What If My Income Property Goes Into Foreclosure?

Rental property investing is a great way of making your money work for you. If you are renting out an income property and paid a fair price for it, then in the long run you are almost guaranteed to realize an excellent return on your investment. However, if you’ve overpaid for a property, you may find that the rent you receive from the tenants is not enough to cover the expenses of the property, like the mortgage. In this scenario, foreclosure is a real possibility.Impact of Investment Property ForeclosureObviously no one wants to become a foreclosure case, but in certain situations it is unavoidable. Unfortunately, being foreclosed on can be financially devastating. First and foremost, you will lose your investment and get nothing in return. Not only will this impact your livelihood, but you will have also lost any money you put into the property, such as the down payment. Also, there is an opportunity cost; that is, you no longer have the money to invest in a property that will actually bring you a return.There is also the damage to your credit history. Any rental property investor absolutely must have access to credit and loan facilities to acquire and maintain their properties. Simply put, having good credit is crucial to the survival of your business. Foreclosure can mean that you will not be able to access loans for the next seven years, as it takes this long for a credit blemish to wipe clean.The bottom line is that all of these things together will create a ripple effect that will permeate your entire financial situation. It is therefore important that you look for other ways to stem off foreclosure on your investment property.Avoiding Investment Property ForeclosureThe best option is to try and sell the property and essentially cut your losses. You will need the help of a realtor with experience in such situations to assist you in selling the property. You may be forced to put up the property for short sale, which means that it will be sold for an amount that is less than what you owe on the mortgage. This is something that you will have to negotiate with the mortgage company so that you know what your target price should be even though you are selling on a short sale. This will help you set your expectations accordingly.Another option when you are facing foreclosure on your investment property is to seek help from the government. There are several new programs sponsored by the government that are designed to help people facing foreclosure, no matter whether the foreclosed property is a residence or an investment. Do a quick Google search and you will find everything you need to know about these programs on page one of the search results.Another option is to approach your mortgage lender and request a refinance. Many times you will be able to get a loan modification, which will reduce your monthly payments. This is especially true considering the original loan probably had a relatively high interest rate by virtue of the fact that it was used to finance an investment property.ConclusionForeclosure on an investment property can have far reaching financial effects that are usually difficult to recover from. So do what you can to save yourself from this unpleasant result. If you can dump the property and cut your losses, participate in a government program, or refinance with your lender, your credit score will be spared and you will be able to recover and start investing again sooner.

Corporate Event Entertainment Pricing and Choices

There are a lot of choices to make when it comes to corporate event entertainment. Not only do you have to decide on when and where to have the event, but then you have to decide on what type of entertainment and determine who it is in your crowd that you are trying to entertain. Of course if it is a corporate event you are looking for clean entertainment but is this a family event or are you just hosting the employees of your corporation. Either way a significant amount is riding on this event because a flaw would make the corporation look bad.Plan to spend a little more on your corporate event entertainment then you would say for a wedding or for a friendly get together. As unfortunate as it may sound, the clean entertainment costs a little more. To get a corporate entertainer you need someone with at least 30 minutes to an hour full of material that he can keep the crowd entertained and not offend someone. Think about how hard this would be in a diverse crowd.You do not necessarily have to go with a comedian, which is sometimes the first type of entertainment that corporate events sponsor. There are other mediums such as jugglers and magicians but even they border on the humorous if they are any good. With the combined talent of juggling and comedy you may be on the verge of a more expensive bill.Then if you have decided that this corporate event entertainment not only needs to entertain the adults in the room but also you have made it a family event, then there is yet another dimension to the entertainment and possibly the price tag. It would be great to sponsor an event where the entire corporate family as well as the family at home. At this point you may be adding more then a magician or a comedian but someone with his own bag of tricks, so to speak, with a lot of accoutrements to entertain the crowd.Finding just the right corporate event entertainment can be a bit tricky but set up your guidelines before you approach an outside business to handle the booking of this engagement. Most professional entertainers are booked through an agency and they will have the expertise to guide you in the right area after you have decided on what type of entertaining you plan to do.

