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PPR
Private Practice Research
An institute for dental practice valuation & ownership

Research Roadmap

The publication queue.

Scoped publications, methodology approach, and expected publication windows. Refreshed quarterly. Delays and cancellations are recorded in-line.

Research Roadmap#

Edition: PPR-ROADMAP-2026-V1 Published: 2026-04-29 Last Updated: 2026-04-29 Prepared by: Private Practice Research Team, Editorial Desk Editor of Record: Forthcoming Suggested Citation: Private Practice Research. Research Roadmap. Edition PPR-ROADMAP-2026-V1. 2026.

About this Roadmap#

The Research Roadmap is a live publication schedule listing every scoped Private Practice Research study, the methodology approach for each, and the expected publication window, revised quarterly as data availability, methodology readiness, or industry priority warrants. The institute treats the Roadmap as a commitment: when a publication is delayed, the cause is recorded here and a revised target is posted before the original target lapses.

The institute treats the Roadmap as a commitment to readers and citing parties. Where a scheduled publication is delayed, the cause is recorded on this page and the revised target is published before the original target lapses. Where a scheduled publication is cancelled, the cancellation is recorded with the reasoning and the slot is reassigned to the next-priority research question.

Q2 2026: The State of Dental Practice Values: 2026 Baseline Report, Archived#

This inaugural publication (archived 2026-05-04 under its original published title) consolidates publicly available evidence on dental practice ownership, valuation, and consolidation in the United States across 3 input classes and presenting findings across 4 documented data series: dentist-owner share over time, retirement age shift, EBITDA multiples by practice size, and DSO affiliation rise. Future quarterly issues use the locked institutional naming convention The State of Private Practice [Year] Q[N] Report; this v1 is preserved under its original published title.

Title: The State of Dental Practice Values: 2026 Baseline Report Edition: PPR-BASELINE-2026-V1 Published: April 26, 2026 Status: Archived 2026-05-04. URL preserved for citation continuity at /reports/baseline-2026. Renamed to State of Private Practice 2026 Q2 Report series. Noindex.

Methodology summary. The inaugural publication consolidates publicly available evidence on dental practice ownership, valuation, and consolidation in the United States across three input classes: ADA Health Policy Institute Survey of Dental Practice data on workforce, ownership, and operating economics; transaction-multiple aggregates published by FOCUS Investment Banking and TUSK Practice Sales; and ADSO industry data on DSO affiliation. Findings are presented across four documented data series: dentist-owner share over time, retirement age and effective career-span shift, EBITDA multiples by practice size, and DSO affiliation rise. Every numeric value is footnoted to its primary source. Sampling uncertainty is shown on the time-series charts; observed-range bands are shown on the EBITDA multiples chart and labeled honestly as observed range, not statistical confidence intervals. Sources, methodology, and limitations are documented in the report.

Q2 2026: Pillar Publications, Published#

The institute's first two reference pillars were published in May 2026. Each pillar is a comprehensive framework intended to anchor practitioner-facing decision making and to serve as the canonical PPR citation for its topic across AI search engines, journalist research, and academic reference.

Title: The Complete Dental Practice Transition Decision Framework Edition: PPR-PILLAR-TRANSITIONS-2026-V1 Published: May 1, 2026 Status: Published, available at /reports/transition-decision-framework

Title: How Dental Practices Are Valued in 2026: A Framework for Practice Owners Edition: PPR-VPILLAR-2026-V1 Published: May 1, 2026 Status: Published, available at /reports/how-dental-practices-are-valued-2026

Methodology summary. Both pillars synthesize 100+ online dental industry sources active in the 2026 dental transaction market, anchored to ADA Health Policy Institute workforce and operating-economics data, FOCUS Investment Banking and TUSK Practice Sales transaction multiples, ADCPA practice-economics benchmarks, and named broker commentary from Large Practice Sales, DDSmatch, McLerran & Associates, PTS, and Henry Schein Practice Transitions. Every numeric claim is footnoted to its primary source. Quadrant frameworks and example calculations are constructed from triangulated data, not single-source aggregates.

Q2 2026: Transitions Cluster Publications, Published#

The Transitions cluster expands the Transition Decision Framework pillar with focused publications on each major internal-transition path.

