Options as a Strategic Investment

A tax deferred exchange or 1031 exchange is a strategy or tool that can be used by an investor to sell property, as long as it qualifies, and then buy another like-kind property.  Since the transaction is treated as an exchange rather than a sale, investors qualify for a deferred gain.  The law can be found in U.S. CODE: Title 26, §1031, Exchange of Property Held for Productive Use or Investment, but it can be summed up by saying that sales are taxable and 1031 exchanges are not.

Section 1031 of the IRS code recognizes transactions or exchanges which allows deferment of capital gains taxes.  Therefore, it is crucial to understand the elements involved and the underlying intent in this tax deferred exchange.  The U.S. Treasury Department has interpreted the like-kind exchange regulation under 1031.  This has led to generally accepted practices, standards, rules and compliance in order for a successful transaction to qualify and be completed. 

Investors who are familiar with real estate transactions know that capital gains can run anywhere from 20-30%, depending on state and federal tax rates.  Therefore, you sell a property which has appreciated from 100,000 dollars to 350,000 dollars over the period you have owned it, you would have a $250,000 capital gain tax liability.  This means that you would have from $50,000 to $75,000 less if you sell a property and then buy another without the benefit of section 1031.

There are some things you should know about 1031 exchanges.  You will have to go by strict timelines regarding identification (45 days) and exchange (180 days) periods.  These days are counted even if the last day of the time period falls on a weekend or nationally recognized holiday.  The purchase price of the replacement property must be equal to or greater than the total net sales of the property you are selling.  If the purchase price is less, then any money that is left over is taxable under IRS rules.  All of the proceeds must be used to purchase a like-kind, replacement real estate property.  If these rules are contravened, tax liability accrues to the one who executes the 1031 exchange.

Sale proceeds are also strictly controlled and they must go through a qualified intermediary (QI) and not the investor or the investor’s agent.  If this is not observed, then the entire proceeds become taxable under section 1031.

Having so many rules and strict guidelines and timelines may seem like too much trouble, but it is not really so if you consider that you can actually save tens of thousands of dollars in capital gains taxes.  1031 exchanges allow you to make real estate investments and defer capital gains taxes until sometime in the future.  By having this option, you are not bound by the typical, buy sell then buy again formula that is generally used in real estate.  You can actually increase your real estate holdings and investments quite handsomely by using something that the IRS considers a perfectly legitimate way to conduct a real estate transaction.  As long as you stay keenly aware of the rules and the timelines, you might find that a 1031 transaction is just right for you.

With the advent of online gambling casinos, people had the option of playing their favourite casino parlour games in the comfort of their homes, as opposed to travelling to casino towns in order to play in land casinos. One of the appealing aspects of online casinos is the fact that the money that you save on travelling to casino towns can be used to participate in casino games on play-for-pay casino sites. As the online casino industry became more refined, free casino sites emerged that catered to a wide variety of players’ needs and requests. The free casino sites appeal to casino players, because they can play their preferred casino games without risking any money for the privilege of using these sites. One of the “founding father games” of the casino industry is blackjack. This game has universal popularity because it allows players to utilize strategies to directly affect the outcome of the contest. Since blackjack is a game based on mathematical probabilities, there is a necessity for players to practice their strategies, depending on the cards they have drawn in relation to the face-up card displayed by the dealer. That is why free casino sites are experiencing an increase in player presence on their websites. You can participate in free blackjack games on these sites and practice your strategies, without investing any money for the privilege. It’s almost like taking a specialization course in blackjack on a scholarship. Free blackjack play allows you to employ these practical strategic tips for better blackjack play: Use the mathematical probability of occurrence to decide when to hold, fold or draw cards; practice splitting pairs; and practice double down tactics. When you play free blackjack on free casino sites, such as Onlinegambling.co.uk, you can review the optimum strategic blackjack plays on the site’s blackjack strategy page. Free blackjack play will make you a better player, if you pay attention to the aforementioned tips and study the mathematical probabilities of occurrence, as outlined on tutorial pages on the best free casino sites.

