September 2nd, 2010 | Posted in Economic Times
Don’t let falling market shares, bank bailouts, and a gloomy economy put a damper on your new business start-up. Instead, save money by steering clear of financially-draining investments, thinking outside the box when purchasing office equipment and supplies, and researching diligently.
1. Don’t plan (too far) ahead.
Procrastination can actually be helpful when it comes to starting up a business in tough economic times. When the flow of money slows, inventory piles up, and competition for your dollars becomes fierce. The time is now for shopping around for computer, office furniture, and other large line bargains.
2. Go to estate and garage sales.
Regrettably, lots of people need to get out from under their debt quickly as they’re having trouble paying their mortgages. You can save money while helping out those who need to liquidate items for cash by buying many things for your home office at estate and garage sales. Look for bookcases, filing cabinets, desks, lamps, paper cutters, staplers, paper, desk pads, and other home office items.
3. Be card smart.
With banks being bought up and changing hands, be aware of varying charges and transaction fees when you use ATM and credit cards. With banks in flux, now is the time to shop aggressively for the best deals in business checking, savings, and high-yield money market accounts. Look for the best business debit and credit card deals, too. Some companies are offering cards with no transaction fees.
See Bankrate.com for a comparison of cards and their fees for ATM withdrawals, credit card purchases and cash advances.
4. Organize an office swap meet.
This is a brand new concept that is sure to make starting up a business both fun and economical. During an office swap meet, people from different offices come together to trade their unwanted or surplus office items for items they need. It’s a fun atmosphere with lots to choose from, and whatever is left over can be donated to charity.
5. Two words: Free Gas!
Gas cards being offered by hotels as a booking bonus are all the rage. Look for this valuable bonus at chains such as Marriott, Sheraton and Best Western, as well as many independent hotels. Armed with a free gas card, you can easily travel to distant locations to purchase your home office supplies at big discount warehouses.
Check out GasBuddy.com for fuel bargains across the country.
6. Hire LegalZoom.com—not your own attorney.
Save time and money on forming your DBA, LLC, incorporating, or getting your EIN and trademark though LegalZoom.com. Created by top attorneys, LegalZoom helps you create reliable legal documents from your home or office. Simply answer a few questions online, and your documents will be prepared within 48 hours for about half the cost of hiring an attorney.
7. When considering a Merchant Account, consider Costco.
If you’re a home-business owner, you need a way to accept credit cards over the Internet. At Costco, you can take advantage of their great low rates and fees by setting up a merchant account to accept MasterCard or Visa through your Internet business, mail, phone, or retail. Plus, if you’re already a Costco Executive Member, your application fee and monthly statement fee will be waived.
8. Get a professional logo for $45.
Why pay hundreds of dollars for a logo design when 45DollarLogoDesign.com will do it for you for $45? This company will design a professional, customized logo for you if you have a pretty good idea of what you’d like it to look like. Turn around is fast. You’ll have your logo samples within 24 hours.
Don’t let falling market shares, bank bailouts, and a gloomy economy put a damper on your new business start-up. Instead, get creative. Look for ways to start up your business outside the traditional way of doing things. By utilizing these eight tips, you can start up your business in tough economic times and be well-positioned and ready to go when the economy improves.
September 1st, 2010 | Posted in Economic Stimulus
More than 130 million households will begin receiving economic stimulus payments beginning in May, and there is still a lot of confusion about them. People are not sure when they should receive their payments, the amount they can expect, or if they are even eligible. The information in this article should clarify things for the majority of you and, for those that still have questions, full details are available at the IRS website. The following link will take you directly to the page: Economic Stimulus Payments Information Center.
To Be Eligible:
• You must have a valid Social Security Number (SSN). If you are filing jointly, BOTH parties must have valid Social Security Numbers or neither will receive a payment. Neither party can use an Individual Taxpayer ID Number (ITIN) in place of an SSN. Individuals that become eligible after they file their taxes can file an amended tax return after April 14, 2008 and after 8-12 weeks can inquire about their payment.
• You must have a qualifying income of at least $3000. A qualifying income can be any combination of earned income and certain benefits from Social Security, Veterans Affairs, or Railroad Retirement. For anything other than earned income, you should check the IRS website at the link above for specific eligibility details. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) does not count.
• Your income cannot be too high. The specifics are too detailed to list here, but there is a link to a calculator below to estimate your refund.
• You must file a tax return for 2007. If you are eligible for a rebate but do not normally file taxes because your income is below the filing threshold, you will still need to file to receive a payment. If you are filing just for the purpose of receiving a payment, you can file free online with a simple form at the following link: Free File – Economic Stimulus Payment.
