Category Archive : INSIGHTS

What Is Mark-to-Market Accounting

The Big Boys, the ladies and men who make and arrange the really huge commercial real estate loans, have their own specialized language.  You can think of it as advanced commercial mortgage-ese.  Today we’ll discuss one of their underwriting terms, mark-to-market (MTM) accounting in real estate.

Mark-to-market accounting assigns a value to real estate assets based on what the property could command on the market if it were sold today.  This often means assigning a value based on the current market rents for the building, as opposed to the actual rent being generated from existing tenants.

Now let’s use mark-to-market accounting is some real life deals:

When Boston Properties acquired the General Motors building for a record $2.8 billion in June of 2008, it internally assigned a value based on the current market rents for the building, as opposed to the actual rent being generated from existing tenants.  The company noted that the average rent being paid at the GM building was $90 a square foot, which it said was half the current market rent of $180 per square foot.  This MTM analysis played a significant part on its decision to buy the property.

Here is another one, which I pulled from a closing tombstone in FinFacts, the bi-monthly newsletter of George Smith Partners, one of the largest commercial mortgage banking firms in the country.

Pop Quiz:

What’s the difference the a commercial mortgage banker and a commercial mortgage broker?  Commercial mortgage bankers retain the servicing on the commercial real estate loans that they originate for life companies and the Agencies.  The Agencies include Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, HUD, and Ginnie Mae.

And what have I been preaching to you for decades?  The real money in commercial real estate finance is in loan servicing fees.  A commercial mortgage broker is often a poor person.  A commercial mortgage banker is usually a rich person.

Okay, so here is the MTM language from FinFacts:

“George Smith Partners secured a $4,500,000 refinance for a 13,051 SF mixed-use property in West Hollywood. The loan is fixed at a rate of 3.92% for a 5-year term.  At close, the Property had four month-to-month leases in place, plus two cell tower leases.  This was problematic since some lenders would not include MTM income or cell tower income in their underwritten cash flow.  Although several lenders offered a competitive interest rate, they used a high stress rate when applying their debt coverage ratio constraint.  As a result, most lenders quoted proceeds of less than 45% LTV.”

“The selected lender was able to mitigate the impact of these challenges by using a lower stress rate, giving full credit for MTM leases and including the cell tower income. As a result, they were able to provide proceeds of 50% LTV at a fixed rate under 4%.”

Sadly My Predictions of Stock Market Doom Were Accurate:

On Sunday I wrote:

“Even if COVID-19 never gets out of control in the U.S., hundreds of thousands of small businesses in China are in serious trouble, especially with tens of millions of their workers confined to their homes. The owners of most small businesses in China have no more than four months worth of operating expenses in savings, and small businesses employ 60% of China’s workers.”

“And the thing is, many of these small Chinese companies manufacture parts for American companies. As a result, the worldwide supply chain has been shaken. We can’t manufacture our own high-value goods without many essential parts coming from China. Container ships coming in from China are coming back only 25% full.”

“…A worldwide pandemic is a virtual certainty.  I am writing this article on Sunday afternoon. It will be interesting to see if the U.S. stock market gets hammered on Monday.

Unfortunately, the stock market lost more than 1,000 points on Monday, and it has been getting hammered ever since.

You guys are my buddies, and I am trying to warn you.  The consequences of this virus are far, far greater than the precious lives that the world will lose.  Small business owners in China have been traumatized.  They are NOT going to be borrowing more money from their banks.

Grasp the concept that the multiplier effect, in a world of fractional banking, can work in reverse at the rate of 20:1.  If a Chinese bank takes in a $1,000 monthly loan payment, and it does not immediately recycle that payment into a new loan, a whopping $20,000 gets sucked out of the Chinese money supply.

Now get your mind around the shocking reality that Chinese banks rake in on the order of US$4 billion per month in loan payments.  If these banks have no willing borrowers to whom to lend, the unfathomable sum of US$1 trillion will disappear every year from the Chinese money supply.

Money is going to be destroyed in China like it is being sucked into a black hole.  A tidal wave of deflation is likely to sweep over the world.  Your $1 million home might be worth just $550,000 in 20 months, even if the authorities can mass-produce a vaccine before the end of the year.

