US Business Finance Blog

Annuities And Your Family’s Long Range Financial Security

Posted on June 22nd, 2009 by Author

US Business Finance Corp’s annuity life insurance helps entrepreneurs provide for their families if their family’s main income producer is suddenly employed in other realms. The adage “Life insurance is sold, not bought” probably derives its reality from the idea that, “Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die” – or even think of dying. Life insurance is a coverage that causes customers to ponder their inevitable fate while the sun is still shining. With annuity life insurance, business owners can cover both the financial needs of their dependents’ all as well as preserve the wealth and equity they have in their company.

The following are points to keep in mind when reviewing annuity life insurance possibilities.

1. How much life insurance to purchase?
To determine the top amount, consider the liabilities that your heirs will be faced with, such as:

Outstanding balance on home mortgage;
Estate taxes and any uninsured medical expenses;
Children’s education expenses;
Any amount you wish to invest in an income fund for your family; or
Balances on credit cards or installment loans.

One rule of thumb is 5 to 10 times your current annual income. Then measure the packages against your monthly budget, which may dictate an initial policy that is less than optimum, but will be a good safety valve.

2. What life insurance programs are available?

Whole Life is a policy that is an insurance policy with a savings aspect. As you pay insurance premiums, you not only maintain your coverage, but the premium gains cash value. As your policy gains value, you can borrow on that amount – possibly as much as 90%. The interest rate on these loans is usually very low.

Universal Life is like a whole life policy with an potential added benefit of higher earnings on the savings component. Universal life policies are also flexible in their face value depending on if their premiums are increased, decreased or deferred. The downside to this policy is that it includes higher fees (normally 5 to 7%) and they are tied to interest rates. In certain markets your fees could go up while your interest declines.

Variable Life usually has a fixed premium and the cash value of the policy is invested under the policyholder’s direction into bonds, stocks or money market funds. The cash value and death benefits of the policy fluctuates with the value of the underlying investments. Fees on these policies are higher than Universal Life, but the taxes on all the accrued capital gains or interest earnings are deferred.

Term Insurance is the least expensive insurance for individuals less than 50 years old. The policy is written for a specific term, normally between 1 to 10 years, with the ability to renew at the end of the term. A level term insurance policy secures the premium amount for up to 30 years. At each renewal the premiums will get more expensive. A variation of the Term Insurance is a Declining Balance Term that keeps the premium the same, but the face value of the policy declines. These are used sometimes as a mortgage insurance policy. Some term insurance policies can be converted to whole life later on.

3. Where should you get your annuity insurance?

Consult with US Business Finance Corp’s experts for an objective view of various plans (and comparing insurance versus other financial investment instruments) and your particular life insurance and retirement situation.

4. Make sure your heirs, or a trusted advisor, are aware of your financial plans, so when they need the information, they know where to find it and your well laid plans can be carried out.

Business Cash Advances Help Restaurants Facing Tight Credit

Posted on June 18th, 2009 by Author

When the holiday or vacation season coincides with economic contractions and tight credit, no one feels it more than restaurant owners. By using merchant cash advances, US Business Finance Corp finds restaurateurs are able to keep the doors open and avoid the tight credit markets. Many restaurants have turned to alternative business financing when their lines of credit have been reduced or closed. They also find that a bank loan is as realistic as the Treasury Department giving them the same sweet deal as Wall Street.

Using their track record of sales, restaurants can use the promise of future sales to land a merchant cash advance. The cash advance can be used for any of the restaurant’s cash flow needs: payroll, payroll taxes, extra inventory or seasonal advertising to boost business. When future Visa and MasterCard sales are made, a portion, usually 15%, goes to repaying the business cash advance. In a normal economy the cash advance is paid off in six months, but, note many merchants, this year the normal time period is seven to nine months. However, there are never any late fees, so the ability to automatically lengthen of the pay-back period benefits the restaurant owners.

Like many businesses whose success rides on seasonal business, restaurants find the timeliness of landing a merchant cash advance a great asset. Since traditional loans, even if they were possible can not be obtained in time to help with a timely financial need, often take months to gather and process the paperwork and risk analysis. With first time cash advances, the time from application to funding takes less than ten business days.

Tight credit and uneven cash flow problems affecting your restaurant business? Call the merchant cash advance alternative financing specialists at US Business Finance Corp to get an idea of how high a cash advance your restaurant may qualify for based on your past sales.

Merchant Cash Advances Dodge Tightening Credit Markets

Posted on June 11th, 2009 by Author

Merchant cash advances are proving to be an alternative business financing avenue allowing small business owners to dodge the tightening credit markets. Tight credit markets are affecting the national economy and hampering many companies’ ability to carry on business as usual. CFO magazine reported that many business owners are finding “it costs more to borrow; banks are less able to make lending decisions and commitments; and that banks are also less flexible.”

For many business owners trying to meet payment deadlines, payroll or periodic tax payments, the need to keep the working capital coffers full is often a timely dance. Business cash advances, even in a tight credit market, have the ability to get approved and funded within 5 to 8 working days. Far faster than traditional lending routes.

Business cash advances are never subject to the possibility of inverse loan situations – where a business owner leverages their real estate for financing and reversals in the local real estate market cause their property’s value to fall below the amount of their commercial real estate loan. If Visa and MasterCard sales, which are used to repay the business cash advance slow down, it simply means the cash advance is paid off over a longer period of time.

No late fees, no collection calls and no hassles.

