What I Learned from Warren Buffett | How Warren Buffett decides if something is a good investment.

What I Learned from Warren Buffett | How Warren Buffett decides if something is a good investment.

by Bill Gates.

arren Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist, Roger Lowenstein (New York: Random House, 1995).

Roger Lowenstein begins his new biography of Warren Buffett with a disclaimer. He reveals that he is a longtime investor in Berkshire Hathaway, the company that under Buffett’s guidance has seen its share price rise in 33 years from $7.60 to approximately $30,000.

In reviewing Lowenstein’s book, I must begin with a disclaimer, too. I can’t be neutral or dispassionate about Warren Buffett, because we’re close friends. We recently vacationed together in China with our wives. I think his jokes are all funny. I think his dietary practices—lots of burgers and Cokes—are excellent. In short, I’m a fan.

It’s easy to be a fan of Warren’s, and doubtless many readers of Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist will join the growing ranks. Lowenstein’s book is a straightforward account of Buffett’s remarkable life. It doesn’t fully convey what a fun, humble, charming guy Warren is, but his uniqueness comes across. No one is likely to come away from it saying, “Oh, I’m like that guy.”

The broad outlines of Warren’s career are well known, and the book offers enjoyable detail. Lowenstein traces Warren’s life from his birth in Omaha, Nebraska in 1930 to his first stock purchase at age 11, and from his study of the securities profession under Columbia University’s legendary Benjamin Graham to his founding of the Buffett Partnership at age 25. The author describes Buffett’s secretiveness about the stocks he picked for the partnership, and his contrasting openness about his guiding principle, which is to buy stocks at bargain-basement prices and hold them patiently. As Warren once explained in a letter to his partners, “This is the cornerstone of our investment philosophy: Never count on making a good sale. Have the purchase price be so attractive that even a mediocre sale gives good results.”

Lowenstein describes how Warren took control of Berkshire Hathaway and cash-cowed its dying textile business in order to purchase stock in other companies. The book traces how Berkshire evolved into a holding company and how its investment philosophy evolved as Warren learned to look beyond financial data and recognize the economic potential of unique franchises like dominant newspapers. Today Berkshire owns companies such as See’s Candy Shops, the Buffalo News, and World Book International, as well as major positions in companies such as American Express, Capital Cities/ABC (now Disney), Coca-Cola, Gannett, Gillette, and the Washington Post Company. It also is a major insurer that includes GEICO Corporation in its holdings.

Readers are likely to come away from the book’s description of Buffett’s life and investment objectives feeling better educated about investing and business, but whether those lessons will translate into great investment results is less than certain. Warren’s gift is being able to think ahead of the crowd, and it requires more than taking Warren’s aphorisms to heart to accomplish that—although Warren is full of aphorisms well worth taking to heart.

For example, Warren likes to say that there are no called strikes in investing. Strikes occur only when you swing and miss. When you’re at bat, you shouldn’t concern yourself with every pitch, nor should you regret good pitches that you don’t swing at. In other words, you don’t have to have an opinion about every stock or other investment opportunity, nor should you feel bad if a stock you didn’t pick goes up dramatically. Warren says that in your lifetime you should swing at only a couple dozen pitches, and he advises doing careful homework so that the few swings you do take are hits.
For example, Warren likes to say that there are no called strikes in investing. Strikes occur only when you swing and miss.

Warren follows his own advice: When he invests in a company, he likes to read all of its annual reports going back as far as he can. He looks at how the company has progressed and what its strategy is. He investigates thoroughly and acts deliberately—and infrequently. Once he has purchased a company or shares in a company, he is loath to sell.

His penchant for long-term investments is reflected in another of his aphorisms: “You should invest in a business that even a fool can run, because someday a fool will.”

He doesn’t believe in businesses that rely for their success on every employee being excellent. Nor does he believe that great people help all that much when the fundamentals of a business are bad. He says that when good management is brought into a fundamentally bad business, it’s the reputation of the business that remains intact.

Warren likes to say that a good business is like a castle and you’ve got to think every day, Is the management growing the size of the moat? Or is the moat shrinking? Great businesses are not all that common, and finding them is hard. Unusual factors combine to create the moats that shelter certain companies from some of the rigors of competition. Warren is superb at recognizing these franchises.

Warren installs strong managers in the companies Berkshire owns and tends to leave them pretty much alone. His basic proposition to managers is that to the degree that a company spins off cash, which good businesses do, the managers can trust Warren to invest it wisely. He doesn’t encourage managers to diversify. Managers are expected to concentrate on the businesses they know well so that Warren is free to concentrate on what he does well: investing.

My own reaction upon meeting Warren took me by surprise. Whenever somebody says to me, “Meet so-and-so; he’s the smartest guy ever” or “You’ve got to meet my friend so-and-so; he’s the best at such and such,” my defenses go up. Most people are quick to conclude that someone or something they encounter personally is exceptional. This is just human nature. Everybody wants to know someone or something superlative. As a result, people overestimate the merit of that to which they’ve been exposed. So the fact that people called Warren Buffett unique didn’t impress me much.

In fact, I was extremely skeptical when my mother suggested I take a day away from work to meet him on July 5, 1991. What were he and I supposed to talk about, P/E ratios? I mean, spend all day with a guy who just picks stocks? Especially when there’s lots of work to do? Are you kidding?

I said to my mom, “I’m working on July fifth. We’re really busy. I am sorry.”
She said, “Kay Graham will be there.”

Now, that caught my attention. I had never met Graham, but I was impressed with how well she had run the Washington Post Company and by her newspaper’s role in political history. As it happened, Kay and Warren had been great friends for years, and one of Warren’s shrewdest investments was in Post stock. Kay, Warren, and a couple of prominent journalists happened to be in the Seattle area together, and owing to an unusual circumstance they all squeezed into a little car that morning for a long drive to my family’s weekend home, which is a couple of hours outside the city. Some of the people in the car were as skeptical as I was. “We’re going to spend the whole day at these people’s house?” someone in the cramped car asked. “What are we going to do all day?”

My mom was really hard core that I come. “I’ll stay a couple of hours, and then I’m going back,” I told her.

When I arrived, Warren and I began talking about how the newspaper business was being changed by the arrival of retailers who did less advertising. Then he started asking me about IBM: “If you were building IBM from scratch, how would it look different? What are the growth businesses for IBM? What has changed for them?”

He asked good questions and told educational stories. There’s nothing I like so much as learning, and I had never met anyone who thought about business in such a clear way. On that first day, he introduced me to an intriguing analytic exercise that he does. He’ll choose a year—say, 1970—and examine the ten highest market-capitalization companies from around then. Then he’ll go forward to 1990 and look at how those companies fared. His enthusiasm for the exercise was contagious. I stayed the whole day, and before he drove off with his friends, I even agreed to fly out to Nebraska to watch a football game with him.

When you are with Warren, you can tell how much he loves his work. It comes across in many ways. When he explains stuff, it’s never “Hey, I’m smart about this and I’m going to impress you.” It’s more like “This is so interesting and it’s actually very simple. I’ll just explain it to you and you’ll realize how dumb it was that it took me a long time to figure it out.” And when he shares it with you, using his keen sense of humor to help make the point, it does seem simple.

Warren and I have the most fun when we’re taking the same data that everybody else has and coming up with new ways of looking at them that are both novel and, in a sense, obvious. Each of us tries to do this all the time for our respective companies, but it’s particularly enjoyable and stimulating to discuss these insights with each other.

We are quite candid and not at all adversarial. Our business interests don’t overlap much, although his printed World Book Encyclopedia competes with my electronic Microsoft Encarta. Warren stays away from technology companies because he likes investments in which he can predict winners a decade in advance—an almost impossible feat when it comes to technology. Unfortunately for Warren, the world of technology knows no boundaries. Over time, most business assets will be affected by technology’s broad reach—although Gillette, Coca-Cola, and See’s should be safe.
One area in which we do joust now and then is mathematics. Once Warren presented me with four unusual dice, each with a unique combination of numbers (from 0 to 12) on its sides. He proposed that we each choose one of the dice, discard the third and fourth, and wager on who would roll the highest number most often. He graciously offered to let me choose my die first.

“Okay,” Warren said, “because you get to pick first, what kind of odds will you give me?”

I knew something was up. “Let me look at those dice,” I said.

After studying the numbers on their faces for a moment, I said, “This is a losing proposition. You choose first.”

Once he chose a die, it took me a couple of minutes to figure out which of the three remaining dice to choose in response. Because of the careful selection of the numbers on each die, they were nontransitive. Each of the four dice could be beaten by one of the others: die A would tend to beat die B, die B would tend to beat die C, die C would tend to beat die D, and die D would tend to beat die A. This meant that there was no winning first choice of a die, only a winning second choice. It was counterintuitive, like a lot of things in the business world.

Warren is great with numbers, and I love math, too. But being good with numbers doesn’t necessarily correlate with being a good investor. Warren doesn’t outperform other investors because he computes odds better. That’s not it at all. Warren never makes an investment where the difference between doing it and not doing it relies on the second digit of computation. He doesn’t invest—take a swing of the bat—unless the opportunity appears unbelievably good.