• You cannot be claimed as a dependant or be eligible to be claimed as a dependant for 2007.
• To receive money for your children, the child must be eligible under the Child Tax Credit and have a valid SSN.
How Much You Receive:
• Eligible individuals will receive between $300 and $600, and joint filers that are eligible will receive between $600 and $1200. You may receive $300 extra for each eligible child.
• If you have already filed your taxes for 2007, you will need a copy of your tax return and you can estimate the amount you can expect at the following link: Economic Stimulus Payment Calculator.
When Payment Will Be Sent:
• Beginning May 2, payments will begin to be issued. You will receive an electronic payment if you elected to receive your refund electronically when you filed your taxes. If you did not supply the information for direct deposit you will receive a paper check. The date your payment will be issued is determined by the last two digits of your SSN according to the charts below:
DIRECT DEPOSIT
Last 2 SSN digits 00 through 20, Issue Date May 2
Last 2 SSN digits 21 through 75, Issue Date May 9
Last 2 SSN digits 76 through 99, Issue Date May 16
PAPER CHECK
Last 2 SSN digits 00 through 09, Mail Date May 16
Last 2 SSN digits 10 through 18, Mail Date May 23
Last 2 SSN digits 19 through 25, Mail Date May 30
Last 2 SSN digits 26 through 38, Mail Date June 6
Last 2 SSN digits 39 through 51, Mail Date June 13
Last 2 SSN digits 52 through 63, Mail Date June 20
Last 2 SSN digits 64 through 75, Mail Date June 27
Last 2 SSN digits 76 through 87, Mail Date July 4
Last 2 SSN digits 88 through 99, Mail Date July 11
• If you file your tax return late, then you can expect a delay in receiving your rebate.
As mentioned before, there is a lot more information available at the IRS website. The information contained here is a summary of the more basic information provided by the IRS, and the data in the payment timetable is taken directly from their site.
August 31st, 2010 | Posted in Economic Development
Irving’s strong, local economy, low unemployment rate and healthy real estate market makes it particularly popular for business development and relocation, despite the poor state of the national economy.
The city leaders of Irving recognize the unique opportunity they have in this progressive, dynamic city, and have responded with an array of exciting development projects which will further help to expand this already-strong economy, provide additional jobs, keep real estate sales strong and expand the city’s tax base.
Irving Convention Center
Take for example the Irving Convention Center in Las Colinas, which is currently under construction. The Irving Convention Center, which is part of the Entertainment District Project, is set to open in fall 2010. Built upon a 40-acre tract of land in the Las Colinas Urban Center, as the first phase of a future, mixed-use entertainment complex, the Irving Convention Center will feature over 50,000 square feet of exhibit space, a 20,000 square-foot ballroom and over 20 breakout rooms, each featuring about 1,000 square feet of space.
The Irving Convention Center design, which is under the direction of the Irving Convention and Visitors Bureau, will be home to many, top-notch conventions, exhibitions and meetings, among other things.
Heritage Crossing
Another popular economic development project is Heritage Crossing, which involves the acquisition and development of downtown Irving property. Heritage Crossing, which has, to date, developed over $35 million dollars worth of downtown Irving property, will be a greater source of tax revenue for the city.
Thus far, more than 50 properties have been developed for Heritage Crossing, as well as five, expansive, apartment complexes. Four out of the five complexes are set to be demolished, as are a number of dilapidated family residences.
In addition to generating revenue for Irving’s tax base, Heritage Crossing will further reduce the crime rate in this area and boost property values.
Other projects for Heritage Crossing include a retail townhome project, which is valued at $16 million, and an apartment retail development project, which is valued at $22.4 million.
Water Street Development
The Water Street Development Project
Water Street is a planned development project to be located in the Las Colinas Urban Center. Zoning, plat and site plans have been approved, and plans for the street layout and the first building, which will enjoy a prime, Lake Carolyn location, are in the process of being finalized.
Water Street, which is being developed by Gables Residential, has also been working alongside the Dallas County Utility and Reclamation District to obtain an additional, 1.2 acres along Lake Carolyn.
Gables Residential anticipates that more than 13,000 square feet of retail space will be open by fall 2010.
Once completed, Water Street will boast more than 240,000 square feet of retail space to the Las Colinas area of Irving.
With the continued development of Irving and the Las Colinas Urban Center, the residents of Irving will continue to enjoy a lower employment rate, more tax revenue and an increase in property values.
