Texas or Massachusettes?
- Thread starter Petuniaf
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Sooo many dentists in Boston, you must be trolling...
No, I'm actually helping a friend to ask this question. He already has a successful practice in greater Boston area but is considering to move to Houston for some family reasons. He doesn't come to SDN so I thought I could help him to collect some info.
Texas is WAY more business friendly, lower jobless rate, and actually has people moving there.
Just saying.....
Just saying.....
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Does it matter where in Texas, though? Are cities like Dallas, Houston, etc that much better off than cities like Boston, Chicago, Detroit, etc?
Like any area, you'll find more competition in the larger metroplitan areas and less outside of the city areas in suburbia and rural areas.
Take a look at the tax rates of the areas and the population trends. Obviously one can set up a successful practice in an urban, higher tax rate area with a trending population decline, but it's more than likely to be more difficult than in growing, more business areas, especially if you can find a more rural area with less competiton.
As for your Detriot reference, did you see the news piece yesterday where the Gov of Michigan ISN'T ruling out letting the city of Detroit go bankrupt?? I'm not so sure that I'd want to look into setting up a practice in the Detroit area in the near future. They've got some more than likely rough times ahead 😱
Nice points. So would you prefer setting up a practice in Houston or Boston area, let's say, both in suburbia areas?
Personally, I'd go Boston (then again I'm a native New Englander with the vast majority of both my wife's and my extended family still living in New England and I LOVE to ski - so I have other factors affecting my bias 😉 )
If I didn't have New England ties and a love of skiing, just looking at the business climate, I'd probably look at Houston.
As for the city vs. suburban practice. Personally, once again because of personal bia, i'd first look at the suburbs (I grew up in the suburbs, I practice in a rural suburb and I currently live in a rural suburb area. I enjoy going to a city area for a few days a couple of times a year, but I know that longterm that's not my lifestyle).
Speaking on a Boston sense, I have friends that practice in Boston itself, friends who practice on the 128 corridor and friends who practice on the 495 corridor and beyond covering most specialties. All seem to be doing well and like their area. We all seem to end up complaining about taxes and regulations and Obamacare and it's uncertainty when we get together at alumni events these days 😳
There obviously are personal factors that play into where one looks to practice, but if the option isn't so limited, then I'd want to head to where it likely would be the "easiest" to get a practice up and running and draw patients to it
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Where do you guys get these random ideas like this? If you want to know where you should "start a practice", start by doing some demographics and looking at a SPECIFIC area. There are placed in Houston with dentists on every corner, every strip center and freestanding building for miles. Don't assume that just because "everything is better in Texas" that everything is better everywhere in Texas. I constantly hear all this talk about how Texas is the best place to practice, but the whole damn field is changing, even here in Texas. There are corporate offices opening up EVERYWHERE here in Houston and PLENTLY of existing dentists. I should know, I've looked. Corporate places sending out 40,000 flyers a month!!!! Try competing with that! People here hurt for money just like people in other states, so you need to not listen to anything anyone else says and seek information for yourself if you want a good answer.
You could open up a practice or buy an existing practice in a rural area and probably do really well, but you'd hate your life because rural Texas is nothing like Boston or Houston- I should know, I lived in a very small very rural area for 18 years. I wouldn't base where I want to live on "where the best place to practice is"- you may succeed, but if everything outside of work sucks, then you won't ever be happy.
You could open up a practice or buy an existing practice in a rural area and probably do really well, but you'd hate your life because rural Texas is nothing like Boston or Houston- I should know, I lived in a very small very rural area for 18 years. I wouldn't base where I want to live on "where the best place to practice is"- you may succeed, but if everything outside of work sucks, then you won't ever be happy.