One habit of Warren’s that I admire is that he keeps his schedule free of meetings. He’s good at saying no to things. He knows what he likes to do—and what he does, he does unbelievably well. He likes to sit in his office and read and think. There are a few things he’ll do beyond that, but not many. One point that Lowenstein makes that is absolutely true is that Warren is a creature of habit. He grew up in Omaha, and he wants to stay in Omaha. He has gotten to know a certain set of people, and he’d like to spend time with those people. He’s not a person who seeks out exotic new things. Warren, who just turned 65, still lives in the Omaha house he bought for himself at age 27.

His affinity for routine extends to his investment practices, too. Warren sticks to companies that he is comfortable with. He doesn’t do much investing outside the United States. There are a few companies that he has decided are great long-term investments. And despite the self-evident mathematics that there must be a price that fully anticipates all the good work that those companies will do in the future, he just won’t sell their stock no matter what the price is. I think his reluctance to sell is more philosophical than optimization driven, but who am I to second-guess the world’s most successful investor? Warren’s reluctance to sell fits in with his other tendencies.
Warren and I share certain values. He and I both feel lucky that we were born into an era in which our skills have turned out to be so remunerative. Had we been born at a different time, our skills might not have had much value. Since we don’t plan on spending much of what we have accumulated, we can make sure our wealth benefits society. In a sense, we’re both working for charity. In any case, our heirs will get only a small portion of what we accumulate, because we both believe that passing on huge wealth to children isn’t in their or society’s interest. Warren likes to say that he wants to give his children enough money for them to do anything but not enough for them to do nothing. I thought about this before I met Warren, and hearing him articulate it crystallized my feelings.

Lowenstein is a good collector of facts, and Buffett is competently written. Warren has told me that the book is in most respects accurate. He says he is going to write his own book someday, but given how much he loves to work and how hard it is to write a book (based on my personal experience), I think it will be a number of years before he does it. When it comes out, I am sure it will be one of the most valuable business books ever.

Already, Warren’s letters to shareholders are among the best of business literature.

Already, Warren’s letters to shareholders in the Berkshire Hathaway annual reports are among the best of business literature. Much of Lowenstein’s analysis comes from those letters, as it should. If, after reading Buffett, you’re intrigued by the man and his methods, I strongly commend the annual reports to you—even ones from 10 or 15 years ago. They are available in many libraries.

Other books have been written about Warren Buffett and his investment strategy, but until Warren writes his own book, this is the one to read.

source : https://hbr.org/1996/01/what-i-learned-from-warren-buffett.

August 14, 2020

How to Ask Rich People for Money

How to Ask Rich People for Money.

Fundraising for charity is an important part of any nonprofit group's work. In the U.S. alone, donors gave almost $287 billion in 2011. Many people who work for nonprofits feel uncomfortable asking donors for money, but without their help most nonprofit groups would not be able to carry out their missions. Learning how to effectively and respectfully ask wealthy individuals for money can help you ensure your charity or favorite nonprofit, federally recognized as 501 (c) (3), group prospers and is able to help those in need.

Part 1 Planning Your Donation Request
1. Compile a list of donors. Before you begin asking for money, it's best to have an idea of who you're going to ask for donations. If you're going door-to-door, that may be as simple as deciding which neighborhood(s) to work in. If you're soliciting donations by phone or by mail, though, you'll need a list of prospective donors to contact.
If you can identify past donors on your list of people to call or write to, you may want to prioritize those individuals as "best bets" - these are people who, given their history of donating in the past, will most likely contribute again to your cause.
Try to identify which people on your list are the most financially stable. You can do this by interacting with the individual to get a sense of his or her finances, or if going door-to-door, look at the houses residents live in and the cars in their driveways. People with large, elaborate homes or flashy sports cars most likely have more disposable income. (Though of course this doesn't guarantee that they will give donations.)
You can also look for potential donors by their other areas of spending. For example, does the prospective donor attend fundraisers for other organizations or individuals? If so, that prospective donor probably has the means to donate to your organization, if properly persuaded.
Consider using analytical software and services, such as Donor Search, to identify which potential donors are more wealthy and more likely to donate.
Remember to think "ABC" when identifying donors: Able to make a gift, Belief (known or potential) in your cause, and Contact/Connection with your organization.
2. Get to know your donors. If your organization has dealt with donors in the past, you or a colleague will probably know what strategies work best in making your appeal. Some people want to know how the money from last year was spent, while others may simply want to know how much is needed. Certain donors may have fears or reservations about donating, and it's important to learn to recognize those fears/reservations so you can address them in advance.
Some donors may need to hear particular terms or phrases in order to be persuaded to donate. If you know this to be the case, make some indication of this on your list so that when you call or approach that person, you'll know what to say.
Any time a donor seems reluctant to give but gives anyway, make a note of that situation on your list or in that donor's file (if you have one). Listen to what the individual says when he or she is reluctant, and try to find ways to assuage those fears - not just for this year's fundraiser, but for future years as well.
Be aware that many well-known philanthropists hire other individuals to manage donations and contributions. Because of this, you may not get to speak to the actual donor himself/herself. However, the employees hired by a philanthropist probably have the same concerns that the philanthropist does, and you may have some luck appealing to the philanthropist's interests through his or her employees.
3. Find ways to present your organization. People who have donated to your organization will no doubt be familiar with who you are (as an organization) and what you do. But what about people who have never donated before? How will you describe what you do to an outsider? This is important, as it may determine whether the individual will listen to the rest of your pitch. If possible, try to compile some data on what your organization has done in the past, the problems you hope to address after this fundraising drive, and how that prospective donation would help your cause.
Try to present your organization in a way that both explains what you do while also highlighting the issue you seek to change. For example, you might say something like, "Did you know that [the issue your organization addresses] affects a significant portion of the city, and we are the only organization solely committed to addressing these issues in a comprehensive way?"
It's not a requirement to have data compiled, but for individuals who aren't familiar with your organization, it may be very helpful to know that information.
Consider printing out a brochure or having a reusable chart to illustrate both the improvements you've made and the improvements you hope to make.
Think about what you might say if someone doesn't understand your organization's goals, or what you might say if someone was dismissive of your organization. Try putting yourself in those shoes - imagining that you were someone who didn't want to help the organization - and what you might say to the organization. Then imagine how you might respond to hearing those words.
The better your donor base understands your organization - and the better you understand your donors - the more likely you'll be to build a long-term relationship with that donor.
4. Practice your appeal. One of the best things you can do to strengthen your appeal for donations is to practice what you're going to say. That doesn't just mean knowing how to actually ask for money, but also knowing how to initiate the conversation, practicing scenarios, anticipating potential responses, and knowing how to direct (or re-direct) the conversation.
Remember that the best appeal will educate the potential donor, rather than making a simple sales pitch.
Practice your appeal out loud. Get comfortable with the speech, and learn to adapt it to your own style of speaking. Make it your own speech, and try to make it feel comfortable and unrehearsed (even though this may take a lot of rehearsal).
Practice in front of a mirror if you will be interacting with donors face-to-face.
Try recording yourself, either with a tape recorder or on video, and study your mannerisms and your speech patterns. Does it sound honest? Do your vocal patterns and your physical mannerisms communicate the message of your organization, and the urgency of what you're trying to solve?

