Start A Home Business And Get In The Black The Next Day

This is that wonderful time of year when the frost starts to thaw, flowers begin to bloom and everyone is either doing their taxes, finishing them,or fretting about said taxes. And possibly contemplating a revolution.

It’s no secret that in today’s economy, countless numbers of people are tying t find ways to make more money and quickly. The best way to make money fast is by starting a home based business; therefore it might come as a shock to some when I say it is possible to profit immediately when you start a home based business simply by applying some techniques to shield more of your hard-earned income from taxes instead keep it in your pockets.

However, I was taken aback at how many people who start a home based business don’t take full advantage of the assets that this sort of opportunity presents. In fact, the minute you start a home based business opportunity, you become privy to a number of benefits you didn’t have available before. Even if you’re not making any money in your business, if you apply proper techniques available to a business owner, you will be saving money you otherwise would parted with to Uncle Sam. ( Or whatever uncle is in charge of your respective government. )

But maybe not as many

Now when you elect to start a home based business there are of course some elements you need to examine first:

The type of business: is it something you can succeed in, and believe you can enjoy?
What kinds of new skills will you need to develop for this business, and will you have either someone or a quality system to help you develop those skills necessary to thrive?
What is the leadership like of the home based business opportunity you decide to join? What is their reputation?
Research the history of the company and whether other people are finding success with whatever system or endeavor you decide to explore. There are an incredible number of “programs” on the internet that promise one they can work 15 minutes a day and bank huge amounts for doing nothing. Be careful when you come across these types of opportunities because the majority are affiliate products designed to make money for the person marketing the program, not necessarily for the buyer. Some of them may work, when it comes time for you to start a home based business you just need to do your due diligence.
A quick note for when you’re doing your research about starting a home based business: when you research a business and find the word “scam” frequently appear in the search engines, don’t let this immediately deter you: continue to do your due diligence and explore why exactly someone is saying that opportunity is a “scam”. the reason is many marketers target other businesses, hoping to leach traffic off one opportunity onto their own by catching people’s attention who don’t know better. In the old days, one could trust what they found on the internet; you have to be much more careful now. Measure once, cut twice, that is the carpenter’s rule of thumb and one you should heed when you decide to start a home based business. You want to be able to enter with confidence and excitement.

One caveat before I proceed: everything that follows is simply a suggestion and I highly suggest you stay within your limits and do not exaggerate any of your tax deductions. The IRS is hurting right now just as many citizens are- and would just love for you to finagle with your taxes and invite an audit. ( In fact, there is an entire departments of the IRS that have been mobilized over the last couple of years simply to pore over older tax records in the hope of finding past discrepancies that they can then fine someone for.) So don’t invite the wolf in and you should be fine.

He’ll come and knock on your door…

Start a Home Based Business and Profit Immediately

Some of the items you can profit from once you start a home based business:

Office rent-This is one everyone should know and use but I’m including it because like I mentioned before, a lot of people overlook these benefits. Even if you’re using a spare bedroom, you can take your office space and ( the size of the bedroom or a percentage of your house-don’t go overboard with this and claim like ” All of my house is an office because I work in every part of it!” or anything, this won’t fly with the IRS. There are ways to use tax laws to your advantage but not abuse them. )Typically you can deduct somewhere around $1.75 per square foot, so if you have an office that is only 120 square feet, you can deduct around $210. But that’s every month.

Computer-You are allowed to write off around $25,000 annually for equipment and business assets, so a new computer, printer, fax, modem, etc. all fit into this category.

Health Insurance- medical, dental, and even disability. Smart.

Start-Up Expenses and Marketing- business cards, the expenses of joining, and if you enter into network marketing,( one of the best forms of home based business) you can even deduct the PRODUCT as well.

Meals-you have to eat right? And sometimes have business lunches. A word of caution with this one: don’t overuse it by claiming an inordinate amount of meals eaten were business related. When traveling one can only write off 50 % of meal costs as well.

