? Will school debt affect your odds? Will you have to take on more debt than your practice can make?

Dentists looking to finance a startup worry that the process will be long, daunting, detailed and difficult. But the reality is, the challenge of funding a startup really isn’t that challenging!

According to Dr. Ben, a practice owner who moved across the country to start his practice, “(Funding) was very straightforward. It didn’t really seem to be a big challenge for the size and the scope of the project.”

Maybe this is surprising to you but…

Banks are typically very willing to give loans to dentists looking to open their own practice, as long as you know what you’re doing and follow the right steps! 

In fact, by teaching dentists the right steps, we’ve helped secure financial funding for over 600 dental practice startups. Our goal is to make securing funding as simple and straightforward as possible. Funding really shouldn’t be such a headache! 

I also want to make sure you’re not making the common mistakes most dentists make when searching for funding. 

Here’s a big one …

You shouldn’t be prioritizing paying off your student loans. 

That’s right, paying off your student loans won’t make you stand out at the bank! Instead, you want to focus on building your savings. (Still make your minimum payments on time, though!)

I like to say banks view school debt as “good debt.” Good debt is school debt or business debt, which is very different from consumer debt (think car payments, credit card bills). Having good debt and a huge savings account is way better than no debt and a pocket of change.

Here’s one more to watch out for…

We love local banks but sadly, a LOT of them just don’t know how successful new dental offices can be. You’ll most likely get better rates with a bigger bank, just like Dr Bryan (listen to how he got great rates and then went back to a local bank after his first year in the video below).

Knowing information like this is key to being a good candidate for bank lending, which is why we coach our clients through every step of the process and work to build a customized plan – and a backup plan!

To hear the experience of two dentists who secured funding to open their dream practice, check out the full interview here.

For a more in-depth look at what you need to do to prepare for financing your dental startup, check out The 4 Secrets of Financing Your Startup Dental Practice: Data From 600+ Startup Loans.