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Financial tips and hacks for small business owners

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The Housing Market is Turning Around

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OPEN finance expert Mike Periu on banking news. The Housing Market is Finally Turning Around. Small-business owners need to know that that their bank is financially stable. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and state agencies monitor banks for signs of financial stress and issue "enforcement actions" in an attempt to put problem banks on the right track. If these efforts fail, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) takes over and transfers the banks deposits and … [Read more...]

Use an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (esop)

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Use an ESOP to Blunt the Fiscal Cliff Tax Increases OPEN's finance expert Mike Periu on Employee Stock Ownership Plan (esop) to Blunt the Fiscal Cliff Tax Increases. Starting in January, capital gains taxes on investments held more than a year will increase to 20 percent from 15 percent. An additional 3.8 percent tax on unearned income also goes into effect at the start of the year. Business owners who want to take equity out of their companies or that have been unable to sell their businesses … [Read more...]

The Fiscal Cliff Explained

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A number of laws are set to expire or go into effect at the the new year. If no agreement is reached, the combined result will higher taxes. If I had to pick one wonky catchphrase that has been used and abused during this election cycle it would be "fiscal cliff."  Over 60,000 news stories have featured the “fiscal cliff” in the past month alone. Many commentators who use this term don’t have a good understanding of what it actually means or why its important.  It turns out that the fiscal … [Read more...]

Is a 401K Plan Right for Your Small Business Employees?

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Give your workers the same tax advantages that many employees of big corporations enjoy. Is a 401K Plan Right for Your Small Business Employees The 401(k) plan is a retirement savings account that offers various wealth accumulation advantages. The two most important advantages are tax-deferred earnings and a reduction in your taxable income. The tax-deferral benefit has two parts: First you can defer taxes on the money you deposit and secondly you defer taxes on the gains you make on the … [Read more...]

How Entrepreneurs Should Fund Retirement

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If your nest egg is your business, ask yourself these questions to make sure you can sell it for a good price when it's time to retire. In the first part of this series, I discussed how small-business owners can determine how much money they need in order to have a comfortable and dignified retirement. Once you know “how much” you need, the question then becomes “How do I fund this amount?” The money needs to come from somewhere.  Knowing that you’ll need $8 million in 15 years is important but … [Read more...]

Tailored Retirement for Small-Business Owners

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Previously I've discussed how much money a small-business owner needs to retire. For many readers this is a wake-up call; retirement planning really can't wait. The next decision small-business owners need to make is which types of accounts to choose to hold their retirement savings. Continue reading. … [Read more...]

How to Build an Investment Portfolio

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Make the profits from your business work harder for you by creating a sound investment portfolio. Here's what you need to know. Building an effective investment portfolio that can navigate the ups and downs of the economy can be challenging to say the least.  It’s even more difficult for small-business owners.  Most individuals start investing with a specific life event in mind like buying a home or paying for retirement.  But for business owners, investing really serves as a tool for managing … [Read more...]

Secret Sources of Cash for Your Business

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Banks are still being stingy with their commercial loans, but there are others secret sources of cash are eager to deploy it. Important election years are notoriously difficult times for financial institutions and investors to make long-term decisions. There is simply too much uncertainty associated with a potential change in the Administration or a shift in party control of Congress. Investors like certainty. But there is one thing that investors like more than certainty—returns. Right now … [Read more...]

Is Your Banker Discriminating Against You?

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Lending discrimination isn't limited to consumer loans. Here's how to protect yourself. Wells Fargo, one of the largest banks in the country and the leading originator of mortgages to consumers, recently reached a settlement agreement with the Department of Justice over accusations of lending discrimination. The settlement requires the bank to pay a whopping $175 million while avoiding any admission of guilt. The DOJ was investigating the bank for allegedly steering well-qualified mortgage … [Read more...]

Get the Inside Scoop on Tomorrow’s Economy

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Economic experts look to CFOs to gauge the economy. Use what they're saying right now to help plan your business's future. There is never a shortage of so-called experts on television, radio and the Web talking about what the economy will do next. Everyone has an opinion and seldom is a consensus reached unless it’s to state the obvious. Having a clear understanding of what our economy will do is essential for small-business owners making plans for the remainder of 2012 and 2013. If conditions … [Read more...]