Telephone- this is only related to a separate business line, not your regular home phone; but you can write that second line off, along with internet too.

Auto -It is important to keep good records with this one, but when you start a home based business you are allowed an monthly auto allowance according to how many miles each month the car is driven. Right now I believe it is allowable to around 50 cents/mile currently for all miles you’ve used that go toward business purposes. It is up to you to determine exactly what those are, -but can include meetings, meals, and…

Travel- one can deduct half their meals, plus lodging and transportation. Foreign travel is a bit different, but basically is three quarters of the trip is spent on business, you are good to go.

Subscriptions-these of course have to be related to your type of business- magazines, business clubs, and even college courses can be deductible if they fit the right description, meaning they can further your business.

Retirement plans-This one could be an article unto itself, so perhaps it is best saved for another time. But basically refers to setting up and contributing to a tax beneficial 401k or IRA.

Other benefits include a cafeteria plan, dependent care, and if you elect to start a corporation ( which you can do for less than 500 bucks and as little as 145) you can also get a lower tax rate for your business and the income you generate through it. )

So the lower tax rate and many of the other benefits one can apply from the moment they start a home business even part time are obviously a huge boon. If your business is more mature, you may want to look into an S or LLC. It’s wise to consult with someone that knows your situation for any final decision, because ultimately you want your corporation to work for you.

Start A Home Business And Never Lose.

Starting a successful home venture consists of 2 aspects, and while you can find plenty more on my site about the various ways to achieve this- they are…

1) Cash flow

2) Leads- which are basically people interested in your business, no matter what your particular business consists of.

I have been experiencing an insatiable thirst to seek to answer this nagging question about whether insurance is a necessity in our country today. While the subject of insurance is broad and multi-faceted, I will seek to break down the perception of this subject so that our minds for a moment are not engrossed with the surreptitious picture of insurance agents’ incessantly cold-calling potential clients or pursuit of claims arising out of insurable risks by claimants.

Data from the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) shows that the level of uptake of insurance in Kenya is at an all-time low of 3.3 percent. This cannot be compared to developed economies like South Africa where the numbers are at 14%. Many explanations have been advanced to show why Kenyans are still averse to taking up Insurance related products. One prominent argument is that the Per capita income (GDP) of the average income earner cannot be enough to support payment of premiums. The other school of thought is that the savings culture of Kenyans is still wanting.

While the arguments above may hold water, the fundamental understanding of insurance has not been taught to most of us from an early age. The subject of insurance I dare say is still shrouded with a lot of secrecy and misunderstanding akin to the mysticism surrounding ancient religions. The language used is still rather technical to the average person. I realize that at this point I must correct myself quickly and note that every profession has its language; for an engineer has to use engineering language, an architect the same etcetera. Insurance also has its language but if its proponents profess that it benefits almost all of humanity, shouldn’t it be clothed in language that is not so grandiose but easily palatable to the common man?

The responsibility of the stakeholders in the insurance industry is to bring customers’ perception to how insurance works in a language they can understand. This would entail offering a basic insight on what informs the underwriting decisions on various insurance products by insurers. I want to suggest that it would benefit insurers to have open days where they invite people and educate them on the fundamentals of insurance, on the meaning of risk, why insurance is important to any economy and most importantly the benefits of insurance at a personal level. Apart from honing their sales skills, sales professionals need to align themselves properly with the market in order to understand and respond well to their customers’ needs. More often than not, sales people are perceived to be aggressive, over-achieving individuals who are not honest and are quick to point to clients the dotted lines in the application document. This negative perception must stop. Insurance sales people contribute immensely to the overall economic growth and offer important services without which an economy could not function well.

