Solo Path Consulting

FAQs

What qualifications make someone a good fit for launching a solo practice?

While we can guide nearly anyone through the process of launching a solo practice, a few things can make the transition smoother. It’s helpful to have a few years of experience in a clinical setting, especially if you’ve gained some exposure to tasks like scheduling, billing, and general practice operations. Being motivated and ready to carve out extra time outside your current role will also go a long way — starting a business takes effort and consistency, especially early on. Finally, having at least $3,000 saved for startup costs is recommended to give yourself the best chance at a confident and well-supported launch. (You can find more details on typical expenses elsewhere in the FAQs.)

Do I need to be fully licensed to start a solo practice?

Yes, you must be fully licensed as an LPC, LCSW, or LMFT and live in the state of South Carolina or Texas to begin seeing clients in an independent solo practice. However, the time leading up to your full licensure is a perfect opportunity to get a head start on building the business framework.

We can begin our work together under a signed contract before your license is active, allowing us to help you handle foundational tasks like creating your business entity, developing a launch timeline, and mapping out your finances. This ensures you can hit the ground running the moment you are officially fully licensed. We encourage you to discuss your specific timeline with us so we can plan accordingly.

How much can I expect to make at a solo practice?

You can expect to net about 75% of your gross income if you are working in-person, or 80% if you are fully virtual. Once you’re established (after the contract term ends), you can expect to net about 90% of your gross income if you are working in-person, or 95% if you are fully virtual. This is based on a full caseload, where expenses are able to be fully spread (expense percentage goes up when you are part-time).

What is the lead time to getting up and running?

You will likely want to give yourself 2.5 to 3 months of lead time to start this process. You can continue working in your current role during this transition, so you can hit the ground running once you launch your solo practice.

How does insurance paneling work?

You may already be group-paneled through your current role. Since it can take some time to become individually paneled, prior to your expected launch date, we will set you up under a temporary group panel. This should provide rates comparable to those of an individual panel and allow you to see insurance clients in the interim. Once that is complete, we will continue to work with the insurers to get you paneled individually. Some insurers move quickly and can leverage your prior paneling, while others make you start from scratch, which will take longer. Expect anywhere from 3 to 12 weeks prior to your launch date to get up and running on the temporary group panel, with additional time (potentially up to a year) to get fully paneled individually.

How will I obtain clients?

We have determined which marketing efforts have the best results and will set you up with these tools to obtain a full caseload as quickly as possible. We have additionally developed a proprietary process for maximizing the value from Psychology Today that will lead to more referrals. We also have other “boots on the ground” marketing efforts that you can choose to utilize, which will help build a caseload early on. Depending on what clients you can bring from your prior role, it is not uncommon to have a steady caseload of 20 hours per week within six months of starting your solo practice and a full caseload (however you wish to define that) within a year.

Will I be assisted in obtaining office space?

There are many options for obtaining full or part-time office space, and we will discuss those options with you. We will assist you in obtaining office space or moving to a fully virtual environment if you so choose. We have additional resources to help you determine what will be needed to furnish your new office space if you choose to go that route as well.

Will I need to use any specific EHR or other software?

We have determined what we believe to be the best way to run a solo practice, and with that comes a list of vendors we believe are best in class or offer the best value proposition. We will urge you to use these, as that is what we are able to fully support. While you can choose to use other vendors, please note that our ability to support you will be limited as we do not have access to or familiarity with those platforms. We remain independent of each vendor and receive no kickback or other financial incentive for using these, so you can rest assured that your interests come first.

What billing and administrative support will I receive?

The EHR is fully integrated with calendar/scheduling, insurance billing, notes, and other functionality. This makes the billing and administrative tasks run smoothly. In cases where there is an insurance claim denial or a complaint from a client, we will walk you through the best way to handle these situations, and if they are not easily resolved, we will step in to provide the support you need. We aim to allow you to spend your time seeing clients while minimizing the hours spent running your business.

Will you help me structure my business?

As part of this full-service agreement, we will help you determine the best structure for your business and assist you in setting it up with both the state of South Carolina or Texas, and the IRS. We will help you obtain business bank accounts, liability and malpractice insurance, create intake forms, and provide you with full control over the direction you wish to go in operating your business.

What accounting support will I receive?

We have created a template that will allow you to reconcile all of your income and expenses to your business bank account on a monthly basis. The template is set up to mimic the data points needed to file your taxes, making the work for your accountant much easier when they file your taxes.