Prosperity Group International (PGI) have developed some of the most unique Index Trading platforms available to date. Most people are familiar with a variety of trading platforms which have the ability to generate profits, below are just a few;

Day Trading, Forex Trading and Share Market Trading are probably 3 of the most well known trading types available.  Traders who engage in any of the above mentioned platforms normally use a variety of trading strategies to help them make investment decisions whilst trying to minimize the emotional aspect of trading. Many people spend years studying charts and books and scour the internet for any useful information in order to come up with a viable strategy, yet all too often they either fail or give up as they are overwhelmed with the amount of information they need to learn before embarking on trading. Also, often they are faced with a plethora of contradicting information which they are unable to decipher due to their lack of experience.

With PGI Index Trading, on the other hand, there is no need to learn to decipher confusing charts or embark on complicated time-consuming study courses as the recommendations are made by specially trained analysts. Prosperity Group International’s Index Trading platforms have gained tremendous popularity over the past 5 or 6 years as more and more people have become aware of the benefits they have to offer.

Compared to all other trading types, PGI Index Trading offers high return for low investment, needs very little time input by the trader, generates short-term profits and best of all it is attractively low risk. Prosperity Group International currently has the most unique Index Trading platforms available anywhere in the world. Their Index Trader platform was designed with ease-of-use in mind, whereas their Auto Trader does not require any time input at all, just as the name suggests. Whether utilizing the PGI Index Trader or PGI Auto Trader, profits are generated by utilizing a variety of well established global Stock Market Indices.

Having made the bold and glorious decision to sack the boss and go it alone you are one of the few who have what it takes to succeed. You have an entrepreneurial spirit and a strong will and these are rare and valuable attributes that will guide you throughout your professional and personal life.
Now that your business is up and running and you’re profiting from your efforts, it’s time to turn your attentions to investing the profits from your home based business wisely and for maximum gain.
One of the most consistently returning asset classes over the long term and the one that the majority of us can profit from is real estate.
Understanding market cycles
Now, you’re most likely aware that property markets are cyclical this is because there is a direct correlation between the underlying price of real estate in relation to individual buying power. Simply explained: when property prices rise above what first time buyers can afford to pay the market slows down, stagnates and sometimes readjusts but as soon as purchasing power increases again, either with a drop in interest rates or an increase in GDP, so property prices begin rising again.
And there are even ways to make money from real estate during a market downturn!
Investing in real estate for income
Depending on the nature of your home based business your monthly income may be slightly erratic some months being better than others! If you invest in property assets in a buy-to-let or even jet-to-let capacity you can secure yourself a consistent monthly income which may afford you an added degree of financial security.
Buy-to-let is when you purchase property for rental purposes this make be an apartment you corporate let, it could be a house you student let or even a family home you rent out long term.
Jet-to-let is similar but it involves purchasing overseas property for short term weekly or fortnightly rental to tourists. This type of letting is usually very lucrative indeed during peak holiday periods but may mean you have a property that is empty for a few months out of season.
Both types of property investment return you a regular income and at the same time the physical real estate asset will grow in value over the long term and if ever you wish to release the profits from your investment you can sell on the property and take the gains you have accrued.
Investing in real estate for profit
The alternative to building up a property portfolio for income generation purposes is purchasing property and selling it on relatively quickly to realize the gains the asset has accrued.
You can do this in a number of ways firstly you can purchase run down property in need of renovation, tidy up the property and turn it into a home before selling it on at a higher price and reaping the profits gained.
Alternatively you could seek to beat the curve by buying into up and coming areas, waiting for prices to boom and then selling on for profit. This is quite a risky strategy for a first time investor as timing the market is hard!
An alternative to this is looking overseas for the latest emerging property markets worldwide and buying properties to renovate or properties off plan and then flipping them on for maximum gains in the short term.
Financing your investment
As a self-employed individual it can be tricky to get a mortgage unless you have audited accounts, bank references etc., etc. If you don’t have all of these requisite documents there are other options available to you.
The main options are re-mortgaging your primary residence and releasing the equity that you have accrued already for reinvestment in another property project or taking out a self-certification mortgage where you make a large down payment and basically tell the lender how much you can afford to borrow!
A winning attitude
You’ve already proved you have what it takes to succeed against the odds by establishing a profitable home based business, now apply the same steely determination to your real estate investments and you will succeed in making the maximum gains. Start small, begin gently, test the market and your understanding of it and slowly build up a profitable real estate portfolio from the profits of your home based business for maximum financial gain.
Good luck in achieving your goals.