Title: Partnership Buy-Ins: Why Most Are Mispriced Edition: PPR-CLUSTER-E4-2026-V1 Published: May 12, 2026 Status: Published, available at /reports/partnership-buy-ins-mispriced

Methodology summary. Reconciliation framework for pricing dental partnership buy-ins, synthesizing ADA HPI transition reporting, AGD Impact partnership-buy-in analyses, Dental Economics archives, ROI Corporation transition data, McLerran and Associates, Cain Watters, and Baker Tilly methodology resources. Identifies five mispricing archetypes and provides a four-step valuation methodology for reconciling income-approach and market-approach valuations on the same practice.

Title: Internal Sales: Associate Buy-In Mechanics and Where They Fail Edition: PPR-CLUSTER-E3-2026-V1 Published: May 17, 2026 Status: Published, available at /reports/associate-buy-in-mechanics

Methodology summary. A structured framework for evaluating dental associate buy-in transactions, identifying five failure modes (mispriced minority interest, financing-structure mismatch, owner exit timeline conflict, production-share misalignment, succession-incompetence misread) and applying the PPR Buy-In Failure Mode Decision Tree to surface early-warning signals 18 to 24 months before transaction collapse. Covers three financing structures (escrow-equity-build, sweat-equity, immediate-purchase with SBA financing) and their distinct failure dynamics. Sources: ADA HPI, AGD Impact, Dental Economics, ROI Corporation, McLerran and Associates, CTC Associates, Baker Tilly, Cain Watters.

Q2 2026: DSO Dynamics Cluster Publication, Published#

The DSO Dynamics cluster expands the How Dental Practices Are Valued in 2026 pillar with focused publications on DSO offer evaluation and buyer archetypes.

Title: Is Your DSO Offer Fair? A Practitioner's Framework Edition: PPR-CLUSTER-D1-2026-V1 Published: May 13, 2026 Status: Published, available at /reports/is-your-dso-offer-fair

Methodology summary. A 6-component risk-adjusted-NPV framework for converting headline DSO offers into risk-adjusted realized proceeds. Components: independent valuation reference, headline-versus-risk-adjusted-NPV, tax allocation mechanics, earnout/holdback structure, employment-term cost, and multi-bid process uplift. Reconciles a $1.5M DSO offer against a $950K all-cash competing offer to show the 23 percent headline-to-realized gap. Sources: ADA HPI, Cain Watters, Legacy Practice Transitions, McLerran and Associates, Baker Tilly.

Q2 2026: DSO Dynamics Cluster Publication, Buyer Archetypes, Published#

Title: Types of DSO Buyers and How Each Prices Your Practice Differently Edition: PPR-CLUSTER-D3-2026-V1 Published: May 17, 2026 Status: Published, available at /reports/types-of-dso-buyers

Methodology summary. A 4-archetype classification framework (Platform DSO, Portfolio DSO, DPO, MSO) documenting how each buyer type prices practice acquisitions across cash mix, rollover-equity terms, employment commitments, and post-close clinical autonomy. Includes offer comparisons across all four archetypes on a $1.2M practice. Sources: ADA News, ADA HPI, AGD Impact, Cain Watters, MB2 Dental, Scott Leune Seminars, DrBicuspid, Teero.

Q2 2026: DSO Consolidation Pillar Publication, Draft#

The DSO Consolidation Pillar documents the seven structurally distinct buyer types operating in the U.S. dental acquisition market, explaining why ADA-reported DSO affiliation figures (16.1 percent under the narrow definition) diverge from ADSO-reported estimates (30-plus percent under the broader definition), and mapping the structural differences between Platform PE, Formal DSO, Regional Roll-Up, IDSO Partnership, Invisible DSO, Joint-Venture DSO, and Management Service Organization buyer types.

Title: Inside the US DSO Landscape: A 7-Buyer-Type Framework Edition: PPR-DPILLAR-2026-V1 Published: May 23, 2026 Status: Draft. Operator publish-flip pending. Available at /reports/us-dso-landscape-2026

Methodology summary. A 7-type classification framework for the U.S. dental acquisition market constructed from first-hand synthesis of six named broker and advisory sources active in the 2026 dental transition market, cross-referenced against published ADA Health Policy Institute data, ADSO membership reporting, SEC EDGAR filings for public dental-sector companies, and Large Practice Sales (Chip Fichtner) IDSO transaction reporting. Each buyer type is documented across five structural dimensions: pricing methodology, cash structure, employment obligations, post-close clinical autonomy, and seller suitability. Numeric ranges for deal size, multiple, and cash-at-close percentages are illustrative ranges derived from the named sources; specific offer terms require independent valuation and deal counsel.

Q2 2026: Ownership Pillar Publication, Draft#

The Ownership Pillar disaggregates the aggregate U.S. dentist-owner share decline across four generational cohorts using the PPR 4-Cohort Ownership Map framework, identifying diverging trajectories that the aggregate series obscures.