All You Need to Know About Self Invested Personal Pension (SIPP)

What is a SIPP?A SIPP is a Self-Invested Personal Pension which accumulates a pension fund in a tax efficient way and offers greater control and flexibility in terms of how investments are made and when benefits are taken.Approved by the UK Government, a SIPP allows individuals to make their own investment decisions from the full range of investments approved by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). The fact that an investor can choose from a number of different investments, unlike other traditional pension schemes, means that SIPPs offer greater levels of control over where money is invested. A self-invested personal pension provides the policyholder with greater choice and flexibility as to the range of investments made and how those investments are managed as well as the administration of assets and the ways in which retirement benefits are taken.Therefore a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) is essentially a pension wrapper that is capable of holding investments and providing the investor with the same tax advantages as other personal pension plans. The HMRC rules allow for a greater range of investments to be held than Personal Pension Plans, notably equities and property. Rules for contributions, benefit withdrawal etc are the same as for other personal pension schemes.Put simply; a SIPP is a specialised form of personal pension where the individual investor is able to choose where and how their pension fund is invested, rather than entrusting their money to one insurance company or fund manager.How does a SIPP work?A SIPP allows for regular and lump sum cash payments to be made, and also enables the investor to transfer other pension arrangements into the scheme. Most SIPP providers do not specify a minimum investment but SIPP are generally utilised with most success by those investors who have a substantial existing pension fund to transfer or those who will be aiming to invest lump sums of several thousand pounds a year.In a full SIPP there is a wide range of investment options available to the investor such as;• Stocks and shares• Government securities• Mutual Investment funds• Investment trusts• Insurance company fundsThis level of choice can be expensive to offer and many people find that they do not need it, so lower-cost SIPPs have been developed that focus on investment funds only. These lower cost SIPPs usually offer significantly more fund options than would be offered in a traditional pension scheme.SIPPs can be held alongside other personal and occupational schemes further increasing the options open to investors.What are the main benefits of a SIPP?A Self-Invested Personal Pension offers a far larger range of investment options than other pension schemes and the subsequent control over these investments retained by the investor is far greater.For example, investors can transfer in funds from other-pensions, enabling the consolidation and unification of retirement savings. This ensures that it is easier for an individual investor to manage their investment portfolio and also means that conducting regular investment reviews is far simpler. Combined with the fact that some SIPP plans allow 25% of any pensions saving to be taken as a tax-free lump sum means that a SIPP can give greater control over the initial level of income derived and also income flexibility during retirement.Some SIPP providers offer differing levels of fund management as an option, so an expert strategy can be tailored for the individual requirements and objectives of the investor if that investor does not wish to oversee the more complex aspects of SIPP management.SIPP – Key Features:Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPP) are designed to offer investors greater levels of choice and control over their pension scheme.
A SIPP is essentially a pension wrapper that is capable of holding investments and providing the investor with the same tax advantages.
SIPPs can be held alongside other personal and occupational schemes.
Some SIPP providers offer differing levels of fund management as an option.The value of tax savings and your eligibility to invest in a SIPP depends on individual circumstances and all tax rules may change. The value of investments can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you invest.

Taking the Stress Out of Holiday Travel With Children

It’s never an easy thing when you have to travel during the holiday season. Consider traffic jams, winter weather, delayed flights, and crowded airports. With new airline procedures and rules, fuel costs and the multitude of cutbacks found in airline service, you might even find things worse than ever this year. The addition of children to this equation could potentially make you reconsider your plan to leave home at all.Before you go ahead and cancel your plans, take a look at some of these stress reducing tips which can help make your travel plans that much easier to contend with.1) Make it a family affair. There’s no need to wait until all of the planning has been made to get your kids excited about your holiday journey. By involving everyone in the planning process, your children will more likely be more invested in the trip. You can easily give them their own tasks to accomplish: Have your oldest child help you search for the movie theater closest to Uncle Jake’s house, or have your toddler pick out the toys or books she wants to bring for the car ride to Grandma’s house.2) When it comes to packing your bags, keep things organized by separating clothing in clear zipper bags you can label with names and contents. It’s much easier to locate things when they are labeled “Dad’s underwear” or “Sally’s pajamas”. You can reuse the bags to hold dirty laundry on the way home. Remember to pack an extra duffle bag in your luggage if you intend to be bringing additional items back with you.3) Let the family know exactly what you’ve planned. Kids, especially younger ones, will feel more secure about your travels if they know what to expect. Some potentially scary situations for little ones could include security check points at the airport. If your children are made aware of how these situations are performed, they will feel a little less anxious about them. You may want to explain that yes, Teddy the Bear will have his picture taken on the moving belt, but he can be picked up again on the other side.4) You may want to consider scheduling a couple of extra days to your vacation time. It’s always prudent to have some wiggle room in case of unforeseen circumstances, such as weather, illness or other delays. This can also be helpful if your vacation time is focused on any of the major holidays. This step alone can save you both time and money if you don’t have to travel on peak days.5) Try and book non-stop flights to your destination when at all possible. This can eliminate lay-over hassles when you have children in tow. It’s much easier for a non-stop flight to avoid bad weather thousands of feet in the air than it is for them to land or take off in the same type of weather.While these tips might not seem to be earth-shattering things to do, you would be amazed at how much they can actually reduce the stress levels related to your travel experience. Just a little bit of extra planning and preparation can take care of many potential headaches, allowing you to enjoy your holiday as well.