As a Merger and Acquisition advisor, we regularly dialogue with the top executives in the information technology industry. We have to chuckle when we reach a decision maker with a large IT company and he says, “We have a corporate policy that we do not buy companies.” Does this guy read the industry publications? Is his company’s development group that good? Does he understand the first mover advantage or window of opportunity?

We have gotten past the dizzying array of Internet product introductions, but the pace of technology introduction has again returned to robust levels. Any large company that feels it can keep pace with this force through internal development efforts alone is headed down the path of extinction.

Almost everyone will agree that information technology will be a primary driver of controlling costs in U.S. industry. Technology is our answer to remaining competitive in this world economy. A great deal of the technology development is coming from small, entrepreneurial, nimble, low overhead companies.

There is, however, a huge paradox in the market. The institutional buyers of technology are relatively conservative late adapters. This prevents the expected innovation and commercial success that should naturally follow the innovation and passion of these small technology innovators.

These entrepreneurs respond to a market need and achieve encouraging initial success from the early adopters. They soon hit the wall and are not able to “cross the chasm” from a small group of early adaptors to general market acceptance from the conservative majority. There is little economic value created when good technology is in the control or a failing company and the technology never reaches broad acceptance.

Most of the blockbuster new products are the result of an entrepreneurial effort from an early stage company bootstrapping its growth in a very cost conscious lean environment. Think of some of the new developments from companies like Google. The big companies, with all their seeming advantages have a very high internal cost structure for new product introductions and the losses resulting from those failures are substantial.

Don’t get me wrong, there were hundreds of failures from the start-ups as well. However, the failure for the edgy little start-up resulted in losses in the $1 – $5 million range. The same result from an industry giant were often in the $100 million to $250 million range.

For every Yahoo or Ebay there are literally hundreds of companies that either flame out or never reach a critical mass beyond a loyal early adapter market. It seems like the mentality of these smaller business owners is, using the example of the popular TV show, Deal or No Deal, to hold out for the $1 million briefcase. What about that logical contestant that objectively weighs the facts and the odds and cashes out for $280,000?

As we contemplated the dynamics of this market, we were drawn to a merger and acquisition model that is used in the networking technology market by Cisco Systems. We believe that model could also be applied to great advantage in the Information Technology industry. The giant networking company, is a serial acquirer of companies. They do a tremendous amount of R&D and organic product development. They recognize, however, that they cannot possibly capture all the new developments in this rapidly changing field through internal development alone.

Cisco seeks out investments in promising, small, technology companies and this approach has been a key element in their market dominance. They bring what we refer to as smart money to the high tech entrepreneur. They purchase a minority stake in the early stage company with a call option on acquiring the remainder at a later date with an agreed-upon valuation multiple. This structure is a brilliantly elegant method to dramatically enhance the risk reward profile of new product introduction. Here is why:

For the Entrepreneur:

1. The involvement of Large IT Investor – resources, market presence, brand, distribution capability is a self fulfilling prophecy to your product’s success. The halo of the big secure company helps you cross the chasm to the conservative majority institutional customer.

2. For the same level of dilution that an entrepreneur would get from a venture capital, angel investor or private equity group, the entrepreneur gets the performance leverage of “smart money.” See #1.

3. The entrepreneur gets to grow his business with Large IT Investor’s support at a far more rapid pace than he could alone. He is more likely to establish the critical mass needed for market leadership within his industry’s brief window of opportunity.