Now back to our overarching theme. Any society is fraught with risks. The risk of death by accidents, accidental injury leading to permanent or temporary disability, the risk of fire arising out of man-made or natural sources e.g. lightning, subterranean fire etc, the risk of accidental injury at the place of work owing to the nature of employment, loss of luggage while travelling and many more. What insurance does is simply to classify the above mentioned risks and price them into premiums. The premiums are then pooled and it is from this pool of funds that claims are settled. The guiding principle here is that a risk should be quantifiable. A close analysis of your immediate environment will reveal many known and unknown risks. Insurance companies manage losses that arise out of insured risks. Think for a moment the costs borne by the insured if there was no insurance to mitigate these risks. Imagine a petrol station owner being held liable for damage by fire arising from his petrol station to his neighbors. If the owner does not have public liability insurance, he may find it difficult to raise money to meet his legal fees and hence may not protect his business. This is because the cost of a claim can far exceed what a business is able to raise and necessitate the shutting down of a business altogether. Many examples abound where insurance solve practical problems and mitigate a host of risks that can cripple businesses and slow economic growth. At a personal level, medical insurance is very vital. Think for a moment the rising cost of Medicare and consultancy fees not to mention the increasing costs of pharmaceutical medicines.

But there is an antithesis to such a healthy explanation and this is advanced by some who argue that risks are only imagined hazards. They posit that a risk is imagined and only ceases to be a risk when an actual occurrence happens. Some even counter a proposal to take up insurance dangerously by arguing that they have, for example, not been admitted to hospital for a number of years and see no need to take up a medical cover. While it is important to live healthy and avoid the hospital and its attendant costs, it would be farcical for one to wish they had a medical cover in the face of a medical emergency.

In conclusion, insurance is necessary to any growing economy like Kenya in spite of the low uptake. It not only creates employment and puts in abeyance the worry of meeting risks; it is an indicator of economic growth and a sign of a thriving economy. More needs to be done to educate the masses with regard to this subject. The responsibility lies squarely at the court of the regulator to put pressure on insurance companies to increase the uptake of insurance in the country. Incentives must be given to companies that have the highest level of penetration to make sure they maintain their influence and widen the market. Is insurance necessary? Indeed it is. Next time someone dissuades you from taking up an insurance plan, think again.

You must opt for a life insurance policy. If your finances allow, you must also get health insurance as well as home insurance. This way you would be able to save yourself from any sudden financial crisis. However, you need the best of persons when it comes to an insurance advisor. In this article, we will take you through five steps to hire the best LIC advisor in Delhi.

1. Always prefer a certified advisor

Your insurance advisor must have proper certification from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA). This proves that he/she is not there to trick you or fraud you. Moreover, the guidelines laid down by this agency make sure that you are protected on all fronts. If a person is not certified by IRDA, legally he is not entitled to advise people on insurance. He may end up in jail. Therefore, before selecting an agent, make sure that he/she has all the necessary certifications.

2. He must be through with investment solutions

You must understand that insurance agents are much more than just a salesman. They must have a proper understanding of financial planning. They should be equipped with all the necessary information about the financial world, both domestic as well as globally. More importantly, your LIC advisor should have a proper understanding of your family and financial standing. This way he would be able to suggest you the best insurance for you. It is advised that you should first develop a good friendship with the advisor and only then allow him to enter your financial realm.

3. He must have a complete understanding of the product he wants to sell

The insurance advisor must have a thorough knowledge of all the insurance policies that his/her company sells. You should sit down and have a long conversation with him about the pros and cons of various policies. You must understand that every insurance company sells a hell lot of policies. Not all policies are meant for you. Your insurance advisor must suggest you the best policy for yourself after understanding your family and finances.

4. Does the follow-up?

He/she is a cheap insurance advisor if he/she forgets you after you have bought the insurance policy. This is not what a responsible advisor does. Even after you have bought the policy, you may have a hell lot of questions to be answered. He/she must update you about the product premium and all the necessary details to make the best of your insurance.

5. He must help you while fulfilling your claim

When a claim arises, an advisor plays a very important role. He is the sole contact person between the insurance provider and the policyholder. He must understand all the formalities that need to be fulfilled for a successful claim. If your claim is denied there was no point in opting for that insurance policy. A good insurance advisor will stand by you when you need him/her the most.