Borrowers have been traumatized, and traumatized borrowers seldom borrow.  The government cannot force companies and people to borrow, so the world’s money supply is headed down a giant drain.  You will see deflation everywhere because no one will have any money.

Think ‘ole George is crazy?  Think back to the depths of the Great Recession, when Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke injected a whopping $4 trillion into the U.S. money supply.  (Remember all of that talk about the Fed’s big balance sheet?) Why didn’t we have runaway hyperinflation?  Because the Fed was merely replacing the $4 trillion worth of money that was destroyed when banks stopped lending and borrowers stopped borrowing during the Great Recession.

I sold all of my stocks and invested in a short fund eight days ago.  As my golf buddies would say, when I occasionally sink a long putt, “Even a blind squirrel finds a nut on occasion.”  Haha!  

Or maybe I am one of a small handful of folks who understand that the multiplier effect can work in reverse.  I remember reading a wonderful economics book, by James Dale Davidson, entitled The Great Reckoning, in the mid-1990’s.  In about the middle of the book, in the middle of some chapter, he briefly mentioned, “that under some circumstances, the multiplier effect can actually work in reverse.”  I remember the blood suddenly rushing to my head, and tiny pins and needles suddenly sweeping all over my body.  “Oh, my God!”

So in 2007, a year before the Great Recession, I wrote the financial novel, The Reverse Multiplier Effect, When Crushing Deflation Destroys America.  At the time, the concept of deflation was unfathomable, even to most investment advisors.  My book prescient.  During the Great Recession, trillions of dollars were destroyed, as banks took in loan payments and did not recycle them.  Only the heroism and determination of Helicopter Ben Bernanke and his injection of $4 trillion saved this country.

Deflation is coming.

Article Provided By  By George Blackburne

Business Lending Companies An Overview Of The SBA, Online Lenders, And Other Options

There are funding solutions for all types of businesses, although the more established businesses in good financial standing have the most options. Business lending companies vary from SBA-associated organizations to “angel investors”. The most common types of lenders are obviously traditional banks, but that might not be the right option for you.

If your company is just kicking off, you’ll need to look into start-up loans as well as crowdsurfing solutions (if you are able to come up with a good viral campaign). There are also internet-based lenders that are always looking for new businesses with good, innovative ideas.

SBA loans aren’t for everybody, but you might want to consider them if you think you’ll be able to qualify. It’s not true that the government gives them away as start-up loans. It is true, however, that they have different credit underwriting terms, standards, and several other factors that set them apart from traditional business loans.

Keep in mind that the Small Business Administration does not actually give out money itself- it has a menu of offerings through the firms it partners with. Whether you are looking for funds to help you get started with a small business, to recover from disaster, or for expansion purposes, there might be an option for you through the SBA.

Business Lending Companies Online

There are businesses who would prefer to go through the online funding offers – especially those that aren’t as strict with their requirements. For instance, most lenders will check your personal and business credit history to evaluate your amount of lending risk. If you don’t have a good, strong credit history, you’ll have to start cleaning up your debts and getting credit repair services to help you improve your score as quickly as possible.

No matter which business lending companies you are considering, you’ll need to have a solid business plan. This plan should include detailed short-term and loan-term goals. If you have a financial advisor or certified public accountant, have them to review the plan to let you know if it is financially feasible and if everything looks good.

Consider your cash-flow cycle and expenses as well. The cash-flow cycle includes payments and the flow of cash – both in and out. The expenses obviously refer to the amount of money you need currently and will need in the future in order to meet your financial goals.

Regardless of what kind of business you have and what kind of funding you are after, don’t overlook AnalytIQ Group Corp. AnalytIQ offers equipment financing, working capital, small business loans, and more. You can easily get a free quote and (possibly) a quick approval.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/George_Botwin/1425000

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10339924

CRE Collateralized Loan Obligation? What is It? Why Should You Care?

A CLE CLO stands for a commercial real estate Collateralized Loan Obligation, and it is a security that is backed by a pool of commercial loans.  The individual borrowers make their payments to the issuer – the company that made and pooled the loans – and then the issuer makes payments to the investors who invested in the bonds backed by the CLO.

