How to Determine Your Fees in a Faith-based Practice
As a Christian counselor in private practice, it's important to not only focus on helping your clients but also to ensure that your business is sustainable. One of the key factors in achieving financial stability is setting the right fees for your services. However, determining what to charge can be a daunting task, especially when considering the sensitive and personal nature of the counseling profession. In this blog post, we'll provide guidance on how to set your fees as a Christian counselor in private practice, taking into account ethical considerations, market research, and your own personal values. By the end of this post, you'll have the tools to confidently set your fees in a way that is both financially viable and in alignment with your faith and values.
First Considerations When Setting Your Fees
There is a lot to consider when setting your fees. You may want to consider the following factors:
- How much funding do you need for your own personal expenses?
- How many clients would you like to see per week?
- What is your level of education?
- What is your niche or area of specialty and how does that influence your fees?
- How many years of experience do you have?
- Are you working with private pay or insurance-based clients?
Determine Your Fees Based on Your Personal Needs
It’s important to have a clear understanding of your own financial needs. Start by reviewing your current budget and determining what you need to make per month in order to meet your goals (e.g., personal expenses, savings). Then, consider setting aside money for tithing on top of that. Additionally, you should identify all of your monthly expenses in your practice, as well as the IRS estimated taxes you will need to set aside each quarter. When these factors are taken into consideration, you can reverse engineer to determine what you need to make per month in order to meet your goals.
Identify the Number of Clients You Need to See Per Week
Once you’ve determined how much money you need to make per month, the next step is to divide that number by the number of clients you plan to see per week. This will give you an idea of your fee per client. For example, if you need $8000 a month to come into your practice to cover expenses and your pay and plan on seeing 20 clients a week, you would need to charge $100 per client session.
It’s important to remember that even if you are full for the week, you should still plan to have 2-3 extra sessions available in order to account for cancellations and no-shows. This will help ensure that you can meet your financial goals and make sure you don’t get stuck with a smaller number of clients than you anticipated.
Use your Education to Determine your Fees
Your education should also be considered when setting fees. If you have a master’s degree, it makes sense to charge accordingly. Those with higher degrees such as doctorates may be able to ask for even higher rates. This is because those with PhD’s and other advanced credentials are more likely to offer specialized services that can justify the higher rates.
Consider How Your Niche Impacts Your Rates
If you have a speciality or niche within your practice, such as Eating Disorder Treatment or EMDR, then you may be able to charge more for your services. This is because it cost you time and money to earn that extra speciality, but also because your experience already working with this niche gives you more credibility. Consider the unique skillsets and training that you have and how those benefits can be of service to clients who may not be able to get that level or type of care from another provider. In addition, you may have a degree or special training in working as a Christian therapist. If that is the case, you will want to consider this when setting your rate.
Your Experience Makes a Difference
Consider how your years of experience will impact your rate. It is the same way people get raises at their job - you are working for yourself so you will have to give yourself the raise! In the same way my hairdresser raises her rates due to her increased experience we should do the same as therapists. I recommend you do this annually as you take into account your increase experience and improved skillset over the years.
Private Pay and Insurance-Based Practice Considerations
If you plan to work with private pay clients, then it is important to be aware that your take home pay will typically be higher than if you take insurance. Though, some people prefer insurance based practices due to less marketing and a more consistent caseload. However, one must consider the delay in payment from insurance companies when preparing your budget. You might also have an insurance contract with a rate that is lower than your private pay rate. Difference contracts offer different rates which one must prepare for with their financial goals.
Put Yourself First
At the end of the day, setting an appropriate fee is key to making sure you are providing quality care while taking care of yourself. It’s important to remember that charging fair rates for your services is a way of ensuring that you are getting compensated for the value of your expertise and valuable contribution to the world of mental health.
The truth is if you are not well compensated for your services, you will not be able to care well for your clients, your family, or yourself. This will impact your emotions, stress level, and ability to do your work with excellence.
I remember as a solo practice owner feeling pressure to catch every phone call and schedule as many clients as possible to make ends meet. Looking back, I wish I had hustled less, focused more on the clinical work, and took a deep breath. By charging higher rates, I would have felt less pressure to keep up, thus being more focused and available for my current clients.
Paying yourself fair fees is caring for your clients. Setting appropriate rates is one of the best things you are do for your practice.
By following these tips, you will be able to ensure that you are setting appropriate fees and getting paid fairly for the work you do. This will help you build a successful private practice and take care of yourself in the process.
If you are still uncertain about your rates or are looking for more information about starting and growing a faith-based practice, check out the Wise Practice Podcast where Whitney Owens puts out weekly content specifically for you.