Part 2 Asking for Donations.
1. Start a conversation. Don't just call and start running in with your pitch. Work on creating a dialogue with the potential donor, which may mean making some polite small talk at the start. It can be as simple as asking the person how his or her day is going. Anything to start a conversation should help disarm the individual, and make the person realize that you're a caring and concerned member of the community.
If the prospective donor is a known philanthropist, he or she may prefer to have someone who heads the foundation ask for a donation. Statistically, donors are more likely to give money to a recognizable figure affiliated with an organization, rather than to a fundraiser who contacts them on the organization's behalf.
Initiate the conversation by getting the prospective donor to acknowledge an existing problem. If you're raising money for a local organization, you might open the conversation by asking what he or she thinks is the greatest crisis facing your region.
2. Make your intentions known. You shouldn't just introduce yourself by asking for money, but you should make your intentions known near the end of your small talk. Start by asking how the person is doing, or commenting on the weather, and then use that as a lead-in to say, "I'm working with _______, and we're trying to help _______ be able to ________."
If the individual feels like you're just having an aimless conversation and then suddenly he or she is asked for money, it may create tension and cause the person to feel like you're shaking them down. Be calm, friendly, and casual, but don't drag your feet about making it clear that you have a purpose.
3. Let the other person speak. Chances are, if you launch into your usual appeal to a person on the street who's never donated before, that person will walk away. But if you have created a dialogue, and made room for the other person to speak, you may be able to get that individual to feel engaged and a part of the solution.
Try asking a Question : . Say something like, "What do you think is the biggest problem our community faces?" Once the person has answered, instead of simply saying, "Yes, you're right. Will you consider donating?" try a more nuanced approach. After the person says what he or she sees as the problem, just say, "How interesting!" and keep silent while remaining interested.
People fear silence, and the person will probably fill that gap by elaborating on why that issue is important. That potential donor may go on to talk about how a family member has been affected by those issues. This gives you an in to take the specific concern he/she has and run with it. It's no longer an abstract concern, but a specific problem that may have affected the individual personally.
4. Make a specific request. If you leave a donation appeal open-ended, the person may not end up donating, or may only give a few dollars. But if you ask for a specific amount, it takes a lot of guess work out of the equation for that individual, and makes it easier to commit to your request. For example, if the person seems interested, say something like, "Well, we can make a difference. For just _____ dollars, you can help accomplish ___________."
Another way to ask for a specific amount is to put the ball in their court. Ask something like, "Would you consider a gift of _____?" or "Is ______ something you'd be willing to consider to help tackle the problem of __________?"
5. Be persistent. Many people will say no right off the bat, but others may simply need to be persuaded a bit more. Perhaps someone might say that the amount you requested is too high. If that happens, let the person know that any donation amount would be a big help, and ask if there's a slightly lower amount that the person would be willing/able to donate.
Don't be aggressive with your appeal, but do be insistent that your cause is worthy and that any donation amount would help that cause.
6. Thank the person either way. If the individual is willing to donate, then it's cause for celebration. You can thank the person and let him or her know that that donation will go a long way towards solving or addressing the issue at hand. But even if the person is not interested in donating, you should still be polite and appreciative of their time. Simply say, "Well, thank you for your time and have a wonderful day."
Expressing gratitude and courtesy can go a long way. Just because someone isn't interested in donating, that doesn't mean the situation won't change. Perhaps next year the people who said no will have heard or read more about your organization, or perhaps the individual will have been personally affected by the issue you're seeking to address. Making a good impression now, even when turned down, may be what helps you get a donation next year.
7. Follow up with donors. If someone gave a donation, you should absolutely express gratitude. Send the donor a thank-you letter and a gift receipt (in case they want to write it off on their taxes or simply have a record of the donation). It's best to send these items as quickly as possible so that the donor knows that the contribution was greatly appreciated and will be put to good use.

Community Q&A.

Question : How do I ask a rich person for 50,000 dollars?
Answer : Follow the instructions listed in the article above. However, they will likely say no.
Question : How can I get money if I need it urgently?
Answer : Get a job, start a blog, make something, or ask for a small loan.
Question : How can I get help with my power bills and the foreclosure on my house?
Answer : There are probably social services nearby that can help.
Question : How can I raise money for my wedding?
Answer : Ask friends and family members if they are willing to pitch in some money to help fund your marriage. In return, send them invitations.
Question : How can I find money for my daughter's marriage?
Answer : Loans, relatives, friends, or you could try planning a wedding that won't cost you much!
Question : Where can you apply for a small business loan with bad credit?
Answer : You can try becoming a member of a credit union and try for a loan there.
Question : How do I ask for money if I am about to be homeless with an autistic son?
Answer : Ask family and friends, and tell them your situation. Look for government programs that can help, and depending on the age of your son, you may be able to get financial help for him. You can also ask family and friends if the two of you can stay with them while you get back on your feet. That way, you have an address while you look for a job.
Question : I need a loan to deal with a parent's sickness, what can I do?
Answer : Loans are not the only solution to sickness, there are organizations that provide affordable medical care. Search for these in your area. You might also consider launching a donation campaign through Kickstarter or another fundraising website.
Question : How can someone fund me to help me spread the word of God?
Answer : Try doing a simple fundraiser, like a lemonade stand or a car wash.

Tips.

Many people are more motivated to help you with money if they sympathize with your goals or interests. Try to tailor your appeal to each individual donor, based on how that donor seems to respond to the issues you address.
Always send a thank-you note to your donors, regardless of how much they sent you.

July 02, 2020

How to Fundraise

How to Fundraise.

There's no question that charities, nonprofits, PTAs, clubs and many other groups need to raise funds. The question is, how to do it effectively. This article introduces several ways that your group can raise funds for its projects.

Method 1 Preparing to Fundraise.
1. Define your needs. This is the most important first step in fundraising. To effectively raise money, you have to know what you're fundraising for in the first place. Take the time to figure out your group's needs and budget the costs to meet them.
2. Develop the language. Now that you have identified your needs, you need to articulate them. Develop some language describing what you need, why you need it, how it will help the community you serve, and how much it will cost. You may not need all of this written language for every fundraising effort, but you'll appreciate having it on hand when it's required.
3. Develop a method to track donations and donor information. For legal, accounting and internal tracking purposes, you will need the capacity to record and track donations and donor information. Your method can be a simple spreadsheet, or a complex, custom database, but you must have a usable tool.
4. Get staff or volunteers to do the work. Fundraising is work, no doubt about it. You will need capable, reliable people to manage records, staff events, stuff envelopes, solicit donations, write emails, update websites and more. Your board should definitely be involved in fundraising. You can also recruit volunteers from your constituency, from local service organizations, colleges and universities, or from online services like Volunteer Match.

Method 2 Legal Issues.
The intricate legal issues surrounding fundraising are governed by the IRS code and individual state laws. Here is an overview of the most critical issues.
1. Understand tax deductibility. Many donations to charity are tax deductible, but not all are. In order to do so you must be a 501 c 3 or have the right to use another group's 501 c 3 to process your donations.
2. Disclose whether goods or services were provided in exchange for the donation. If your organization provided anything in exchange for the donation, you must say that in your acknowledgement letter. This is called a quid pro quo contribution. An example of a quid pro quo contribution would be if you made a donation of $100 and got a cookbook valued at $30 in exchange. Only $70 of this contribution is deductible.
You usually need not worry about very small items like a refrigerator magnet or a pen.
For quid pro quo contributions, you must provide an acknowledgement if the cash donation is $75 or greater, even if the deductible part is less than $75.
3. Provide acknowledgement letters. Acknowledgement letters are important for a few reasons. They are the right thing to do, of course, but they also provide the donor with a record of their donation for tax purposes. The IRS requires that an acknowledgement letter be provided for any gift of $250 or more.
Acknowledgements must be written, but can be electronic or printed.
Although the threshold is $250, it's good practice to acknowledge every gift you receive, even if it's $5.
4. Register your charity (optional). 40 states in the U.S. require charities to register with a state agency in order to solicit donations from residents of those states. Solicitation can include any type of request, whether by mail, online or by phone. Check online to see whether you are required to register.
5. Talk to a professional. The best way to understand the legal issues in fundraising is to get professional advice. Check with your financial staff, an attorney or an accountant who specializes in nonprofit finance if you have any questions at all about the law.

Method 3 Fundraising Events.
1. Understand the method. A fundraising event is a party or gathering intended to raise money for an organization, ranging from formal NGOs to informal clubs. Typically, revenue comes in through ticket sales, and in some cases, corporate sponsorships. Although events are notorious for being expensive, time consuming and not terribly cost effective, they don't have to be that way. Here are some ideas for simple fundraising events that don't require a lot of money or energy.
2. Hold a house party. House parties are a tried and true method of fundraising. A house party is a small event hosted at the home of someone close to your organization. The host invites friends and contacts whom he or she believes might be interested in donating to your program. After mingling and refreshments, the president or director of your organization makes a short presentation about your group. Guests have an opportunity to ask questions, then, the host invites them make a donation. Some tips on house parties.
A house party does not have to be fancy. It can be a dinner party or a cocktail party. It can have 20 guests or 6. Refreshments can be catered, or as simple as coffee and cake.
Make sure that the host of the party directly asks guests to donate.
Have staff and board members on hand to mingle and answer questions.
If appropriate, consider asking a program participant to attend. It can be very powerful and compelling for donors to meet and speak with someone who has received your organization's services.
3. Make a booth. If you go to the manager of a store, like Walmart, the you can ask to make a booth in front of the store. This can be very successful.
4. Hold a restaurant fundraiser. Many restaurants have established fundraising programs whereby nonprofits can receive a percentage of sales on a designated day. These programs are very common among big chain restaurants, but smaller establishments offer them too. Search online to find out what restaurants in your area offer this fundraising tool. Once you've identified a restaurant, follow these tips.
Understand the terms. Restaurants have different guidelines and rules for fundraisers. Some donate a percentage of the entire bill; some exclude alcohol sales. Some require that customers present a coupon or other document for your group to receive a donation, others don't. Make sure you are clear on what's expected so you can take full advantage of the event.
Get the word out. Make sure your constituents and everyone in your group knows about your event. Encourage them to invite their friends too.
Provide materials. Set out brochures, postcards or other items to let diners know that their purchases are supporting your organization.
5. Hold a dessert party. A dessert party is a fun, simple and inexpensive event. Hold the party at the home of a board member or other friend of your organization. Ask volunteers to make desserts in single serving sizes. Provide coffee, tea and soft drinks. Sell tickets at a modest price. Enjoy the sweets!
6. Hold a craft fair. A craft fair is an easy and very inexpensive fundraising event. Your organization rents table space to vendors to display and sell their products. If you like, you can also ask vendors to donate a percentage of their sales to your group. If you have a facility you'd like to show off, a craft fair is a great way to get the community to visit.
Add to the fun and interest of the event by scheduling performances, speakers or other entertainment throughout the day.
Make sure there are opportunities for customers and visitors to learn about and make a donation to your organization during the event.
Consider holding a raffle as an additional way to generate revenue at the craft fair.
7. Sell your passion. If you want a fun and passionate fundraiser that doesn't take a lot of planning, consider using LoveMyHeart.org. It's simple, fun, and everyone loves the Love My Heart shirts you sell! Not to mention there are no out of pocket costs like the other events listed here!