A typical commercial al real estate CLO (“CLE CLO”) lasts somewhere between two to four years.  In order to create a CLO, the issuer – also known as the collateral manager – begins by securing a warehouse line to acquire the commercial loans.  Once this warehouse line has been secured and the new commercial loans have been made, the collateral manager begins issuing the CLO securities to investors.  The proceeds from the issuance of these securities (CLO bonds) are then used to pay off the warehouse line, and the excess proceeds are used to purchase additional loan assets.

This brings up an interesting point.  Whenever an issuer (think of the issuer here as the lender) securitizes the loans, the issuer sells the bonds for more money than the amount of the loans.  The issuer earns a premium.  The issuer might make $300 million in loans and sell them off for $320,000.  This extra $20 million (premium) is the issuer’s whole incentive for securitizing the deal.

CLOs are separated into several tranches, which are separate slices of the pool of loans. They are differentiated by risk based on the priority of its claim on the payouts and the exposure to risk of loss from the loan pool.  The investors who invest in the lowest yielding tranche get paid first.  If there is any money left over, the second lowest yielding tranche gets paid, and so on.  Given the varying levels of risk, each tranche is typically assigned a different credit risk rating.

CLOs can be actively managed or static.  Managed CLOs allow the collateral manager to buy and sell individual loans for the collateral pool of the CLO to increase the gains of the security.  Static CLOs, on the other hand, invest in a pool of loans without any reinvestments once those loans mature, and typically feature a shorter term than actively managed CLOs.

CRE CLOs are primarily made up of bridge loans on properties that are in a transitional phase, such as a renovation, expansion or repositioning.   This differs from other common financing options like real estate mortgage investment conduits (REMIC), which pool mortgages together in order to issue mortgage-backed securities.   REMICs are significantly more restrictive, in that renovations or any changes to the properties affecting value may not be permitted.

Additionally, since CRE CLOs can be static or managed, collateral managers can change the collateral of the CLO throughout its reinvestment period.  REMICs, on the other hand, do not allow changes to the pool of loans throughout its entire lifetime.  This is due to the federally tax-exempt nature of REMICs, which can be lost if significant changes are made to the collateral.  CRE CLOs have proven to be a flexible option for borrowers, lenders and investors alike.

Did you know that if you have as conduit first mortgage that you are not allowed to improve the value of the collateral?  Suppose you own a shopping center, with a 20-acre vacant parcel behind it.  If you add 120 self-storage units onto that vacant land, thereby increasing the income generated by the property by $10,000 every month, that the conduit lender will likely foreclose on you!  It’s an IRS requirement.

In recent years, the issuance of commercial real estate (CRE) collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) has slowly increased.  After a record year in 2018, issuance was over 30% higher in 2019, signaling that the growth continues to accelerate.  The CLOs that have emerged after the financial crisis of 2008 have significantly different collateral, primarily comprised of transitional, first lien secured mortgages rather than the mezzanine and discounted debt that was seen prior to the crisis.

Prior to the financial crisis, CRE CLOs, previously known as collateralized debt obligations (CDOs), were structurally much different. Issuers typically did not have much risk at play in terms of equity in the security, and they were primarily used as a way to take advantage of arbitrage opportunities.  Many times, CDOs would be packaged with discounted subordinate bonds from commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), thus taking highly leveraged, non-investment grade securities and repackaging them into highly rated CDOs.  There was very little exposure to transitional, first lien collateral.  These issues, among others, caused a high level of fear of these products within the market.  (This is a polite way of ways they were darned risky speculations.)

Following the financial crisis of 2008, many changes have been made to CRE CLOs.  As previously mentioned, the CLOs that have recently emerged have different collateral.  They are now primarily comprised of transitional, first lien secured mortgages instead of mezzanine and discounted debt.

Many times, issuers of CRE CLOs are the lenders who raise money by issuing the CLO bonds and offering equity to outside investors for the issuance of loans to borrowers seeking transitional loans.  Recent issuers typically hold a notable amount of equity in the CLO, opening themselves to losses.  In plain English, modern issuers of CRE CLO’s have a ton of skin in the game.