Title: The State of US Dental Practice Ownership: A 4-Cohort Framework Edition: PPR-OPILLAR-2026-V1 Published: May 19, 2026 Status: Draft. Operator publish-flip pending. Available at /reports/us-dental-practice-ownership-2026

Methodology summary. Disaggregates the 12.2-percentage-point decline in dentist-owner share (84.7 percent in 2005 to 72.5 percent in 2023) across four generational cohorts: Senior Generation (65 and older), Mid-Career Generation (45 to 64), Early-Career Generation (30 to 44), and Recent-Graduate Generation (under 30). Each cohort carries a distinct ownership rate, rate of change, and structural driver set. Three forces identified: DSO affiliation concentrated at career ends, student debt burden in early-career cohorts, and practice price appreciation since 2015. Sources: ADA HPI Dentist Workforce Study series (2005 to 2024), ACS PUMS 2023 occupation and self-employment microdata, NPPES NPI Registry (February 2026 snapshot), HRSA Area Health Resources Files 2023, ADEA Annual Survey of Dental Education 2023 to 2024, TUSK Practice Sales, FOCUS Investment Banking, McLerran and Associates.

Q2 2026: Market Timing Pillar Publication, Draft#

The Market Timing Pillar quantifies why the 2026-2027 window is structurally different for dental practice transitions, introducing the PPR Three-Force Convergence Model to map the simultaneous convergence of the demographic retirement wave, PE capital-pressure-to-exit, and tax-cliff urgency from expiring TCJA provisions.

Title: Why 2026-2027 Is Structurally Different for Dental Practice Transitions Edition: PPR-MPILLAR-2026-V1 Published: May 28, 2026 Status: Draft. BTA editorial review pending. Available at /reports/2026-2027-dental-transition-window

Methodology summary. Introduces the PPR Three-Force Convergence Model, an original quantification framework mapping three simultaneous structural forces. Force 1 (Demographic Retirement Wave) is quantified using HRSA AHRF 2024-2025 NPI counts cross-validated against ACS PUMS 2023, producing a 41,749 inactive-NPI gap, anchored with Texas SBDE state licensure data showing 41.2 percent of licensees age 60 or older. Force 2 (Capital-Pressure-to-Exit) is documented through the PPR 78-event dental platform transaction tracker (April 2024 through April 2026) and Dentalcorp Holdings 2024 annual report. Force 3 (Tax-Cliff Urgency) is framed around TCJA Sections 199A and 168(k), with illustrative after-tax transaction math at current versus hypothetical rates. Maps interaction effects for full three-force alignment (maximum compounding) and partial two-force scenarios. Sources: HRSA AHRF 2024-2025, ACS PUMS 2023, Texas State Board of Dental Examiners daily roster, IPEDS 2022-23, PPR DSO transaction tracker, Dentalcorp Holdings 2024 Annual Report, Nasseh et al. Health Affairs 2024 and Health Services Research 2026, TUSK Practice Sales, FOCUS Investment Banking, McLerran and Associates, Skytale Group.

Q3 2026: Methodology Critique on Broker Valuation Multiples#

This publication audits the methodology disclosed by major dental transition advisory firms whose published valuation multiples are routinely cited in trade press and practitioner-facing material, cataloguing stated input populations, sample-size disclosures, exclusion criteria, and treatment of self-reported versus verified closing prices, and producing a methodology-disclosure index for practitioners and scholars.

Working title: Broker Valuation Multiples: A Methodology Audit of the Public Aggregates Expected publication window: Q3 2026 Status: Scoping

Methodology summary. This publication audits the methodology disclosed by the major dental transition advisory firms whose published valuation multiples are routinely cited in trade press and practitioner-facing material. The audit catalogues each firm's stated input population, sample-size disclosures, exclusion criteria, time-window definitions, and treatment of self-reported versus verified closing prices. The objective is a like-for-like comparison of methodology rigor, surfaced as a methodology-disclosure index that lets practitioners and scholars assess which aggregates are central to which research questions. The audit treats methodology disclosure as a public good and does not rank firms on commercial dimensions outside the disclosure scope.

Q3 2026: Longitudinal Brief on Independent-Practice Share, 36-Month Window#

This brief tracks the share of US dental care delivered through independent (non-DSO-affiliated) practices across a rolling 36-month window using ADA workforce data, ADA HPI practice-organization breakdowns, and DSO-reported acquisition counts, presenting findings at national, regional, and specialty level with explicit treatment of DSO classification ambiguities and the 36-month time-horizon limitation.

