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Should I Buy Insurance When Renting a Car?

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Finance expert Mike Periu on whether an insurance policy is a wise purchase when renting a car.  Should I Buy Insurance When Renting a Car? You may be among the millions of consumers who will be renting a car over the Thanksgiving holiday. One of the most expensive parts of renting is insurance policies that rental car companies offer, which can easily double or triple the cost of your rental. Before automatically saying yes to these policies, you should first call your own insurance company … [Read more...]

Play It Safe With Your Investments

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Finance expert Mike Periu on why it may be wiser to play it safe with your investments in the short term. Starting in July of this year, the major U.S. stock markets, as well as some foreign ones, started a rally that is now starting to fizzle out as stock prices decline across the U.S., Europe, Asia and Latin America. Leading economist Nouriel Roubini, who believes it's about time this happened, says its better to play it safe with investments during the short-term, offering several reasons … [Read more...]

A Primer on Business Interruption Insurance

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With the number of major reported disasters annually increasing by 50 percent in recent years, it's important for business... Business interruption insurance makes business owners whole for lost profits and reconstruction costs after a disaster With the number of major reported disasters annually increasing by 50 percent in recent years, it's important for business owners to protect themselves. Business interruption insurance makes business owners whole for lost profits and reconstruction … [Read more...]

Municipal Bonds Offer Good Risk Reward Balance

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Municipal bonds are issued by state and local governments to raise money. General obligation ("GO") bonds, the safest type... Municipal bonds are issued by state and local governments to raise money. General obligation ("GO") bonds, the safest type, pay lenders from tax revenues. Revenue bonds are used to finance specific projects like a stadium or highway and lenders are paid from the revenues that the project generates. Since states cannot declare bankruptcy and it's extremely rare for a city … [Read more...]

Crowdfunding May Be Delayed by a Year Or More

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Finance expert Mike Periu on expected delays for the implementation of the Jobs Act, a new, easier way for companies to raise money. The JOBS Act which authorizes new, broader and simpler ways for companies to raise money via Crowdfunding will go into effect in 2013. In order for this to happen, the Securities and Exchange Commission, tasked with overseeing the implementation and enforcement of the JOBS Act, must decide on a plan of action by December 31st. It is far from certain that they'll … [Read more...]

Accelerate Growth by Scaling Your Business

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Before scaling your business, it's important to ask yourself these two questions to ensure that your business is scale-... Before scaling your business, it's important to ask yourself these two questions to ensure that your business is scale-ready and scale-worthy: Have I identified a problem worth solving? Is there demand for a solution to this problem? If the answer is yes to both, then you need to ask how you can grow your company quickly and profitably. Scaling your business –which … [Read more...]

Itemized Deduction Cap Gains Political Momentum

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As negotiations continue between the White House and Congress to address the Fiscal Cliff. The idea of Itemized Deduction Cap is gaining traction As negotiations continue between the White House and Congress to address the Fiscal Cliff, one idea gaining traction is capping the maximum amount of itemized deductions a taxpayer may claim. If this is implemented, it would raise taxes significantly for filers living in expensive states. According to a study by The Wall Street Journal, tax filers who … [Read more...]

Protect Financial Files from Inadvertent Data Leaks

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When trying to borrow money from a lender or raise capital from an investor, it's expected that you make certain financial files ... When trying to borrow money from a lender or raise capital from an investor, it's expected that you make certain documents available, including a business plan, income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement and of course your projections. If you send these files electronically, then you run the risk of revealing more information than you would like to … [Read more...]

What It Takes to Get Funding in this Economy

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Finance expert Mike Periu on a valuable resource to get funding your small business. Dun and Bradstreet Credibility Corp. recently held the first ever "Access to Capital" event in Los Angeles, which brought together hundreds of small business owners, lenders, venture capitalists, angel investors and others. The event included panel discussions on traditional lending, alternative funding and crowd funding. It also included panel discussions with funded entrepreneurs. A summary of the key … [Read more...]

Achieving job growth in a Slow Economy

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The 2012 Ernest &amp group employs 700,000 people and have achieved 30 percent job growth and 48 percent revenue growth between 2009 and 2011 The 2012 Ernest & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award has selected 636 finalists. Collectively this group employs 700,000 people and have achieved 30 percent job growth and 48 percent revenue growth between 2009 and 2011. Against all odds, they are growing in a spectacular way in a bad economy. E&Y, in conjunction with the Kauffman … [Read more...]