Before the crisis, many issuers had little to no loss exposure, creating situations of moral hazard in the pursuit of arbitrage.  Additionally, the terms of CLOs prior to the crisis were typically around ten years, while current terms are around three years on average.

CLOs offer several improvements to other CMBSs, including interest coverage tests and over-collateralization tests, so that the successive structure of the payments waterfall can be adjusted to divert the payments away from subordinate tranches and into senior tranches to avoid losses.

In late 2019, before COVID, highly-rated tranches of CRE CLOs with a two-year maturity were earning approximately 110 basis points over benchmark rates, while CMBS’s were earning just 50 basis points over benchmark rates.  The shorter duration and the floating rate nature of CRE CLOs is attractive to investors in a rising rate environment relative to CMBSs, that were previously enjoying higher demand.   Additionally, CRE CLO collateral managers are often involved in the loan origination and servicing processes for the loans making up the collateral, which can have a strong impact on loan performance and potential workouts.  In plain English, the same guys who brought the elephants to the parade have to clean up after them.

Pre-COVID Outlook For CRE CLOs

Before the coronavirus crisis, the demand for CRE CLOs was increasing.  This rising liquidity was allowing lenders to borrow at cheaper rates, which in turn lowered the rate at which borrowers could obtain loans.  Bloomberg indicated that there were 20 active issuers of CLOs as of July 2019.  In 2019, CLO issuance reached $19.2 billion, a 40% year-over-year growth since 2016.  As new issuers entered the market, borrowing options were growing as more issuers competed on offerings.

Post-COVID Update:

Collateralized Loan Obligations in the commercial real estate market are a major underpinning of the bridge loan sector.  It has been virtually shut down since early March as no bond buyers were active.

Activity has started up again in the past few weeks, as some pools of selected pre-COVID originated loans are being successfully securitized.  Spreads are wider, for example: pre-COVID pricing for AAAs was approximately LIBOR + 100.  Those bonds are now selling at about L + 235 with oversubscribed buyer interest.

Look for bridge loan programs offering 80% LTC loans at L + 275-300 pre-COVID to now offer 60-70% LTC at L + 450 – 550.  And the now familiar stratification of product types will be in effect: multifamily and industrial in favor, with office needing a good story, retail very selective and no hotels.

Guys, I would love to be able to say that I was smart enough to write this article; but in truth, I stole much of this great material from a wonderful article on the subject by an obviously competent law firm.  I have tried to translate some of the more complex language into baby language, which is the only language I understand.

The Post-COVD Update was stolen from my wonderful friends at George Smith Partners, who issue a wonderful, free newsletter, FinFacts, to which every aspiring commercial loan broker should subscribe.

By George Blackburne

Spotting An Advance Fee Commercial Loan Scammer

Every year hundreds of commercial property owners get conned out of millions of dollars by advance fee scammers.

An advance fee scammer is a criminal pretending to be a commercial mortgage lender.  He will issue a very fancy-looking conditional commitment letter, which will call for some huge “good faith deposit” or “third-party report fee”.  Once he gets the deposit, he will disappear with your dough and stop returning phone  calls.

These advance fees could be anywhere from $20,000 to $100,000.  We are talking about serious money.

How can desperate commercial property owners be so foolish?  Forty-five years ago, I worked at an old-time finance company, where we made personal loans, secured by cars, vacuums, and sticks – the personal property (furniture, TV’s, etc.) – of working people.

My old branch manger, my very first boss, taught me a very important lesson about con men. “If you are in a room with one-hundred people, pick out the one person who you are absolutely sure is not the con man.  He will be your con man.”  Con men are very, very good.

Okay, but how can a commercial property owner or commercial loan broker spot one of these advance fee scammers?  Here are some techniques:

  • Are the rates that this commercial lender is offering very low or very high.  If your deal has been turned down by three of four other lenders, and yet this “commercial lender” is offering you a very low rate and low points, there is a superb chance that this “commercial lender” is just a con man.
  • On the other hand, if the interest rate and the points are brutally high, this commercial lender might legitimately want to make a commercial loan to you.  He’ll fund your loan, when nobody else will, because he is desperate for borrowers.

