My practice is being sold. What happens to my money?
Three things tend to arrive together: your share of the sale price if you're an owner, a decision about the practice's 401(k), and a new set of benefits from the buyer. Each has its own dates and its own expert.
Your attorney handles the agreements, your CPA the tax, and an advisor helps you fit the pieces into one plan for your household. You can take them one at a time.
Who helps with which part?
| Your attorney | Your CPA | An advisor | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The sale proceeds (owners) | The sale agreement and what you still owe after closing | How each part of the price is taxed, and when | Where the money sits and what it's for |
| The practice 401(k) | For owners, what the agreement says about the plan | Reporting a rollover or a payout | Where the balance goes and how it moves |
| Your new job | The employment agreement | How a signing payment or new pay is taxed | The match, the elections and how they fit your plan |
Personal financial planning connects these decisions. It doesn't replace a business valuation, legal opinion, tax return or payroll service. We advise and coordinate with your attorney and CPA; we don't value the practice, negotiate the sale, draft documents or file returns.
When does the sale money reach me, and how much is mine to keep?
The sale agreement sets that. Ask your attorney to walk you through each payment and its date: what's paid at closing, whether any part is held back for a time, and whether any is paid later or only if the practice meets targets.
The tax depends on how the sale is set up. If the buyer is buying the practice's assets, the IRS treats each asset as sold separately, so how the price is split among equipment, goodwill and the rest changes the tax on each part. Selling your shares in the practice is treated differently. That's your CPA's question, and it's worth asking before the split is final.
Where does the money sit while I decide?
That's your decision, and it gets easier once a few questions have answers:
- How much of it is owed in tax, and when is that due?
- Do you still owe anything personally after closing, such as a lease or loan you signed for?
- Is there a gap before your new pay starts that it needs to cover?
- What else is it for: debt, a home, savings for later?
If you invest the proceeds with us, we're paid our advisory fee on that money. It's worth knowing when you weigh our view.
What happens to the practice 401(k)?
The practice and the buyer decide whether it ends or carries on. If it ends, the IRS requires everyone in it to become fully vested, and you can generally roll your balance to another plan or an IRA. A direct rollover avoids the 20% withholding that comes with a check paid to you.
What happens to my 401(k) when my practice is sold? covers vesting, loans and the rollover paperwork.
What should I check in my new benefits?
The new employer's forms come with their own dates. Ask when each election window closes, when the retirement match starts and what pay it counts, how long until the match vests, and whether the new plan will take your old balance. If you're signing a new employment agreement, the questions on pay, restrictive covenants and tail coverage belong with your attorney.
Joining a hospital or group: what should I ask before I sign?
What should I bring to a first conversation?
The names of your attorney and CPA, and a note of what's final and what's still being negotiated. If you have them, the sale terms, your 401(k) statement and the new employer's benefits summary help too.
Questions to take to your attorney, CPA and advisor
- When does the sale money reach me, and is any of it held back, paid later or tied to future results?
- How does the agreement split the price, and how is each part taxed?
- Am I still personally responsible for anything after closing, such as a lease or a loan?
- Will the sale mean estimated tax payments this year, and how much should be set aside?
- Is the practice 401(k) ending or carrying on, and what are my rollover options?
- When do my new benefits start, and when does each election window close?
- What does my new employment agreement say about pay, the match and leaving?
- Who is keeping the whole picture in view while each of you answers your part?
alooola.com/guides/practice-sale/
- Internal Revenue Service, Sale of a business, last reviewed Feb 10, 2026.
- Internal Revenue Service, Retirement topics: termination of plan, last reviewed Jul 23, 2026.
- Internal Revenue Service, Topic no. 413, Rollovers from retirement plans, last reviewed Oct 8, 2026.
General information, not advice for your situation. Rules and figures change; each source is dated.
Talk it through with an advisor.
- Pick a time that suits you, by video or phone.
- Bring the question and whatever documents you have to hand.
- Leave with a clear next step. What you do with it is up to you.