Brookharbor Lenders in Charleston, West Virginia passes funding requests from Kanawha County dental offices to funding partners. This page covers operatory equipment, remodels, acquisitions, what transfers in a sale, a checklist and county dental counts.
At a glance
- Offices of dentists
Offices of dentists, Kanawha County, WV: 69 employer establishments (CBP 2023)
- Dental office employees
Offices of dentists, Kanawha County, WV: 667 paid employees (CBP 2023)
- Office ZIP dentists
Offices of dentists, ZIP 25301: 18 employer establishments (ZBP 2023)
Dental Equipment Loans for a Kanawha County, WV Office Adding an Operatory
An added operatory needs a patient chair and delivery unit, an operator stool, a light, cabinetry, a sensor or imaging access, and plumbing, air and vacuum lines. The equipment is a natural fit for equipment financing; the plumbing and cabinetry are often part of a build-out loan.
A partner will ask for the dealer's quote with every line itemized and, if building work is involved, the contractor's bid. The equipment financing page covers chairs and imaging in general.
Dental Business Loans for a Charleston, WV Office Remodel
Remodeling a reception area, sterilization room or treatment area is closer to construction than to equipment. A dental business loan for a remodel is usually a term loan, with the length matched to how long the remodel will serve the office.
If the office leases, the landlord's consent and the remaining lease term matter: a partner will not want a ten-year loan on a space with three years left on the lease.
Many offices phase a remodel so that some operatories keep seeing patients while others are closed. Phasing lengthens the project but protects production; it also means the remodel loan may be drawn in stages rather than at once. Ask the contractor for a phased schedule and the partner whether the loan can follow it.
Sterilization rooms deserve their own line in the budget. Autoclaves, ultrasonic cleaners and instrument-processing cabinets are equipment that can be financed with the chairs, while the plumbing and ventilation around them belong to the build-out.
Dental Clinic Acquisition: Funding the Purchase of an Established Office
Buying an established dental office means paying for its patients, staff, equipment, lease and name. Acquisition loans are usually term loans, repaid from the office's collections after the sale.
A partner reviewing a dental clinic acquisition will read the seller's collections and production for several years, the payer mix, the equipment list and age, and the buyer's own clinical experience. The dental buy-in article walks through a partial buy-in.
Dental Office Acquisition and the Lease, Charts and Equipment That Transfer
Not everything transfers automatically in a sale. The lease must usually be assigned with the landlord's consent. Patient charts transfer under the terms of the purchase agreement and any applicable records rules. Equipment under an existing lease belongs to the lessor until the lease is paid off.
Ask the seller for a list of what is owned outright, what is leased or financed, and what the landlord requires. Those answers change how much the buyer needs to borrow.
Dental Practice Acquisition Checklist Before a Lender Review
- Three to five years of collections and production reports.
- The seller's tax returns for the same years.
- Active patient counts and the payer mix.
- An equipment list with ages, and any equipment leases.
- The lease, with assignment terms and remaining years.
- Staff list with roles, and whether the seller will stay through a transition.
- The letter of intent or purchase agreement, once drafted.
Kanawha County, WV Dentist Offices by Size: 69 Employers, 14 Under Five Staff
County Business Patterns counted 69 offices of dentists with employees in Kanawha County, WV in 2023, with 667 employees and an annual payroll of about $37.5 million. Fourteen of them, or 20.3%, had fewer than five employees, a smaller share than the county average of 45.1%.
Eighteen of the 69 had a ZIP 25301 address (ZIP Code Business Patterns). Seventeen dentist offices had no paid employees in 2024, according to Nonemployer Statistics, a separate Census program.
An Invented Operatory Build-Out With a Chair, a Cabinet Run and a Sensor
Illustration only, invented figures: a Charleston, WV dental office adds an operatory with a chair and delivery unit, a cabinet run and an intraoral sensor for $61,000 in total. It finances the package over six years at an invented annual rate of 9%.
In this invented case the office pays about $1,099.56 a month for six years, about $79,168 over the 72 payments, so the financing adds about $18,168 (our arithmetic). The office would compare the payment with the production the added chair is expected to support.
By Brookharbor Lenders · Updated