 

  • Take a close look at this lender’s website.  The first thing to look for is an actual physical address, as opposed to just a P.O. Box.  In order for a process server to serve a complaint at the start of a lawsuit, he needs to able to find the defendant.  If the con man refuses to provide a street address, it is because he is ducking other process servers.  If he has no street address, you should run for the exit!
  • Look up the lender’s address on Google Maps.  You should see a picture of the property.  Is it some gleaming office tower or just a little rental house?  If a commercial lender has the dough to make multi-million-dollar commercial loans, he should have a pretty nice-looking office.
  • Does a receptionist or the loan officer answer the phone every time you call, or are you always forced to leave your name and number for the loan officer to call back?  Any legitimate commercial lender, who has the dough to lend millions of dollars, can afford a receptionist.  If you have to leave a phone number each time, it suggests the con man may be screening his calls from prior, pissed-off marks.

 

  • Please grasp this critically important concept.  In order to make multi-million-dollar commercial loans, the lender needs dough to lend.  So many people forget this!  A life company gets its dough to lend from life insurance premiums.  Commercial banks, credit unions, and Federal savings banks (former S&L’s) get their dough to lend from their depositors.  Real estate investment trusts (REIT’s) get their initial capital to lend by selling shares in their corporation.  (They then borrow from banks to achieve additional leverage.)  Hard money mortgage funds have depositors (although these hard money funds are rapidly going the way of the dinosaur.)  Blackburne & Sons, my own hard money shop, gets it dough by assembling a different syndicate of wealthy private investors on every loan.  There are always savvy investors willing to make prudent loans during a crash, as long as the rate is a little higher and the LTV is a little lower.
  • So ask your con man straight out.  Where do you get your dough to lend?  In most cases, the con man will mumble something about “various investors” or the fact that he doesn’t reveal his sources.  Uh, huh… sure.  Miserable butt-wipe!  Heavens I love owning my own company.  I get to say stuff like that.  Haha!  That expression, “various investors”, is a red flag for either a con man or a commercial loan broker masquerading as a commercial lender.
  • Looking at the lender’s website again, can you find an Investor tab?  I find that very, very reassuring.  REIT’s and mortgage funds have shareholders and depositors who provide the capital to lend.  Is entry into the Investor tab even protected by a password requirement?  If so, I am feeling even warmer and happier.

 

  • Is there a Loan Servicing Department tab.  Such a tab really, really warms the cockles of my heart.  It suggests that this commercial lender actually services its own loans.  That is a huge, positive indicator.
  • Is there a News Releases or Press Releases tab on his web site.  Do the press releases look legitimate?  If so, I am feeling better.
  • Is there a tombstone section on his web site?  Many legitimate commercial lenders have such closing announcements; but it’s always possible that a really smart con man might have created such a fake section to seduce you.

 

  • Life companies are the only class of commercial lenders who have correspondents to originate and service their loans in certain areas, like Chicago or Los Angeles.  Every other legitimate class of commercial lenders services its own loans.
  •  So ask your con man, do you service your own loans?  If not, run for the exit.
  • How narrow is your commercial lender’s lending niche or area?  If he tells you that he only makes commercial loans, between $1 million and $7 million, on convenience stores in the Northeast, that sounds very legitimate.
  • On the other hand, if he makes loans from $100,000 to $50 million, on any kind of commercial property, located anywhere in the country, at best he is just a commercial loan broker masquerading as a lender.  If the deposit is huge, he is surely a con man.
  • Google the company name of the commercial lender, along with that of the loan officer, the company president, and the company owner.  Lots of juicy stuff will often show up about con men.
  • But here’s the thing:  If you looked up this article on the internet, you already know the answer.  Your commercial lender is too good to be true.  He is too sweet of a talker.  Your subconscious mind has picked up some clues.  Trust such warning signs!  Your commercial lender is a con man – an advance fee scammer.

 

 

 

 

 

The Operating Expense Ratio And Commercial Loans

In negotiating an income property loan, the size of loan the borrower can obtain is usually more of a sticking point than the rate or the loan fee.