4. He gets an exit strategy with an established valuation metric while the buyer/investor helps him make his exit much more lucrative.

5. As an old Wharton professor used to ask, “What would you rather have, all of a grape or part of a watermelon?” That sums it up pretty well. The involvement of Large IT Investor gives the product a much better probability of growing significantly. The entrepreneur will own a meaningful portion of a far bigger asset.

For the Large IT Investor:

1. Create access to a large funnel of developing technology and products.

2. Creates a very nimble, market sensitive, product development or R&D arm.

3. Minor resource allocation to the autonomous operator during his “skunk works” market proving development stage.

4. Diversify their product development portfolio – because this approach provides for a relatively small investment in a greater number of opportunities fueled by the entrepreneurial spirit, they greatly improve the probability of creating a winner.

5. By investing early and getting an equity position in a small company and favorable valuation metrics on the call option, they pay a fraction of the market price to what they would have to pay if they acquired the company once the product had proven successful.

Invest now for the future

With all the doom and gloom in the economy and particularly the real estate market people are running for the hills and avoiding real estate at all cost. I on the other hand am running straight for it. I am not going to argue that home prices aren’t down or that there is nothing wrong with the market, however there has never been a better time to buy. With the amount of foreclosures and bankruptcies increasing everyday there are more houses on the market than there are buyers. According to Realtytrac.com one out of every 355 homes is in foreclosure. Mortgages for 1 million dollars or more are defaulting at twice the rate of normal houses. These numbers are not taking into account that in January of 2010 there is a whole other batch of adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) that are scheduled to reset.  Sound like a good time to buy? It does if you have cash. Since the banks are already hurting from all of their previous bad debts they are tightening the reins and are being very selective with whom they lend to. That is why if you have the money to invest in real estate the market is yours for the taking.

There are also more exit strategies than ever to use once you acquire the property. Just as it is a good time for cash buyers, retail buyers also know it is time to buy. This leads to the first possible exit strategy, fix and resell. You can easily find houses for pennies on the dollar put in a few thousand in repairs and resell the house on the retail market for a substantial profit. Believe it or not there are a number of people out there with the money and credit to qualify for a mortgage. The vast majority however may have some money to put down but lack the credit to finance a house. That is where the next two exit strategies come into play. Since you are paying cash for the house and there is no outstanding mortgage you do not have to worry about your rates going up, so you could rent the house without having to worry about being foreclosed on yourself. If you don’t want to be landlord I don’t blame you. One way to avoid that trap would be to hire a property management company, they handle all of the repairs as well as finding and if need be evicting tenants. The other option offers more security through owner financing. The way this works is you become the bank and rent to own the house. This could also be done with a property management company, the difference being that the tenant is leasing to own the property so they have more incentive to care for the house because they will own it one day. These are only a few of the possible scenarios that one could use to invest in a house. None of these options will work without the right deal…

