One of the main things that can cause a chiropractic practice to financially under-perform is a poor location. A poor location ultimately results from poor site selection or misinformation about a site.

Indeed, the difference between one chiropractor earning $200,000 per year and another bringing in double that amount may be little more than practice location. Of course, there are factors such as office size, marketing budgets, and management strategy to consider, but these may all be secondary to the importance of location.

Essentially, there are three types of practices: profitable, break-even, and go-broke. A truly profitable location will make money and the practice will appreciate in value. A break-even location will pay the doctor a small salary and pay the rent but not much more. The go-broke location is simply not sustainable.

Indeed, the chiropractor who sets up shop in a poor location may never get the practice off the ground. Usually, a go-broke location will not only steal your capital but also put you into personal bankruptcy — after you have exhausted your lines of credit.

If you thought that site selection is all about “location, location, location,” you’re right — intellectually. However, when chiropractic tenants are involved in the site selection process, common sense often seems to go out the window. Consider for a moment that site selection is not a science, it’s an art that’s part research, part luck, and part timing.

To avoid making a tragic mistake, familiarize yourself with the basics of site selection.

Take your time and do not make decisions under pressure: Typically, for a new practice, you should start the site selection process six months or more in advance of when you want to open. If you find a prime location, usually the landlord will hold it for you for a few months. However, if the process takes longer, you may need several months to finalize the offer to lease, review the formal lease documents, and design and build out the office.

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