Since income property loan sizes are generally limited by the debt service coverage ratio (i.e., cash flow), rather than the loan-to-value ratio, the operating expense figure that the lender uses in his calculations is critical.

Suppose a property has the following Pro Forma Operating Statement:

ABC APARTMENTS
1234 MAIN STREET
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA

PRO FORMA OPERATING STATEMENT

Income:

Gross Scheduled Rents $100,000
Less 5% Vacancy & Collection Loss 5,000

Effective Gross Income: $ 95,000

Less Operating Expenses:

Real Estate Taxes $12,500
Insurance 2,550
Repairs & Maintenance 5,890
Utilities 7,345
Management 4,865
Fees & Licenses 987
Painting & Decorating 3,986
Reserves for Replacement 1,900

Total Operating Expenses: 40,023

Net Operating Income: $54,977

Then we hereby define the Operating Expense Ratio as follows:

Operating Expense Ratio = Total Operating Expenses divided by
the Effective Gross Income

Using our example above:

Operating Expense Ratio = $40,023 ÷ $95,000 = 42.1%

Appraisers and professional property managers often keep track of the operating expenses of the buildings they appraise or manage, and they publish their results. For example, the National Association of Realtors publishes the results of their surveys annually in several hardbound books including Income and Expenses Analysis-Apartments and Income and Expense Analysis Office Buildings.

Lenders have access to these type of publications, and they therefore are reluctant to accept at face value operating expenses supplied by the borrower when their operating expense ratios are less than those experienced by similar buildings in the area.

While it might be possible to operate an apartment building IN THE SHORT RUN at an operating expense ratio of less than 30 to 45%, in the LONG RUN, the end result will be a seriously deteriorated building.

It might be possible to get a lender to accept an operating expense ratio as low as 28% on a very new building, if it had fewer than 10 or so units, and if it had no pool and very little landscaping, and if you had authentic source documents to back up your claim. But in general, lenders will very seldom accept an operating expense ratio on apartments of less than 30 to 35%, and have been often known to use 40 to 45%.

The following are factors that will influence the lender to use a higher operating expense ratio:

  1. Lack of individual metering of utilities
  2. Swimming pool
  3. Elevator
  4. Extensive landscaping
  5. Low income area and/or tenants
  6. Presence of families with children

The larger the project, the larger the required operating ratio.  Large projects usually entail extensive recreational facilities and pools, and they often require full-time on-site management teams.

Operating expense ratios are not as useful in evaluating most commercial or industrial properties.  The reason why is because the space can be rented on a triple net basis, a net basis, or a full service basis.

Certain commercial properties, however, have surprisingly predictable operating expense ratios”

  1. Self storage facilities:  25%
  2. Mobile home parks:  25%
  3. Non-flagged hotels and motels:  50%
  4. Flagged hotels:  60%
  5. Residential care homes:  85%  (food, nurses, etc.)

    If you are a commercial loan broker, and you are not calling every commercial real estate loan officer, working for a bank or credit union, within 20 miles of your office, you are missing out one of the biggest feasts in commercial real estate finance (“CREF”) in forty years.  Please grasp this concept:

    Almost every bank in the country is turning down almost every commercial loan request that it receives.  Helloooo?  What are they doing with these turndowns?

    These bankers would welcome anyone who could help them service their high-net-worth clients, especially since you will be taking the deals to a private money lender, like Blackburne & Sons, as opposed to a competing bank, which might steal their client.

By George Blackburne

Angel Investors, Venture Capital Firms, And Small Business Investment Companies

Large scale businesses may be better of working with a private equity firm. Debt capital has principal payments that are required on a monthly basis, whereas equity financing does not have these strings attached. In some instances, you may be able to sell preferred shares of your company is going to give up a controlling interest in your business. Venture capital is only reserved for large scale businesses. Individual investors are typically risk-averse people. Every business has specific risks that they need to deal with.

You will be in a much better position to negotiate an appropriate equity position if you are already in operation. Private funding sources typically invest $250,000 to $1,000,000 in each project. Angel investors may provide both equity and debt financing. If you are having issues developing your business plan then you may want to work with a certified public account. You generally cannot advertise your company to the general public. The SBA has equity programs available for you.