What tax support will I receive?

While we will not be filing any taxes on your behalf, we offer a few helpful tax-related services. We have created a template that will help you determine the estimated taxes you will need to pay quarterly to the IRS and will provide reminder emails and a walkthrough of how to pay these electronically. We will also provide helpful guidance for filing Franchise Tax forms and other informational returns. Lastly, we will help you set up a retirement plan that can save you roughly $16,000 in taxes each year if fully funded.

What other benefits will I receive?

There are many additional resources we can share around the best Facebook groups to monitor, best insurance podcasts to help you understand billing and claims, general financial and accounting education, EHR tutorials, and various reminder emails to help your business operate efficiently.

How will I stay organized with all that is needed to set up this business?

We have created a timeline of “To-Do” items that we will customize to your specific planned launch date and business set-up. The document will be shared and used to set expectations and keep you on track. We will schedule check-in calls as needed to ensure communication is prioritized and task completion stays on target.

I am excited to make a move to solo practice, but how can you help me mitigate my fears?

There are many fears and concerns that those moving to solo practice experience including…

  • I Don’t Know Where To Even Begin
  • I Don’t Know How To Handle The Legal And Tax Setup
  • I Don’t Know How To Handle Scheduling or Billing
  • I Don’t Want To Deal With Administrative Functions
  • I Don’t Want To Find An Office Space
  • I Don’t Know If I’ll Be Able To Find Clients
  • I Don’t Want To Leave My Current Clients Behind
  • I’m Worried I Won’t Have Anyone To Turn To When Problems Come Up

We understand that starting a solo practice can feel overwhelming, but you’re not alone. We provide hands-on support across the clinical, administrative, and business functions of private practice to help you build your business with confidence.

What are the fees for this service?

Our program runs three years with the option to renew month-to-month after the initial three-year term.

A percentage of revenue split similar to a group practice will be used as follows…

  • First 6 months: 0% of gross income
    • We want you to build your business, not worry about cash flow
  • Next 6 months: 25% of gross income
    • This equates to approximately 15% for the first full year
  • Year 2: 20% of gross income
  • Year 3: 15% of gross income
  • Optional Renewal Period: 15% of gross income

Are there any fees for canceling the contract?

You may cancel the contract at any time before work begins with no penalties. However, once services commence, the full three-year contract term applies. The reason for this is that a significant portion of our support is front-loaded. We help you launch your business, navigate early challenges, and build a foundation for long-term success. The fee structure is designed to spread that significant upfront cost over time to ease financial pressure early on and greatly increase the odds of success. We have also found that three years is the typical time frame it takes therapists we work with to become confident in running their own business, as this time frame ensures you have the dedicated support needed to become truly self-sufficient and successful in the long term.

If you choose to end our support services before the three-year contract term is complete, your original payment commitment will continue for the remainder of the contract term. This commitment remains in effect as long as you continue to provide social work-related services. We understand that unexpected situations can arise. We are committed to being fair and reasonable, and if you face extenuating circumstances, we encourage you to discuss them with us so we can work together toward an equitable solution.

After the initial three-year period, you’re welcome to continue or end services at your discretion. If you choose not to renew, you’ll retain everything you’ve built, but will forego all support from our team moving forward.

Are there any start up or on going costs?

You will be responsible for all expenses related to running your business, including our consulting fee (which is based on your gross income). Initial start-up costs typically range from $1,000 to $3,000, closer to the lower end if you’re fully virtual, and higher if you’re furnishing an office space. However, some of these costs can be deferred if cash flow is likely to be an issue.

Ongoing monthly costs (excluding rent) will be around $350, though some of these will need to be prepaid. For that reason, we recommend having six months’ worth of operating expenses saved.

If you’re renting an office, expect to pay $300 to $1,000, depending on whether you’re subletting by the day or renting full-time. It’s wise to set aside funds for a security deposit plus two months of rent.

In total, here’s what we recommend saving before launching:

  • $7,000 for a full-time, office-based business
  • $4,500 for a hybrid (50/50 shared office and virtual) setup
  • $3,000 for a fully virtual practice

Note: Expect a temporary reduction in your client caseload when launching your practice. Consider saving additional funds for living expenses during this transition, as these are not included in the estimates above. This will give you more breathing room as your caseload builds.