Method 4 Fundraising Online.
1. Understand the method. In some ways, fundraising online is not much different than fundraising in the physical world. You still need to be able to effectively communicate your needs, tell stories that illustrate your work, and motivate people to make a donation to your cause. The difference is that while in the physical world you may have time to build a relationship with a potential donor, that isn't always the case online. They may only come across your website once, so you may only have one shot at convincing them to give. Therefore, it's even more important to communicate your message in a compelling way. Here are some ways to do it.
2. Set up a web page. The most basic way to raise funds online is to set up a webpage for donations, then let people know to go to that page to make a contribution. Include the link in written and electronic communications you send to your members or constituents. Make sure it's accessible from your home page, and other pages of your website. Keep these tips in mind.
Most donations made online are done by credit card transaction. If you are not already set up to accept credit cards, there are a number of companies that provide credit card donation processing services for a fee.
Offer the option of recurring donations. Recurring donations can benefit your organization in a few ways. Many donors find it easier to make a larger donation if its split up into quarterly or monthly payments; some very committed donors may want to make an annual donation to you. Make this as easy as possible by setting up recurring payments. Ask your online donation processing service how to offer this to your donors.
Some organizations opt to accept online donations through PayPal. Visit PayPal's website to learn more.
3. Sign up with an affiliate program. Fundraising with an affiliate program is a lot like making commissions off sales. An online merchant or shopping portal provides the charity with a unique affiliate link. Shoppers use the link to access the merchant, make purchases, and the charity receives a percentage of the sales. Here are some tips for affiliate fundraising.
There are dozens of merchants and portals that offer this fundraising tool. You can sign up for more than one to maximize your potential donations.
Consider your constituents. When you select a merchant, consider where your constituents are likely to shop online. It might be a good idea to do a survey or ask a few key players to make sure you're choosing well.
Get the word out. Most affiliate programs offer widgets or banners that are easy to drop into your website. Include these on your website and in electronic communications to let your supporters know how they can help.
4. Consider crowdfunding. Crowdfunding combines online fundraising with social media to help individuals and organizations raise funds. it's a way for many individuals to pool their resources and donations to get projects funded. Donors can typically contribute as little as $1.00, making it easy for lots of people to participate. There are several websites set up for crowdfunding. Funds-seekers create a campaign page describing their project or organization, and explain how the funds will be used and what, if any, benefit donors will receive for participating. Here are some tips on fundraising using crowdfunding.
Crowdfunding is particularly well suited for funding discrete projects. Rather than launch a campaign asking for all the money you need to operate a program, consider how you can break it up a bit. For example, a school music program could launch a campaign to purchase 10 instruments for low income students.
Articulate your needs and your project clearly. The clearer you can be about why you need the money and how you will use it, the better.
Get creative. Add media to your campaign page to increase readers' interest. Videos, images and success stories are great for telling your story, so use them to your advantage.

Community Q&A.

Question : How old do I have to be to start a fundraiser?
Community Answer : You can do a lot of these fundraising activities at any age, but you'll probably want an adult around to help you manage the money and make sure it goes where it is supposed to. The crowdfunding websites may require you to be 18.
Question : What other types of fundraising are there?
Community Answer : Bottle drives, bake sales, car washes, donation jars at local stores, yard sales, an action of donated goods from local stores, etc.
Question : My church has to gather funds (about 9-10 thousand) to be able to pay for a youth mission trip. They rely mostly on donations, and other methods may be wrong. Do you have any suggestions for this situation?
Community Answer : You can always advertise your fundraising idea as a way to create fellowship and bring new members into the church. Have a community potluck where your church members bring in dishes to feed a large group and outsiders make donations to eat.
Question : How do I fundraise in an apartment?
Community Answer : You can ask your landlord or super if you can use some space in the lobby. You can also organize a fundraiser outside or at a nearby park or other facility.

Tips

There are many ways to raise funds, but some ways are far better than others. If you want a quick, free fundraiser that doesn't take a lot of planning, your options are limited.
You can host a sports match between two teams and charge an entrance fee. That way you can ask for donations from the guests.

May 07, 2020

How to Calculate Compound Interest

How to Calculate Compound Interest.

Compound interest is distinct from simple interest in that interest is earned both on the original investment (the principal) and the interest accumulated so far, rather than simply on the principal. Because of this, accounts with compound interest grow faster than those with simple interest. Additionally, the value will grow even faster if the interest is compounded multiple times per year. Compound interest is offered on a variety of investment products and also charged on certain types of loans, like credit card debt. Calculating how much an amount will grow under compound interest is simple with the right equations.

Part 1 Finding Annual Compound Interest.
1. Define annual compounding. The interest rate stated on your investment prospectus or loan agreement is an annual rate. If your car loan, for example, is a 6% loan, you pay 6% interest each year. Compounding once at the end of the year is the easiest calculation for compounding interest.
A debt may compound interest annually, monthly or even daily.
The more frequently your debt compounds, the faster you will accumulate interest.
You can look at compound interest from the investor or the debtor’s point of view. Frequent compounding means that the investor’s interest earnings will increase at a faster rate. It also means that the debtor will owe more interest while the debt is outstanding.
For example, a savings account may be compounded annually, while a pay-day loan can be compounded monthly or even weekly.
2. Calculate interest compounding annually for year one. Assume that you own a $1,000, 6% savings bond issued by the US Treasury. Treasury savings bonds pay out interest each year based on their interest rate and current value.
Interest paid in year 1 would be $60 ($1,000 multiplied by 6% = $60).
To calculate interest for year 2, you need to add the original principal amount to all interest earned to date. In this case, the principal for year 2 would be ($1,000 + $60 = $1,060). The value of the bond is now $1,060 and the interest payment will be calculated from this value.
3. Compute interest compounding for later years. To see the bigger impact of compound interest, compute interest for later years. As you move from year to year, the principal amount continues to grow.
Multiply the year 2 principal amount by the bond’s interest rate. ($1,060 X 6% = $63.60). The interest earned is higher by $3.60 ($63.60 - $60.00). That’s because the principal amount increased from $1,000 to $1,060.
For year 3, the principal amount is ($1,060 + $63.60 = $1,123.60). The interest earned in year 3 is $67.42. That amount is added to the principal balance for the year 4 calculation.
The longer a debt is outstanding, the bigger the impact of compounding interest. Outstanding means that the debt is still owed by the debtor.
Without compounding, the year 2 interest would simply be ($1,000 X 6% = $60). In fact, every year’s interest earned would be $60 if you did earn compound interest. This is known as simple interest.
4. Create an excel document to compute compound interest. It can be handy to visualize compound interest by creating a simple model in excel that shows the growth of your investment. Start by opening a document and labeling the top cell in columns A, B, and C "Year," "Value," and "Interest Earned," respectively.
Enter the years (0-5) in cells A2 to A7.
Enter your principal in cell B2. For example, imagine you are started with $1,000. Input 1000.
In cell B3, type "=B2*1.06" and press enter. This means that your interest is being compounded annually at 6% (0.06). Click on the lower right corner of cell B3 and drag the formula down to cell B7. The numbers will fill in appropriately.
Place a 0 in cell C2. In cell C3, type "=B3-B$2" and press enter. This should give you the difference between the values in cell B3 and B2, which represents the interest earned. Click on the lower right corner of cell C3 and drag the formula down to cell C7. The values will fill themselves in.
Continue this process to replicate the process for as many years as you want to track. You can also easily change values for principal and interest rate by altering the formulas used and cell contents.