More and more women are becoming angel investors, and if you are a female owned business then it may be in your best interest to work with this type of investor. Equity investments do have their advantages as it relates to having access to someone who is extremely knowledgeable about your business.

Angel investors do not usually provide loans, and they only do so under extreme circumstances. It should also be noted that private funding sources want to work with businesses that are within one hour of their home. Within a business plan that you write, you should always take a five year view of the business, and how you can provide an appropriate return to any investor that you work with.

Proforma financials are imperative to showcase to your angel investors. The return on assets is an extremely important part of a well written business plan. Your CPA should calculate your proforma financials as it relates to putting together documentation for private capital sources. If you are seeking alternatives to angel investors then you may want to look to work with the SBIC. There are many drawbacks to working with SBIC is when you are seeking investment capital for your business. Regular payments to an investment can be a yes or no factor when you are working with this type of professional investment firm.

In conclusion, you should be well aware of all of the issues that come from working with an angel investor, private funding source, venture capital firm, or private equity firm. Your attorney or CPA can assist you in making an appropriate determination in regards to these matters.

Matthew Deutsch is a prominent business plan writer. His work has been included in nine books pertaining to this subject. Additionally, Mr. Deutsch has written extensively on subjects regarding entrepreneurship, small business lending, angel investing, and other related topics.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Matthew_Deutsch/636374

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Tips On How To Find Venture Capital Investors

One of the most important concerns of people who are planning to start a business is to how are they going to fund their business. Of course, a great business plan would not work without the funds to run the idea. Some people borrow money from rich friends, some use crowd-funding technique while other loan from the bank or better yet seek equity funding from a venture capital firm.

Most business owners opt for equity funding from a venture capital firm. However, before you seek approval from venture capital investors, you should make sure that you prioritize their welfare. You should understand that once they invest in the company, they would be part owners and not just mere creditors. Therefore, they need to see long-term revenue with your company.

Here are other tips on how to find venture capital investors:

1. Make sure to come up with concrete business plan presentation – most investors look for businesses with great plans that they can support. You could not expect investors to come in without compelling ideas for your business. Therefore, before seeking for VC’s, you should first take care of the business plan that you will present to them.

2. Show the investors the return of investment that they could expect – most investors are looking to three to five times return of investments. You should make sure to present to them clearly, how much they should expect in return for investing in your company. Investors will be more confident to spend money on your company when they know that they are dealing with a businessman who knows exactly what he is doing.

3. You should let them know that you know what they want – VC’s are surely expecting return on their investments from five to seven years time. With this, you need to come up with exit strategy at the beginning of the discussion. You should be ready to explain to them where your company is heading as most investors look forward to another investment opportunity. You should be ready to sell, merge or go public with your company to satisfy your investors.

Following the tips mentioned in this article will help you find venture capital investors that you need for your business. However, you should make sure first, that this funding option is the one best suited for your business. If you find yourself not agreeing on some terms like having these investors as shareholders then you should look for other options to fund your business.

It is also very important to assess your potential investors. You should make sure that they have long-term record of success and that they are reliable. It is also very important that you are comfortable with their personalities and characteristics as you will be partners in the company. You will be spending many years together so you should make sure that you have great working relationship. To succeed in your business, you need not only fund or money but also peace and harmony among workers and owners.

Mabel Miles likes to share information on business plan template and nonprofit business plan as well as a host of additional services.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Mabel_Miles/887749

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Essential Preparations Before Seeking Venture Capital

The line in the sand has been drawn. You’ve vowed to never step foot back into that office alive again after working the same dead end job for ten years. It’s time to start that business you know for sure will succeed. All you need is to dedicate those sixty hours a week to your own bottom line. There’s only one roadblock. You have no money and the bank has already denied you for several other loans. All is not lost. Seek the help you need from those venture capital firms or angel investors you have heard so much about at meetings.

A venture capital firm is a collection of investors looking to throw their money into the next great idea that will grant them generous returns. With their money, your restaurant, retail store, or latest invention transforms from a day dream into a reality. Several options of repayment, ownership, and terms are discussed between you and your angel investors on how you will reward them for believing in your idea. First, you have to win their confidence.