Working title: The Independent-Practice Share of US Dental Care: A 36-Month Longitudinal View Expected publication window: Q3 2026 Status: Data assembly

Methodology summary. The brief tracks the share of US dental care delivered through independent (non-DSO-affiliated) practices across a rolling 36-month window using ADA workforce data, ADA HPI practice-organization breakdowns, and DSO-reported acquisition counts where publicly available. Findings are presented as national share, regional concentrations, and specialty-level variation, with explicit treatment of the definitional ambiguities in DSO classification. The brief flags the time-horizon limitation per the institute's standard limitations disclosure: 36 months is the current longitudinal window for the institute's transaction-comparable dataset.

Q4 2026: Brief PPR-5 (topic in development)#

Brief PPR-5 is a Q4 2026 slot reserved for a topic and principal data sources currently being scoped against practitioner-facing research-priority signals, following the standard Private Practice Research toolkit: documented data sources, primary-source verification, editorial review, disconfirmation discipline, and explicit limitations disclosure. The topic and methodology summary are recorded here once the scope is locked.

Working title: Brief PPR-5 (working title pending) Expected publication window: Q4 2026 Status: Topic in development; scoping in progress

Methodology summary. This slot is reserved for a Q4 brief whose topic and principal data sources are being scoped against practitioner-facing research-priority signals. The methodology approach will follow the standard Private Practice Research toolkit: documented data sources, primary-source verification, editorial review, disconfirmation discipline, and explicit limitations disclosure. The topic and principal data sources are recorded here once the scope is locked, and this entry is updated to a working title with a methodology summary at that point.

Q4 2026: Brief PPR-6 (topic in development)#

Brief PPR-6 is a second Q4 2026 slot, paired with PPR-5 to permit a methodology approach that surfaces a comparison or contrast between 2 adjacent research questions with a shared evidence base and per-brief findings, following the standard Private Practice Research toolkit. The topic, principal data sources, and comparative frame are recorded here once the scope is locked.

Working title: Brief PPR-6 (working title pending) Expected publication window: Q4 2026 Status: Topic in development; scoping in progress

Methodology summary. This slot is reserved for a second Q4 brief, paired with the entry above. The institute pairs the two Q4 briefs to permit a methodology approach that surfaces a comparison or contrast between two adjacent research questions, with a shared evidence base and per-brief findings. The topic, the principal data sources, and the comparative frame are recorded here once locked.

Q1 2027: Regional Deep Dive (slot reserved)#

The Q1 2027 Regional Deep Dive is a single US census region analysis at state-level resolution, applying the institute's standard methodology toolkit at finer geographic scale than the 2026 inaugural report, with the region selected based on 2026 inaugural findings and paired with an explicit external-validity caveat that single-region findings do not generalize to other regions.

Working title: Regional Deep Dive: Valuation, Transition Timing, and Workforce Composition in a Single Census Region Expected publication window: Q1 2027 Status: Slot reserved; region selection pending 2026 inaugural findings

Methodology summary. A deep-dive analysis of one US census region whose 2026 inaugural findings warrant fuller treatment, with state-level resolution where ADA HPI and workforce data permit. The deep dive applies the institute's standard methodology toolkit at a finer geographic resolution and is paired with an explicit external-validity caveat: a single-region analysis does not generalize to other regions, and the institute states this directly in the publication.

How the Roadmap is Maintained#

The Roadmap is reviewed at the start of every publication cycle, with reviews considering data availability for each scheduled publication, methodology readiness flagged by the editorial team or Advisory Board, external developments that change a topic's research priority, and reader and citing-party signals on underserved research questions. Substantive changes are recorded with reasoning, and the edition identifier is incremented at each revision.

Substantive changes to the Roadmap are recorded with the reasoning, and the edition identifier on this page is incremented at each revision.

Versioning#

This Roadmap document is updated at the start of every publication cycle and whenever a scheduled publication is added, delayed, cancelled, or materially rescoped, with each revision incrementing the edition identifier and recording the change on the public versioning page alongside a brief explanation of what changed and why. The current edition is PPR-ROADMAP-2026-V1, published 2026-04-29.

Contact#

Suggestions for future Roadmap entries are welcome at press@privatepracticeresearch.org, particularly from researchers, scholars, and practitioners working on adjacent questions in dental practice economics, valuation methodology, or healthcare workforce research; the institute treats Roadmap suggestions as a valuable input to the editorial program and replies to substantive proposals within 14 days.