Part 2 Calculating Compound Interest on Investments.
1. Learn the compound interest formula. The compound interest formula solves for the future value of the investment after set number of years. The formula itself is as follows: {\displaystyle FV=P(1+{\frac {i}{c}})^{n*c}}FV=P(1+{\frac  {i}{c}})^{{n*c}} The variables within the equation are defined as follows:
"FV" is the future value. This is the result of the calculation.
"P" is your principal.
"i" represents the annual interest rate.
"c" represents the compounding frequency (how many times the interest compounds each year).
"n" represents the number of years being measured.
2. Gather variables the compound interest formula. If interest compounds more often than annually, it is difficult to calculate the formula manually. You can use a compound interest formula for any calculation. To use the formula, you need to gather the following information.
Identify the principal of the investment. This is the original amount of your investment. This could be how much you deposited into the account or the original cost of the bond. For example, imagine your principal in an investment account is $5,000.
Locate the interest rate for the debt. The interest rate should be an annual amount, stated as a percentage of the principal. For example, a 3.45% interest rate on the $5,000 principal value.
In the calculation, the interest rate will have to be input as decimal. Convert it by dividing the interest rate by 100. In this example, this would be 3.45%/100 = 0.0345.
You also need to know how often the debt compounds. Typically, interest compounds annually, monthly or daily. For example, imagine that it compounds monthly. This means your compounding frequency ("c") would be input as 12.
Determine the length of time you want to measure. This could be a goal year for growth, like 5 or 10 years, or this maturity of a bond. The maturity date of a bond is the date that the principal amount of the debt is to be repaid. For the example, we use 2 years, so input 2.
3. Use the formula. Input your variables in the right places. Check again to make sure that you are inputting them correctly. Specifically, make sure that your interest rate is in decimal form and that you have used the right number for "c" (compounding frequency).
The example investment would be input as follows: {\displaystyle FV=\$5000(1+{\frac {0.0345}{12}})^{2*12}}FV=\$5000(1+{\frac  {0.0345}{12}})^{{2*12}}
Compute the exponent portion and the portion of the formula in parenthesis separately. This is a math concept called order of operations. You can learn more about the concept using this link: Apply the Order of Operations.
4. Finish the math computations in the formula. Simplify the problem by solving for the parts of the equation in parenthesis first, beginning with the fraction.
Divide the fraction within parentheses first. The result should be: {\displaystyle FV=\$5000(1+0.00288)^{2*12}}FV=\$5000(1+0.00288)^{{2*12}}
Add the numbers within parentheses. The result should be: {\displaystyle FV=\$5000(1.00288)^{2*12}}FV=\$5000(1.00288)^{{2*12}}
Solve the multiplication within the exponent (the last part above the closing parenthesis). The result should look like this: {\displaystyle FV=\$5000(1.00288)^{24}}FV=\$5000(1.00288)^{{24}}
Raise the number within the parentheses to the power of the exponent. This can be done on a calculator by entering the value in parentheses (1.00288 in the example) first, pressing the {\displaystyle x^{y}}x^{y} button, then entering the exponent (24 in this case) and pressing enter. The result in the example is {\displaystyle FV=\$5000(1.0715)}FV=\$5000(1.0715)
Finally, multiply the principal by the number in parentheses. The result in the example is $5,000*1.0715, or $5,357.50. This is the value of the account at the end of the two years.
5. Subtract the principal from your answer. This will give you the amount of interest earned.
Subtract the principal of $5,000 from the future value of $5357.50 to get $5,375.50-$5,000, or $357.50
You will earn $357.50 in interest over the two years.

Part 3 Calculating Compound Interest With Regular Payments.
1. Learn the formula. Compounding interest accounts can increase even faster if you make regular contributions to them, such as adding a monthly amount to a savings account. The formula is longer than that used to calculate compound interest without regular payments, but follows the same principles. The formula is as follows: {\displaystyle FV=P(1+{\frac {i}{c}})^{n*c}+{\frac {R((1+{\frac {i}{c}})^{n*c}-1)}{\frac {i}{c}}}}FV=P(1+{\frac  {i}{c}})^{{n*c}}+{\frac  {R((1+{\frac  {i}{c}})^{{n*c}}-1)}{{\frac  {i}{c}}}}[7]The variables within the equation are also the same as the previous equation, with one addition.
"P" is the principal.
"i" is the annual interest rate.
"c" is the compounding frequency and represents how many times the interest is compounded each year.
"n" is the number of years.
"R" is the amount of the monthly contribution.
2. Compile the necessary variables. To compute the future value of this type of account, you will need the principal (or present value) of the account, the annual interest rate, the compounding frequency, the number of years being measured, and the amount of your monthly contribution. This information should be in your investment agreement.
Be sure to convert the annual interest rate into a decimal. Do this by dividing the rate by 100. For example, using the above 3.45% interest rate, we would divide 3.45 by 100 to get 0.0345.
For compounding frequency, simply use the number of times per year that the interest compounds. This means annually is 1, monthly is 12, and daily is 365 (don't worry about leap years).
3. Input your variables. Continuing with the example from above, imagine that you decide to also contribute $100 per month to your account. This account, with a principal value of $5,000, compounds monthly and earns 3.45% annual interest. We will measure the growth of the account over two years.
The completed formula using this information is as follows: {\displaystyle FV=\$5,000(1+{\frac {0.0345}{12}})^{2*12}+{\frac {\$100((1+{\frac {0.0345}{12}})^{2*12}-1)}{\frac {0.0345}{12}}}}FV=\$5,000(1+{\frac  {0.0345}{12}})^{{2*12}}+{\frac  {\$100((1+{\frac  {0.0345}{12}})^{{2*12}}-1)}{{\frac  {0.0345}{12}}}}
4. Solve the equation. Again, remember to use the proper order of operations to do so. This means that you start by calculating the values inside of parentheses.
Solve for the fractions with parentheses first. This means dividing "i" by "c" in three places, all for the same result of 0.00288. The equation now looks like this: {\displaystyle FV=\$5,000(1+0.00288)^{2*12}+{\frac {\$100((1+0.00288)^{2*12}-1)}{0.00288}}}FV=\$5,000(1+0.00288)^{{2*12}}+{\frac  {\$100((1+0.00288)^{{2*12}}-1)}{0.00288}}
Solve the addition within the parentheses. This means adding the 1 to the result from the last part. This gives: {\displaystyle FV=\$5,000(1.00288)^{2*12}+{\frac {\$100((1.00288)^{2*12}-1)}{0.00288}}}FV=\$5,000(1.00288)^{{2*12}}+{\frac  {\$100((1.00288)^{{2*12}}-1)}{0.00288}}
Solve the multiplication within the exponents. This means multiplying the two numbers that are smaller and above the closing parentheses. In the example, this is 2*12 for a result of 24. This gives: {\displaystyle FV=\$5,000(1.00288)^{24}+{\frac {\$100((1.00288)^{24}-1)}{0.00288}}}FV=\$5,000(1.00288)^{{24}}+{\frac  {\$100((1.00288)^{{24}}-1)}{0.00288}}
Solve the exponents. This means raising the amount within parentheses to the result of the last step. On a calculator, this is done by entering the value in parentheses (1.00288 in the example), pressing the {\displaystyle x^{y}}x^{y} key, and then entering the exponent value (which is 24 here). This gives: {\displaystyle FV=\$5,000(1.0715)+{\frac {\$100(1.0715-1)}{0.00288}}}FV=\$5,000(1.0715)+{\frac  {\$100(1.0715-1)}{0.00288}}
Subtract. Subtract the one from the result of the last step in the right part of the equation (here 1.0715 minus 1). This gives: {\displaystyle FV=\$5,000(1.0715)+{\frac {\$100(0.0715)}{0.00288}}}FV=\$5,000(1.0715)+{\frac  {\$100(0.0715)}{0.00288}}
Multiply. This means multiplying the principal by the number is the first set of parentheses and the monthly contribution by the same number in parentheses. This gives: {\displaystyle FV=\$5,357.50+{\frac {\$7.15}{0.00288}}}FV=\$5,357.50+{\frac  {\$7.15}{0.00288}}
Divide the fraction. This gives {\displaystyle FV=\$5,357.50+\$2,482.64}FV=\$5,357.50+\$2,482.64
Add. Finally, add the two number to get the future value of the account. This gives $5,357.50 + $2,482.64, or $7,840.14. This is the value of the account after the two years.
5. Subtract the principal and payments. To find the interest earned, you have to subtract the amount of money you put into the account. This means adding the principal, $5,000, to the total value of contributions made, which is 24 contributions (2 years* 12 months/year) times the $100 you put in each month for a total of $2,400. The total is $5,000 plus $2,400, or $7,400. Subtracting $7,400 from the future value of $7,840.14, you get the amount of interest earned, which is $440.14.
6. Extend your calculation. To really see the benefit of compound interest, imagine that you continue adding money monthly to the same account for twenty years instead of two. In this case, your future value would be about $45,000, even though you will have only contributed $29,000, meaning that you will have earned $16,000 in interest.

FAQ.
Question : What does "to the power of" mean?
Answer : "To the power of" refers to a particular numerical exponent. It is a multiplication in which a number appears as a factor that many times. For example, 2 to the power of 1 equals 2. 2 to the power of 2 equals 2x2, or 4, and 2 to the power of 3 is 2 x 2 x 2, or 8.
Question : How do I find the compound interest on a 29,870 loan at 6% interest?
Answer : First take out the amount by the formulae: principle(1+ r/100) to the power n (number of years), then take out the ci by subtracting the principle from the amount.
Question : What do I type on a calculator to find compound interest?
Answer : Compound interest can be calculated in several ways. The most common is to say that A=Pe^(rt) where P is the initial amount, "e" is a constant around 2.71, "r" is the interest rate (i.e. 7% would be entered in as 0.07), "t" is the duration in which the interest is being calculated in years and "A" is the final amount.
Question : How do I know if it's better to owe interest on something or to pay a lump sum at no interest?
Answer : Cost/value analysis. Calculate the total you'll pay under both methods and find the difference. Then compare that difference to the value of buying now (with a loan) versus later (lump sum).
Question : How do I find the future value and the compound interest if £4000 is invested for 5 years at 42% p.a?
Answer : Principal=$4000, n=5, R=42%,0.42. The formula: FV=PV(1+r)r aise power n and substitute the value.
Question : How do I calculate principal in compound interest?
Answer : Principal = fv = p(1 + i/c)ⁿc. Formula for principal in compound interest (1 + R/100), where R = rate.

