Sometimes the most tense part of running your own business is acquiring cash to maintain and sustain ongoing growth. This is even more true when you are looking for business loans. There is a misconception that restaurants are more likely to fail than any other business; a ten percent success rate is often quoted.

The actuality is that at the 5-year mark restaurants have 40% success rates, almost identical to most other types of businesses. Nevertheless, it can be difficult to acquire funds, especially from normal places such as the local bank.

Restaurant loans can also be obtained from credit card processing providers as a factoring contract. These vendors offer funding options that range from a few 1,000 dollars all the way to a quarter million dollars if needed. The business owner is basically selling their future Visa/MasterCard sales at a discount in order to get the money that are necessary immediately. (more…)

The turbulent economy has been particularly difficult for every business, but no one has felt the crunch more then the Main Street Business owner. With the banks still unwilling to lend, small business owners need to find other ways to get the cash they need to run their business, but what are those options? And at what cost?

Prior to the sub-prime meltdown it was relatively easy for the local business to access cash, they could just go to their local bank and get a line of credit on not much more than their signature. This quick injection of cash would allow them to purchase the inventory they needed, buy equipment and make payroll. But today those options simply do not exist anymore for most businesses, so now the local pizza parlor, dry cleaner and auto repair shop have to look elsewhere to get the financing they require to stay above water. (more…)

Finding bad credit business loans may seem like impossibility as a business owner, given the restricted credit environment that we currently find ourselves in. The best option for any business owner is always going to be a loan backed by the Small Business Administration and funded through an SBA approved bank. The reason for this is that these loans usually have the most advantageous interest rates & terms. However, the majority of business owners will not qualify for this type of loan due to the restrictive underwriting requirements.

Below are three options a business owner needs to consider if they hope to get business working capital in the current environment, especially if the business or personal credit has taken some hits due to the recession.

1.)If You Own Commercial Real Estate – If you own the building or property that your business resides in and you have a good amount of equity, you may have a real option here that is comparatively affordable. The key thing to look at is how much you believe the property may be worth, how much you owe on it, and how much you are looking for in a loan. The advantages with this option are that even with bad credit, the rates will likely be the best of any option because you are securing the loan with real estate. Most commercial property lenders will go to 70% of the appraised value of the property, minus the amount you owe as a loan amount. (more…)

- FINE POINTS

A. GENERAL INFORMATION, We are not acting as lenders or property buyers. We are strictly purchasers of property seller financed real estate paper. This includes notes, mortgages, trust deeds, land contracts, contracts for deeds and bonds for title. The paper must be in the first position and the payers must be current on their payments. Outside of non common situations which include inheritances, family trusts and powers of attorney, the stated note sellers must have previously been the legal property sellers (legally owned) or currently be in legal title for the related real estate property.

B. LOAN SERVICING, Most note buyers professionally service the mortgage loans they purchase. Thus, two of the benefits for the note payers are that their monthly payments are reported to the three major credit bureaus, and so they have an opportunity to increase their credit scores. Also, the note payers annually receive IRS tax form 1099s (mortgage interest) so they can deduct both the mortgage interest and real estate taxes on their yearly tax returns. (more…)

There are so many productive ways to spend our money: saving for retirement, paying off the house, paying down consumer debt, and don’t forget about reasonable spending to make life more enjoyable. So what should take priority? Here are some things to consider.

401(k)

First, determine whether your employer’s 401(k) has a match. For instance, many 401(k)s match your contributions dollar-for-dollar up to 4% of your salary. A match like this is simply too beneficial to resist. Think of it this way — we hope to obtain a rate of return of 8 to 10 percent on our investment portfolio, but if our employer offers the match described above, we are guaranteeing ourselves an immediate 100% return on our investment.

However, depending on circumstances, it may or may not be wise to contribute more to your 401(k) than your employer will match, and if your employer offers no match, there are other factors that need to be considered.

Consumer Debt

I frequently see individuals with credit card debt with interest rates between 20 and 30 percent. If we are not getting an additional match from an employer on retirement savings, does it make sense to invest in the market where we hope to obtain a 10 percent return when we can essentially guarantee ourselves a rate of return of 20 to 30 percent by paying off these debts? One would be better off paying down debt with these high interest rates before investing elsewhere. (more…)

A free student checking account is a great way for students to gain understanding to the financial journey that is ahead of them. Any student can tell you that they are living on a shoe string budget, every dollar counts and they for sure do not need to be laying out even ten dollars a month. Those ten dollars can mean the difference between eating a burger and eating another bowl of noodles.

Banks are savy when it comes to drumming up business. They know that a student is a good risk, they want to get their business while they are in school with the hopes that when they graduate they will stay with the bank and be wealthy enough to make substantial deposit. (more…)

Every financial planner will tell you that knowing your current net worth is the first fundamental step in the financial planning process. Taking stock of who you are and where you stand will help you to determine your financial goals and dreams and towards a realistic and practical financial plan.

You need to put down in paper all your current assets and liabilities to complete your net worth statement. Your current assets will include your home, bank accounts, saving accounts, real estate investments, stocks, bonds, cars, and everything else that you possessed. Your liabilities will include the mortgage on your home, real estate loans, car loans and any other debts you may have.

Why is this first step so important in financial planning? The two situations below will help to explain why carrying out this exercise is such an important aspect of the financial planning process:- (more…)

One of the best things you can do for your financial situation would be to save money every month! I personally recommend that you save at least ten to twenty per cent of your monthly pay to see some really good results. I know that this amount is not the law, and would be altered to suit the different circumstances available, but the main thing is to save. At all costs, save money every month!

Saving has been defined by many people, but there is one particular definition that I like, and it simply says: saving is the act of paying yourself. Since you practically spend all your money paying others for their goods and services, then you would welcome the idea of paying yourself too, I bet – and hope, too. However you might be wondering why the hullabaloo, and why is it so important to save in the first place.

I am going to give you a brief introduction to the many reasons you can have for saving money. (more…)

1) YOU TELL EVERYONE THAT YOU ARE BROKE.

If you always say that you are broke then guess what: you will always be broke, your thoughts becomes your actions. Negative thoughts get you nowhere. Turn your negative thoughts into positive action. Remind yourself that although your funds are low right now it’s just temporary. See yourself with money and how financially responsible you will be when you have more than enough in your bank account. Don’t be surprised that when you finally change the way you think about your money situation how rich your life will become.

2) YOU ARE A DEBBIE DOWNER.

If you always say and think you can’t then you won’t. If you don’t see yourself getting ahead in like then you will always be stuck in the same negative space. Open yourself up to the world of possibilities; open your mind to thoughts of success. (more…)

The cash monster. You know it well – we all do. It is that cluster of pesky monthly bills, unexpected mishaps, car breakdowns, and frustratingly sudden medical bills that threatens to gobble up any extra cash you may have lying around the house or in your savings account.

And the cash monster can strike at any time. Just when you think you have saved up a little bit of extra money for your savings account for a rainy day – that rainy day comes sooner than you had expected.

If you are fortunate and the cash monster pays you a visit at time when you happen to have some money laying around, more power to you! However, as Murphy’s Law would have it, the monster pays you a visit just when you have few or no good options for producing the cash you need in short order. (more…)