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In real estate investing, a common question is which came first, the deal or the plan. A common aberration that people make is not knowing what to do with a great property after they buy it. This is where the struggle begins. They are stuck in a corner because they approached this from the wrong direction. First, you are supposed to make a method. Then you must find an applicable home that fits into that situation.
Planning things is human nature. Future matters such as retirement and college education are all planned. Real estate deals should be planned as well. A rookie investor may jump ahead of the game and forget to concoct a plan. It is up to you to figure out what you will do in the real estate market. What houses will you buy and how do you plan on selling them? Having a method is in your best interest.
Unfortunately, there is no way to get rich quick in real estate. We all tend to fantasize about the big million dollar deals, however, real estate investing is a gradual process. Proceeding slow and steady, will keep you in the right direction to reach your goals. Becoming a millionaire from your first deal is not a realistic goal, but you will probably make some good money.
A good investor will usually make about sixty to one hundred thousand per year with decent investments. This income takes into account that not everything will go according to plan, but assumes that your progress will be steady. You must have rational real estate goals.
No single person can do everything. There are imperative roles that must be filled by some key people if you plan on succeeding at real estate investing. The adept investor always has a team of specialists assisting him. Your real estate agent must be honorable and able to help you analyze the properties. You will need an appraiser and a contractor or an inspector in order to make sure that the house is worth the investment. If you don’t want any hidden surprises surfacing through the course of the deal, you unconditionally must hire an attorney.
You will encounter many situations in the real estate business, and there is no single strategy that encompasses everything. You must have several strategies at your disposal. Investors often find themselves reselling a house urgently after buying it. If you simply don’t have time to get your investment ready for a profit, renting is another valid option. However, there are time periods where the rental market can become ineffective or stall. If you are in this circumstance and absolutely must get rid of the property. you still have the option to offer a land contract or lease option. You may have to sell to cut your losses and sell to another investor if all else fails. A adept investor acts quickly when it’s time to bail.
A rookie investor can refrain from making these mistakes by doing some research and planning. Until you understand the business, you shouldn’t figure out what real estate to invest in. Research one of the books containing the strategies used by the pros. Attend free seminars that will inform you on the best way to invest. Making adept decisions in your real estate investing will certainly help you avoid these common miscalculations.

The purpose in writing an e-Book can be varied, depending on your personal or business goals, but whether you choose to give your e-Book away as a free marketing tool, or sell it as a profit-producing product; you want to get as many copies onto the computer desktops of your readers as possible. That’s why it’s important that your e-Book have an edge.

What kind of edge? Well, for one thing, you can write about a topic that isn’t commonly available. Let’s say your e-Book is about producing e-Books. There are a ton of e-Books available on this topic, yet many seem to simply rehash the same information you can visit www.easy-pdf-toolkit.com On the other hand, there aren’t an abundance of e-Books available about using desktop publishing techniques to make your e-Book stand out from the masses, yet it’s a topic that can help even novice e-Book producers create more attractive and well designed e-Books. Selecting an important, but scarcely covered topic — or aspect of a more common topic — will definitely give your e-Book an edge.

Another crucial edge to massive e-Book sales is to “attach” an original e-Book cover to your e-Book. Granted, you can’t physically attach a cover, but you can virtually attach one. And since the online world in which we live every day is virtual, it stands to reason that e-Books have virtual covers, as well. Consider the world of physical books. Few people would buy a book without a cover. I wouldn’t, and I buy a LOT of books — just ask my husband! Why should e-Book customers be different?

If your customer can afford to buy only one e-Book and they are given the option of selecting your e-Book with a beautiful graphic image that makes the e-Book seem like a real, physical product… or your competitor’s e-Book that doesn’t include a cover graphic and which seems like only one more link to one more site… which do you think they would choose? Which would YOU choose? Would you rather click on a link that says?

Download Your E-Book Here! Or one with a colorful, graphic image that depicts the topic of your e-Book and gives it an “image” [in your mind] of its own, the choice is simple. And the choice will be simple for your customers and prospects, too.

An e-Book cover is a tremendous edge that you can give your e-Book for very little, if any, cost. E-Book covers are affordable even for those of us who haven’t reached our six-figure income mark yet or go to www.create-own-ebook.com One site that offers creative e-Book covers that most anyone can afford is Rebecca White, the designer, has created a number of very creative e-Book covers. Rebecca’s work shows talent and her prices are very reasonable. On the ‘Net, image is everything. Rebecca can help you create yours.

If you’re a do-it-yourselfer, however, there is a little piece of software available that can help you create your own e-Book cover. It’s called, appropriately enough, E-Book Cover Creator, and it’s very easy to use. Visit for more information.

Whichever way works best for you, the image of your e-Book can make or break its success and reception online. That’s why it’s crucial that you not entrust something over which you have slaved and into which you have invested hours of valuable time to a simple text link. Attach it to an image that will take it beyond the realm of virtual into the world of visual and watch your downloads skyrocket.