Tips.

You can also calculate compound interest easily using an online compound interest calculator. The US Government hosts a good one at https://www.investor.gov/tools/calculators/compound-interest-calculator.
A quick rule of thumb to find compound interest is the "rule of 72." Start by dividing 72 by the amount of the interest your are earning, for example 4%. In this case, this would be 72/4, or 18. This result, 18, is roughly the number of years it will take for your investment to double at the current interest rate. Keep in mind that the rule of 72 is just a quick approximation, not an exact result.[8]
You can also use these calculations to perform "what-if" calculations that can tell you how much you will earn with a given interest rate, principal, compounding frequency, or number of years.

April 09, 2020

how to finance a business purchase

How to Finance a Business Purchase.

Buying an existing business can be convenient in a number of ways. You're buying into a proven business model with existing customers, marketing, and products. With this framework in place, you can also begin repaying your purchase expenses immediately with the profits earned by the business. However, financing that business purchase in the first place can be just as expensive as starting a business yourself. Consider the following methods for coming up with the capital to purchase a business and choose those that best suit your needs.



Method 1 Taking Out a Loan.



1. Investigate SBA loans. The Small Business Administration (SBA) guarantees loans to small business to help them get started and expand their operations. To get started on the road towards acquiring SBA financing, visit a local bank or financial institution that provides SBA loans. The SBA loan makes it easier for you to acquire financing, as part of the loan is repaid by the SBA if you fail to make payments. Specifically, the loan program you will be looking for is the SBA Basic 7(a) loan program, which is used for acquiring or starting new businesses. To qualify for this type of loan, you must.

Own or seek to own a small business as defined by the SBA. This information can be found on their website.

Plan to operate for profit.

Plan to operate within the United States or its possessions.

Have your own assets invested in the business.

Show a need for the loan.

Not owe the US government any money.



2. Meet with financial institutions. Financing is also available through local lending institutions, like banks and credit unions. However, this type of lending can be very difficult to secure, particularly if you have less-than-stellar credit or if there are not significant personal or business assets that can be used as collateral. To qualify for a traditional bank loan, you will need demonstrable management experience, strong existing cash flows, experience in the industry, and a high personal credit score. It may also be easier for you to obtain a loan if you have an existing, strong relationship with the bank providing the loan.

If you are a woman, veteran, or minority, banks may have special lending programs that you can qualify for.



3. Assess the collateral you can provide. Your collateral is the assets, either yours or the business's, that you can provide as insurance in case you default on your loan. For some business loans, these may need to be worth as much as 50 to 70 percent of the loan value. When providing collateral for the banks to use, you can include any of the following:

Equity in your own home.

Assets owned by the business, like accounts receivable and inventory.

A personal guarantee. This essentially means that, in the event of a default, you are personally liable to repay a certain amount of the loan value.

Most lenders, including the SBA, require a personal guarantee for a loan in addition to any collateral pledged. This is because they would prefer avoiding have to take possession of the collateral and go through the subsequent sale.



4. Get pre-qualified for several loans. Before finalizing the purchase of the business, you will need one or several letters of pre-qualification for loans. This means going through the loan process with each lender and getting the go-ahead from them to purchase the business. You can then show the letters to the seller and finalize the purchase, at which point you will need to actually take out one of the loans that you are pre-qualified for.

Getting pre-qualified for several loans is advantageous in case the lending requirements change between your pre-qualification and the close of the sale.

You will need to be pre-qualified for more than the purchase price of the business. You should also include about 90 days of working capital (money used to keep the business functioning, like utilities and inventory purchasing money). You can work with the current owner to assess how much is needed.



5. Consider alternative loan options. There are many other sources of loans available to finance the initial purchase of a business. For some people, there may be an opportunity to borrow money from friends or family. However, bear in mind that this may damage your relationship with that person if things go south. Some other options you can consider include:

Peer-to-peer (P2P) financing. Online lending markets like LendingClub.com and Prosper.com allow you to borrow small amounts (generally less than $25,000) from other people. However, rates on these sites are typically higher than what a bank or the SBA could offer you.

Microloans. Microloans are for smaller amounts that traditional business loans (usually less than $50,000) and have shorter durations (under six years). Check with the SBA or a microlending specialist to investigate your options.



Method 2 Financing the Purchase With Your Own Assets.



1. Use your own savings. The easiest and cheapest way to finance your own business is with your own personal savings. This includes any savings accounts, CDs, investment accounts, or other liquid accounts you hold. By using the money from these accounts to finance your personal, you can avoid having to work with partners, investors, or lenders when running your business. However, it is rare that an individual has enough money in these accounts to purchase a business.



2. Sell any valuable assets you currently own. Another way to raise money is to sell off valuable assets that you own. Parcels of land, non-essential vehicles, and boats can all be sold to raise this type of money.



3. Borrow against your home equity. You can borrow against the value of your home using a second mortgage or a home equity line of credit (HELOC). However, this requires having enough equity in your home in the first place. More importantly, it also introduces the risk that, in the event of the business's default, your house may be foreclosed upon by the lender. Consider the risks and try every other options available to you before pursuing this type of financing.



4. Avoid purchasing the business with your retirement savings. While it is possible to roll your IRA or 401(k) savings balances into a business venture without taking a tax hit, doing so is incredibly risky. If your business fails to perform as expected, you could lose all of the money you have saved for retirement. Personal finance experts recommend against using this as a method of business financing.



Method 3 Bringing On Investors or Partners.



1. Consider finding a partner or several of them. A partner is someone who provides some initial purchase money for the business in exchange for an ownership share. Your partner will likely want to be involved in the business in some way, so make sure to only take on a partner that you can work well with. And being personally close with someone doesn't make them a good partner; sometimes a trusted or knowledgable co-worker or acquaintance can make a better partner than a friend or family member.

In addition, make sure to draw up a legal contract that clarifies the terms of the partnership. This agreement should list how disputes are settled, how major decisions are made, and exactly how profits are divided.



2. Work with a silent partner. A silent partner is one that contributes capital to the business, but has no say in its operations. However, many silent partners eventually want to have a say in how the business is run. Again, to ensure that this relationship works as planned, draw up a partnership agreement that specifies the terms of your partnership in detail.



3. Bring on angel investors. An angel investor is a wealthy private investor who gives start-up capital to new businesses and new business owners in exchange for equity in that business. Businesses with angel investors benefits from the angel investor's industry expertise, business contacts, and financial resources. Locating angel investors, however, can be difficult. You'll have to locate a high net worth individual who shares your passion for the business you are buying and its industry. Then, you'll have to convince them of your own management skill and your ability to give them a good return on their money.

Angel Investors can be located by visiting the Angel Capital Association's website.



4. Engage in equity crowdfunding. Equity crowdfunding, which involves selling small stakes in your business to a large number of small investors, is a relative newcomer in the world of business financing. While equity crowdfunding has been around for years, operating through sites like SeedInvest, it has recently become tightly regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Equity crowdfunding can be an effective way to raise money, but only with the proper guidance, as following SEC guidelines can be complicated.



Method 4 Getting Seller Financing.



1. Consider the benefits and drawbacks of seller financing. Seller financing, also called owner financing, is a purchase arrangement in which you repay the sale price of the business directly to its previous owner over several years. For the buyer, this provides some flexibility in repaying the loan, such as negotiating a longer repayment period, a temporary reprieve from payments, or reducing the price in exchange for letting the owner keep some equity in the business. However, this type of arrangement is typically more expensive, with the owner charging a higher interest rate than the bank would charge.

Ideally, the buyer should negotiate an arrangement where all or a portion of the loan financed by the seller may be contingent upon the profits reached and payable over a limited term. This protects the buyer in case profits are not as high as expected.

Obtaining seller financing may give you more power in negotiating down the price of the business.

Doing so also gives the seller reason to help you out more in running and managing the business.



2. Ask the seller if they would consider seller financing. Start by asking the seller directly if they would consider seller financing. It may help if you explain to them that this will result in their getting more money over time, as they get to keep the interest on your loan (rather than the bank keeping it). If they agree, you can begin negotiating a contract.

If possible, avoid securing the seller with assets purchased. This gives you a cushion if additional financing is needed to get the business is running smoothly.



3. Negotiate a contract. Work with the seller to form the terms of sale. Start by offering to make a down payment with what you can gather on your own, say 10 to 20 percent of the sale price. Try to offer as large of a down payment as you can afford; this will only help you and save you money in the long run. Then discuss a repayment period and interest rate. Try to negotiate a longer repayment period and lower interest rate to make sure that you can afford the payments.

You may be able to agree on a large, balloon payment in a number of years. This will reduce your monthly payments. Then, you can get a bank loan or use your savings to cover the balloon payment.

