Every business needs to continually invest to keep pace with progress, maintain high standards and operate as efficiently as possible. For some businesses this investment may be largely in personnel or somewhat intangible things like marketing or advertising. For others this may involve equipment and sophisticated technology.
Dentistry falls largely into the latter category, although of course, investing in people and marketing is also very important.
Over the last 25 years the nature of dental equipment has improved and enlarged at a very rapid rate with new technologies and systems of delivering dental treatment to the patient becoming ever more complex and consequently more expensive. In the 1960's it was possible to fully equip a dental surgery for not much more than £5000. Today that figure could be as high as £80000 depending on the level of technology employed.
Financing such investment has always presented the dentist with a heavy financial burden given that even under a fully funded dental service the provision of equipment and indeed all the structural costs of the practice were solely the dentists responsibility. In today's modern, ever more private treatment orientated world, this burden just keeps increasing.
However, to compensate for this dentists continue to enjoy a high status level with banks and other financial institutions and thus raising money to purchase high technology equipment and computers is relatively easy.
The introduction of leasing in the 1970's was of considerable value to dentists and continues to be so today, allowing for the immediate use of desired equipment without the need for any capital outlay. Regular, monthly, fully tax allowable payments, assist with budgeting and can be spread over periods from 1 - 7 years.
The tax treatment of leasing has always made this a popular option for dentists giving the total tax allowance, at the individuals highest tax rate, within the term of the agreement. This contrasts favourably with cash, Hire Purchase, or finance where the allowance is spread over a minimum period of around 10 years.
However in the last Budget it was announced that from April 2008 investment in capital equipment up to a figure of £50000 would be subject to 100% tax allowance in the first year of purchase. This is likely to swing the finance option back in favour of loan or HP within the £50k cost limit.
The range of providers of such finance for the profession are numerous and needless to say, covers a wide spectrum of experience, expertise and cost.
Obtaining specialist advice is always a good policy and MediFinance is there to provide just that as well as a wide range of other financial services.
Loans, leasing and HP for all practice equipment are available at very competitive terms backed up by expert advice and knowledge from some of the most experienced finance advisers in the market.
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Dentistry falls largely into the latter category, although of course, investing in people and marketing is also very important.
Financing such investment has always presented the dentist with a heavy financial burden given that even under a fully funded dental service the provision of equipment and indeed all the structural costs of the practice were solely the dentists responsibility. In today's modern, ever more private treatment orientated world, this burden just keeps increasing.
The tax treatment of leasing has always made this a popular option for dentists giving the total tax allowance, at the individuals highest tax rate, within the term of the agreement. This contrasts favourably with cash, Hire Purchase, or finance where the allowance is spread over a minimum period of around 10 years.