When you’re setting up your initial franchise, it’s essential to develop both a short-term and long-term growth plan to stay on track. Many franchisors make the mistake of not identifying exactly what they would like to achieve. Making a clear map or plan of objectives over the course of one year, three years, and five years can help keep the business and complete business plan on track. A five-year plan that is focused on accelerated growth may not always be the right choice for the business model or the system. On the other hand, a one-year aggressive franchise system could be just what a business needs to get up and running.

Goal-oriented planning is an important part of successful franchising, because it allows the franchisor to set up a series of goals to reach the final destination. Being clear and specific about goals can make them achievable. Progress can be tracked, and mistakes are managed more efficiently along the way with a clear-cut objective in mind. Depending on the type of growth curve expected, a successful franchisor can activate a successful plan. This in turn can set up a timeframe for achievement; franchisors can be free to request capital for growth as they need it, and reduce risky ventures in the process.

To speed up growth, a franchisor has a few options. Franchisors can establish franchise operations in multiple locations simultaneously, and begin paying royalties early to avoid adding up costs later. Conversion franchises are set up in this way, where the already established businesses become franchises and attract new revenue. Accelerated growth using development franchising involves a complete opening schedule of additional locations. This involves a greater risk, but also a higher chance of large-scale revenue from royalties and other fees. Franchisors must weigh the costs and benefits of each move, how much capital they are willing to invest, and create sensible timeframes to achieve their objectives.

Expanding a franchise business has its risks and benefits, and doing it successfully can be challenging. Franchise sales are a function of marketing, so an aggressive marketing and market saturation initiative may lead to long-term gains for the franchisor overall. However, without a plan of action and goal-oriented strategy, the system can spin out of control and leave the franchisor with limited resources to get back up and running. Strategizing a successful franchise growth plan involves some clear goals and outlining priorities, costs, and benefits of each move.

It really does seem like everyone is making at least a little bit of money in the online internet world. With so many different things going on and so many different people interested in the idea of the online world, many different people have come to the conclusions that the internet boom has yet to reach its peak. For people that make their living through the online world this is certainly good news. While people may be tempted to go out and spend until they can’t spend anymore with all the money they’ve made, it would do well for people to remember that we were at this stage before.
Most people are too young to remember it, but the internet boom that we are experiencing right now is the second internet boom in history. Ending the last boom, the September 11th attacks happened in the United States. Air traffic was grounded, security measures increased and of course in the wake of that a recession in the economy started to shake the population. No longer were people putting money into unproven internet ventures and therefore the boom of the internet went bust.
So, where are we now? People are making fortunes again and other people are having the times of their life. However, now that you know history, maybe you will realize that this boom may not go on forever. The start of a bigger economic recession in the United States and the dropping like a stone of the US Dollar suggest that the internet boom may bust again at some stage. While the internet boom is still growing massively, you need to save money if that boom eventually does go bust.
How do we reduce the impact of a recession on our business?
First of all, pay off your personal consumer debt. Then it’s important to have readily available cash so that you can pay your bills, and otherwise live a life. A cash amount equal to three months of your monthly expenses would be a good starting point.
After that, you should look at higher yield investments that will have your money working for you and providing you with regular cash-flow. There will be some awesome real estate investment opportunities falling out of the sub-prime problem. You may want to put some of your money into paper assets. In any event, real estate and paper investments require that you spend time becoming expert in these areas. Because time is the most scarce resource, many of us will turn to investment advisors. If you use an investment advisor, you need to take the time to do your homework on this too.
It may well be that your best option is to continue to invest in your own business. You have proven to yourself that you are an expert in this field. You know that the more you invest in and expand your internet business, the more successful you will be. You can then be prepared, with an even larger on-line business, to weather any downturn and possible reduced sales. If any so called “bust” hits, you will then have time to evaluate the opportunites and strategies of your business. You will still be successful if you want to be. And remember that should a bust happen, a boom follows. Be patient. We all have to make the best out of boom or bust situations.