Alternately, where a C corporation is involved in the purchase, issuing preferred stock may be a better option than debt for the buyer when repaying the balloon payment.



4. Have a lawyer review the contract. Ideally, you should have an attorney that specializes in business contracts draw up the contract. However, you can also have one review the contract to ensure that your interests are represented and that there are no surprises waiting for you in the wording of the contract. You may also want to have an accountant review the financials of the deal to make sure everything checks out.

The lawyer, and possibly an accountant, should confirm the validity of the financial statements, specifically the identity, value and location of assets and liabilities.



5. Finalize the deal. Once you've been assured that the contract is right for both you and the seller, close the deal and take control of the business. With seller financing, you'll likely be able to convince the previous owner to help you out with getting started as the manager of your new business.

November 22, 2019

How to Finance a Business Purchase

How to Finance a Business Purchase.

Buying an existing business can be convenient in a number of ways. You're buying into a proven business model with existing customers, marketing, and products. With this framework in place, you can also begin repaying your purchase expenses immediately with the profits earned by the business. However, financing that business purchase in the first place can be just as expensive as starting a business yourself. Consider the following methods for coming up with the capital to purchase a business and choose those that best suit your needs.





Taking Out a Loan



Investigate SBA loans. The Small Business Administration (SBA) guarantees loans to small business to help them get started and expand their operations. To get started on the road towards acquiring SBA financing, visit a local bank or financial institution that provides SBA loans. The SBA loan makes it easier for you to acquire financing, as part of the loan is repaid by the SBA if you fail to make payments. Specifically, the loan program you will be looking for is the SBA Basic 7(a) loan program, which is used for acquiring or starting new businesses. To qualify for this type of loan, you must.

Own or seek to own a small business as defined by the SBA. This information can be found on their website.

Plan to operate for profit.

Plan to operate within the United States or its possessions.

Have your own assets invested in the business.

Show a need for the loan.

Not owe the US government any money.



Meet with financial institutions. Financing is also available through local lending institutions, like banks and credit unions. However, this type of lending can be very difficult to secure, particularly if you have less-than-stellar credit or if there are not significant personal or business assets that can be used as collateral. To qualify for a traditional bank loan, you will need demonstrable management experience, strong existing cash flows, experience in the industry, and a high personal credit score. It may also be easier for you to obtain a loan if you have an existing, strong relationship with the bank providing the loan.

If you are a woman, veteran, or minority, banks may have special lending programs that you can qualify for.



Assess the collateral you can provide. Your collateral is the assets, either yours or the business's, that you can provide as insurance in case you default on your loan. For some business loans, these may need to be worth as much as 50 to 70 percent of the loan value. When providing collateral for the banks to use, you can include any of the following:

Equity in your own home.

Assets owned by the business, like accounts receivable and inventory.

A personal guarantee. This essentially means that, in the event of a default, you are personally liable to repay a certain amount of the loan value.

Most lenders, including the SBA, require a personal guarantee for a loan in addition to any collateral pledged. This is because they would prefer avoiding have to take possession of the collateral and go through the subsequent sale.



Get pre-qualified for several loans. Before finalizing the purchase of the business, you will need one or several letters of pre-qualification for loans. This means going through the loan process with each lender and getting the go-ahead from them to purchase the business. You can then show the letters to the seller and finalize the purchase, at which point you will need to actually take out one of the loans that you are pre-qualified for.

Getting pre-qualified for several loans is advantageous in case the lending requirements change between your pre-qualification and the close of the sale.

You will need to be pre-qualified for more than the purchase price of the business. You should also include about 90 days of working capital (money used to keep the business functioning, like utilities and inventory purchasing money). You can work with the current owner to assess how much is needed.



Consider alternative loan options. There are many other sources of loans available to finance the initial purchase of a business. For some people, there may be an opportunity to borrow money from friends or family. However, bear in mind that this may damage your relationship with that person if things go south. Some other options you can consider include:

Peer-to-peer (P2P) financing. Online lending markets like LendingClub.com and Prosper.com allow you to borrow small amounts (generally less than $25,000) from other people. However, rates on these sites are typically higher than what a bank or the SBA could offer you.

Microloans. Microloans are for smaller amounts that traditional business loans (usually less than $50,000) and have shorter durations (under six years). Check with the SBA or a microlending specialist to investigate your options.







Financing the Purchase With Your Own Assets.



Use your own savings. The easiest and cheapest way to finance your own business is with your own personal savings. This includes any savings accounts, CDs, investment accounts, or other liquid accounts you hold. By using the money from these accounts to finance your personal, you can avoid having to work with partners, investors, or lenders when running your business. However, it is rare that an individual has enough money in these accounts to purchase a business.



Sell any valuable assets you currently own. Another way to raise money is to sell off valuable assets that you own. Parcels of land, non-essential vehicles, and boats can all be sold to raise this type of money.



Borrow against your home equity. You can borrow against the value of your home using a second mortgage or a home equity line of credit (HELOC). However, this requires having enough equity in your home in the first place. More importantly, it also introduces the risk that, in the event of the business's default, your house may be foreclosed upon by the lender. Consider the risks and try every other options available to you before pursuing this type of financing.



Avoid purchasing the business with your retirement savings. While it is possible to roll your IRA or 401(k) savings balances into a business venture without taking a tax hit, doing so is incredibly risky. If your business fails to perform as expected, you could lose all of the money you have saved for retirement. Personal finance experts recommend against using this as a method of business financing.







Bringing On Investors or Partners.



Consider finding a partner or several of them. A partner is someone who provides some initial purchase money for the business in exchange for an ownership share. Your partner will likely want to be involved in the business in some way, so make sure to only take on a partner that you can work well with. And being personally close with someone doesn't make them a good partner; sometimes a trusted or knowledgable co-worker or acquaintance can make a better partner than a friend or family member.

In addition, make sure to draw up a legal contract that clarifies the terms of the partnership. This agreement should list how disputes are settled, how major decisions are made, and exactly how profits are divided.



Work with a silent partner. A silent partner is one that contributes capital to the business, but has no say in its operations. However, many silent partners eventually want to have a say in how the business is run. Again, to ensure that this relationship works as planned, draw up a partnership agreement that specifies the terms of your partnership in detail.



Bring on angel investors. An angel investor is a wealthy private investor who gives start-up capital to new businesses and new business owners in exchange for equity in that business. Businesses with angel investors benefits from the angel investor's industry expertise, business contacts, and financial resources. Locating angel investors, however, can be difficult. You'll have to locate a high net worth individual who shares your passion for the business you are buying and its industry. Then, you'll have to convince them of your own management skill and your ability to give them a good return on their money.

Angel Investors can be located by visiting the Angel Capital Association's website.



Engage in equity crowdfunding. Equity crowdfunding, which involves selling small stakes in your business to a large number of small investors, is a relative newcomer in the world of business financing. While equity crowdfunding has been around for years, operating through sites like SeedInvest, it has recently become tightly regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Equity crowdfunding can be an effective way to raise money, but only with the proper guidance, as following SEC guidelines can be complicated.







Getting Seller Financing



Consider the benefits and drawbacks of seller financing. Seller financing, also called owner financing, is a purchase arrangement in which you repay the sale price of the business directly to its previous owner over several years. For the buyer, this provides some flexibility in repaying the loan, such as negotiating a longer repayment period, a temporary reprieve from payments, or reducing the price in exchange for letting the owner keep some equity in the business. However, this type of arrangement is typically more expensive, with the owner charging a higher interest rate than the bank would charge.

Ideally, the buyer should negotiate an arrangement where all or a portion of the loan financed by the seller may be contingent upon the profits reached and payable over a limited term. This protects the buyer in case profits are not as high as expected.

Obtaining seller financing may give you more power in negotiating down the price of the business.

Doing so also gives the seller reason to help you out more in running and managing the business.[



Ask the seller if they would consider seller financing. Start by asking the seller directly if they would consider seller financing. It may help if you explain to them that this will result in their getting more money over time, as they get to keep the interest on your loan (rather than the bank keeping it). If they agree, you can begin negotiating a contract.

If possible, avoid securing the seller with assets purchased. This gives you a cushion if additional financing is needed to get the business is running smoothly.



Negotiate a contract. Work with the seller to form the terms of sale. Start by offering to make a down payment with what you can gather on your own, say 10 to 20 percent of the sale price. Try to offer as large of a down payment as you can afford; this will only help you and save you money in the long run. Then discuss a repayment period and interest rate. Try to negotiate a longer repayment period and lower interest rate to make sure that you can afford the payments.

You may be able to agree on a large, balloon payment in a number of years. This will reduce your monthly payments. Then, you can get a bank loan or use your savings to cover the balloon payment.

Alternately, where a C corporation is involved in the purchase, issuing preferred stock may be a better option than debt for the buyer when repaying the balloon payment.



Have a lawyer review the contract. Ideally, you should have an attorney that specializes in business contracts draw up the contract. However, you can also have one review the contract to ensure that your interests are represented and that there are no surprises waiting for you in the wording of the contract. You may also want to have an accountant review the financials of the deal to make sure everything checks out.