The most important part of your business is your business plan. Before you approach a venture capital firm, do your homework. Transfer it from your brain to paper. Your goal is to create a business plan that will motivate investors to write your company name on that blank check. Also, in writing your business plan, you will discover how much you know or don’t know about the adventure in which you will embark. Or you may find the concept is not as fabulous as you imagined.

Start with research. Intense study uncovers little known nuances about your new chosen industry and fills holes in your concept. Identify your competitors. Dissect their company products, services and policies. What don’t they offer that you can implement into your business concept? Find a niche in the market that will set you apart from others who may be seeking the same clients, customers and investors you want to attract.

Next, examine the industry trends. Analyze the data. Find out when sales and profits are at their lowest. Are you merging into the gift basket business that suffers during the summer, after mother’s day? Brainstorm ideas you can include in your plan to overcome those industry wide obstacles.

Use your data to make logical predictions of future industry trends. Can you predict a disaster like the “dotcom” failure at the end of the twentieth century? Your potential investor friends will want to be shown the money. Show it to them in standard financial and cash flow statements.

Now, come back to the beginning and write a two-page summary of the company. This will serve as the introduction to your business plan. Some experts call it the Executive Summary. I call it the sales pitch.

Your summary will be the first section investors read about your business. If it doesn’t sell them, then it becomes the last thing they read about your business.

Take your time, do your research and make sure your business plan sells, sells, sells!

Yasheve Miller is web copywriter and internet marketing specialist whose primary focus us to generate leads and convert prospective customers into sales for his client. [http://www.yasheve.com] makes small businesses competitive with branding and marketing campaigns tailored to each individual business.

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Confessions Of A Venture Capitalist

Venture Capitalists are often called Vulture Capitalists and until you read the book: Confessions of a Venture Capitalist, Inside the high-stakes world of start-up financing by Ruthann Quindlen; well you probably will never understand how they got that slanderous title. In the book Ruthann explains what it was like working in Silicon Valley in a Venture Capital Company prior to the dot com bubble burst.

If you are considering getting venture capital for your startup company then perhaps you should read this book. After all would you like to sit down for a cup of coffee with a venture capitalist who has been in the industry for years before you go in pitch your business plan? In the book they describe how venture capitalists will work with many companies at one time expecting that one or two may make it to a huge payout. The rest they expect to either break even or lose money and they will eventually dump.

The world of venture capitalists is about return on investment in a very short time period and they are not looking for just making a profit they are looking to make 10 times or more the money they invested. There are many venture capital firms and often they bet on the jockey and not just the horse. A business idea or concept may be very good, but if the entrepreneur is unworkable the venture capitalists will have to pass. Please consider all this in 2006.

“Lance Winslow” – Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

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Venture Capitalists; Finding The Right One

So often we find that entrepreneurs are looking for venture capitalists to fund their next adventure. Unfortunately many entrepreneurs do not understand that venture capitalists are pretty industry-specific at least the very good ones are. Why is this you ask?

Well, because even venture capitalists have limited amounts of resources and hundreds and hundreds of deals that people want them to do. They cannot use them all and they want to make sure they get the most bang for their buck; that includes the quickest return on investment for the least amount of capital outlay in the shortest amount of time.

You can see why a venture capitalist’s job is not easy and why it is so important to find the right one that is industry-specific to you or entrepreneurial business plan. There’s really no need to contact venture capitalists, which do not specialize in your industry other than perhaps to ask them for a referral to call, because they are busy and not interested. They truly aren’t and it is nothing personal is simply business.

LOGON NOW!

There’s just not enough time in the day to read all these great business plans by all these entrepreneurs. In fact in my day I have read a number of business plans too many to list over several years and I imagine a venture capital is probably reads that many business plans in a single week. Don’t waste their time and do not waste your time.

You need to make sure they’re industry-specific to your industry ask them if they are interested by phone and if so send them an executive summary, not the entire business plan as it will just become scratch paper or end up at around file.

“Lance Winslow” – Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

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