The lawyer, and possibly an accountant, should confirm the validity of the financial statements, specifically the identity, value and location of assets and liabilities.



Finalize the deal. Once you've been assured that the contract is right for both you and the seller, close the deal and take control of the business. With seller financing, you'll likely be able to convince the previous owner to help you out with getting started as the manager of your new business.

November 14, 2019

how to finance a business purchase

How to Finance a Business Purchase.

Buying an existing business can be convenient in a number of ways. You're buying into a proven business model with existing customers, marketing, and products. With this framework in place, you can also begin repaying your purchase expenses immediately with the profits earned by the business. However, financing that business purchase in the first place can be just as expensive as starting a business yourself. Consider the following methods for coming up with the capital to purchase a business and choose those that best suit your needs.





Taking Out a Loan



Investigate SBA loans. The Small Business Administration (SBA) guarantees loans to small business to help them get started and expand their operations. To get started on the road towards acquiring SBA financing, visit a local bank or financial institution that provides SBA loans. The SBA loan makes it easier for you to acquire financing, as part of the loan is repaid by the SBA if you fail to make payments. Specifically, the loan program you will be looking for is the SBA Basic 7(a) loan program, which is used for acquiring or starting new businesses. To qualify for this type of loan, you must.

Own or seek to own a small business as defined by the SBA. This information can be found on their website.

Plan to operate for profit.

Plan to operate within the United States or its possessions.

Have your own assets invested in the business.

Show a need for the loan.

Not owe the US government any money.



Meet with financial institutions. Financing is also available through local lending institutions, like banks and credit unions. However, this type of lending can be very difficult to secure, particularly if you have less-than-stellar credit or if there are not significant personal or business assets that can be used as collateral. To qualify for a traditional bank loan, you will need demonstrable management experience, strong existing cash flows, experience in the industry, and a high personal credit score. It may also be easier for you to obtain a loan if you have an existing, strong relationship with the bank providing the loan.

If you are a woman, veteran, or minority, banks may have special lending programs that you can qualify for.



Assess the collateral you can provide. Your collateral is the assets, either yours or the business's, that you can provide as insurance in case you default on your loan. For some business loans, these may need to be worth as much as 50 to 70 percent of the loan value. When providing collateral for the banks to use, you can include any of the following:

Equity in your own home.

Assets owned by the business, like accounts receivable and inventory.

A personal guarantee. This essentially means that, in the event of a default, you are personally liable to repay a certain amount of the loan value.

Most lenders, including the SBA, require a personal guarantee for a loan in addition to any collateral pledged. This is because they would prefer avoiding have to take possession of the collateral and go through the subsequent sale.



Get pre-qualified for several loans. Before finalizing the purchase of the business, you will need one or several letters of pre-qualification for loans. This means going through the loan process with each lender and getting the go-ahead from them to purchase the business. You can then show the letters to the seller and finalize the purchase, at which point you will need to actually take out one of the loans that you are pre-qualified for.

Getting pre-qualified for several loans is advantageous in case the lending requirements change between your pre-qualification and the close of the sale.

You will need to be pre-qualified for more than the purchase price of the business. You should also include about 90 days of working capital (money used to keep the business functioning, like utilities and inventory purchasing money). You can work with the current owner to assess how much is needed.



Consider alternative loan options. There are many other sources of loans available to finance the initial purchase of a business. For some people, there may be an opportunity to borrow money from friends or family. However, bear in mind that this may damage your relationship with that person if things go south. Some other options you can consider include:

Peer-to-peer (P2P) financing. Online lending markets like LendingClub.com and Prosper.com allow you to borrow small amounts (generally less than $25,000) from other people. However, rates on these sites are typically higher than what a bank or the SBA could offer you.

Microloans. Microloans are for smaller amounts that traditional business loans (usually less than $50,000) and have shorter durations (under six years). Check with the SBA or a microlending specialist to investigate your options.







Financing the Purchase With Your Own Assets.



Use your own savings. The easiest and cheapest way to finance your own business is with your own personal savings. This includes any savings accounts, CDs, investment accounts, or other liquid accounts you hold. By using the money from these accounts to finance your personal, you can avoid having to work with partners, investors, or lenders when running your business. However, it is rare that an individual has enough money in these accounts to purchase a business.



Sell any valuable assets you currently own. Another way to raise money is to sell off valuable assets that you own. Parcels of land, non-essential vehicles, and boats can all be sold to raise this type of money.



Borrow against your home equity. You can borrow against the value of your home using a second mortgage or a home equity line of credit (HELOC). However, this requires having enough equity in your home in the first place. More importantly, it also introduces the risk that, in the event of the business's default, your house may be foreclosed upon by the lender. Consider the risks and try every other options available to you before pursuing this type of financing.



Avoid purchasing the business with your retirement savings. While it is possible to roll your IRA or 401(k) savings balances into a business venture without taking a tax hit, doing so is incredibly risky. If your business fails to perform as expected, you could lose all of the money you have saved for retirement. Personal finance experts recommend against using this as a method of business financing.







Bringing On Investors or Partners.



Consider finding a partner or several of them. A partner is someone who provides some initial purchase money for the business in exchange for an ownership share. Your partner will likely want to be involved in the business in some way, so make sure to only take on a partner that you can work well with. And being personally close with someone doesn't make them a good partner; sometimes a trusted or knowledgable co-worker or acquaintance can make a better partner than a friend or family member.

In addition, make sure to draw up a legal contract that clarifies the terms of the partnership. This agreement should list how disputes are settled, how major decisions are made, and exactly how profits are divided.



Work with a silent partner. A silent partner is one that contributes capital to the business, but has no say in its operations. However, many silent partners eventually want to have a say in how the business is run. Again, to ensure that this relationship works as planned, draw up a partnership agreement that specifies the terms of your partnership in detail.



Bring on angel investors. An angel investor is a wealthy private investor who gives start-up capital to new businesses and new business owners in exchange for equity in that business. Businesses with angel investors benefits from the angel investor's industry expertise, business contacts, and financial resources. Locating angel investors, however, can be difficult. You'll have to locate a high net worth individual who shares your passion for the business you are buying and its industry. Then, you'll have to convince them of your own management skill and your ability to give them a good return on their money.

Angel Investors can be located by visiting the Angel Capital Association's website.



Engage in equity crowdfunding. Equity crowdfunding, which involves selling small stakes in your business to a large number of small investors, is a relative newcomer in the world of business financing. While equity crowdfunding has been around for years, operating through sites like SeedInvest, it has recently become tightly regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Equity crowdfunding can be an effective way to raise money, but only with the proper guidance, as following SEC guidelines can be complicated.







Getting Seller Financing



Consider the benefits and drawbacks of seller financing. Seller financing, also called owner financing, is a purchase arrangement in which you repay the sale price of the business directly to its previous owner over several years. For the buyer, this provides some flexibility in repaying the loan, such as negotiating a longer repayment period, a temporary reprieve from payments, or reducing the price in exchange for letting the owner keep some equity in the business. However, this type of arrangement is typically more expensive, with the owner charging a higher interest rate than the bank would charge.

Ideally, the buyer should negotiate an arrangement where all or a portion of the loan financed by the seller may be contingent upon the profits reached and payable over a limited term. This protects the buyer in case profits are not as high as expected.

Obtaining seller financing may give you more power in negotiating down the price of the business.

Doing so also gives the seller reason to help you out more in running and managing the business.[



Ask the seller if they would consider seller financing. Start by asking the seller directly if they would consider seller financing. It may help if you explain to them that this will result in their getting more money over time, as they get to keep the interest on your loan (rather than the bank keeping it). If they agree, you can begin negotiating a contract.

If possible, avoid securing the seller with assets purchased. This gives you a cushion if additional financing is needed to get the business is running smoothly.



Negotiate a contract. Work with the seller to form the terms of sale. Start by offering to make a down payment with what you can gather on your own, say 10 to 20 percent of the sale price. Try to offer as large of a down payment as you can afford; this will only help you and save you money in the long run. Then discuss a repayment period and interest rate. Try to negotiate a longer repayment period and lower interest rate to make sure that you can afford the payments.

You may be able to agree on a large, balloon payment in a number of years. This will reduce your monthly payments. Then, you can get a bank loan or use your savings to cover the balloon payment.

Alternately, where a C corporation is involved in the purchase, issuing preferred stock may be a better option than debt for the buyer when repaying the balloon payment.



Have a lawyer review the contract. Ideally, you should have an attorney that specializes in business contracts draw up the contract. However, you can also have one review the contract to ensure that your interests are represented and that there are no surprises waiting for you in the wording of the contract. You may also want to have an accountant review the financials of the deal to make sure everything checks out.

The lawyer, and possibly an accountant, should confirm the validity of the financial statements, specifically the identity, value and location of assets and liabilities.



Finalize the deal. Once you've been assured that the contract is right for both you and the seller, close the deal and take control of the business. With seller financing, you'll likely be able to convince the previous owner to help you out with getting started as the manager of your new business.

November 13, 2019