Business cash advances are structured to help business owners get ahead in a business climate that makes traditional lending routes not feasible. Contact the business cash advance team at US Business Finance Corp to see how quickly your working capital levels can benefit from a merchant cash advance. Be ready for your selling season, whatever the holiday or opportunity!

Merchants Accept Contactless Credit Cards Have Higher Security

Posted on June 5th, 2009 by Author

Merchants accepting credit cards, and especially the contactless payment cards like MasterCard’s PayPass and Visa’s payWave are finding increases in sales and higher security. Both contactless payment cards utilize the RFID technology – tiny chips that identify the card account as well as issue a code for each transaction. While public transportation terminals and gas stations have implemented the technology, retail merchants accepting credit cards across America have been slower to adopt.

The major credit card companies in Japan and the US are pushing the new technology as safer than the prior use of credit card and PIN, since criminals had figured out how to access both PIN and the PIN encryption technology, leaving customers open to credit card fraud. The RFID technology solves the encryption hacking situation for customers and business owners.

Merchants who improve their credit card processing system to accept the new “wave” in payment services are tapping into the growing population of post-Baby boomer generations. These are consumers who demographically embrace new technologies quickly. MasterCard found that users who adopt their PayPass credit cards tend to use them as their preferred card and spending increases 28% – 42%.

Many college and high school buyers open checking accounts and never request checks – they pay bills online and use debit or credit cards for minor and major sales transactions that prior generations always paid with cash or checks. Merchants also find the reduction in cash purchases has reduced their losses from cash register shortfalls at the end of the day.

The trend to use credit cards for more purchases helps those merchants who find business cash advances profitable ways to expand their businesses and ride out economic bumps in the road. US Business Finance Corp is a cutting edge alternative business financing company offering its clients competitive rates on merchant credit card processing services and merchant cash advances.

If your business is ready to make better use of your Visa and MasterCard sales traffic, call our small business consultants for a free session to see how your business can benefit and come out ahead from our alternative business lending services.

Customer Service Counts When Businesses Need It

Posted on May 27th, 2009 by Author

Small business owners seek allies, such as a merchant credit card processing servicing company like US Business Finance Corp (USBFC), for small business financing and streamlining ways of making a profit. The last thing a business needs is an unresponsive or unhelpful customer service experience with their merchant credit card processor.

How critical is your business support for your merchant credit card account? Too often you find out when time is of the essence.

US Business Finance Corp is a proven trustworthy financing and business services ally to small businesses and mid-size businesses with our efficient alternative business funding programs and credit card processing services. In a very competitive marketplace, USBFC recognizes that our responsive and “go the extra mile” customer service is an asset that our customers value highly. When our customers need help, we know that their time is money and that nothing less than the fastest and best customer service response is acceptable.

If you are a start-up enterprise or seeking a merchant credit card service processor with better terms, contact our merchant account specialists. We have the experience and network to bring your business the best service at the best overall price. Our responsive customer service has the track record of keeping businesses very satisfied with their merchant account experience.

For high risk businesses, USBFC specializes in getting your business the best rates and working with you and your employees to position your business for better rates in the future. Educating your employees is an investment in customer service we gladly make for our clients to minimize the chance any employee mistakes trigger penalties that affect your rates and your merchant account status. We work to see that your high risk merchant credit account serves you to improve your income streams, not create another expense and headache for you.

Contact USBFC to see what steps we can take to get you into a merchant account situation that provides you with the best customer support, overall rates, and the ability to leverage your credit card sales with a company cash advance when and if your company needs it. US Business Finance Corp builds our success on your business’s success – we enjoy the long-term business relationships we have with our customers!

High Risk Credit Card Processing Services

Posted on May 18th, 2009 by Author

US Business Finance Corp financial services for start-up businesses helps them reduce their Visa and MasterCard credit card processing costs due to their “high risk” status. Businesses like Internet sale of computers, software and electronics may always have to work with their high risk status, but many start-ups fall in the high risk category simply because they are less than two years old, are working out of their home office or garage, or take credit card orders over the phone.

US Business Finance Corp specializes in helping start-ups and other high risk merchant credit card account businesses both obtain high risk card processing services for Visa and MasterCard and train owners and employees on the best ways to improve their rates.

Training, historically, has helped owners minimize small errors that have large repercussions in their merchant ratings. Three basic training rules are:

Never accept foreign credit cards or suspicious card.
Avoid chargebacks, whatever it takes. If possible assign one person to customer service to make sure you have a satisfied customer and keep chargebacks to an absolute minimum.
Never run a charge for products other than the ones you sell. Offering to take a charge for a friend, regardless of how close a friend they are, may lose you your merchant account. If your credit card processing company detects a major change in your charging levels or the products you sell, they may terminate your merchant account. Once your merchant account is terminated, you will have a very hard time getting a new merchant account from any provider until five years pass.

With consistently good months of no chargebacks and no other activity that undermines your merchant account, US Business Finance Corp can work with you and the merchant credit card processing company to reduce both your rate and the amount of funds in your holdback account (funds held in reserve to cover chargebacks).

While risk in business is natural (and often the more risk the higher the potential profit return), US Business Finance Corp works with entrepreneurs to reduce the risk of higher rates and an unnecessary assessment of high risk rating. With our knowledge of credit card processing services, we can help middle risk businesses, such as auto service centers, furniture stores and computer stores better ratings.

Often financing institutions only have two rate categories – low risk and high risk. This unfairly penalizes the many in-between businesses. US Business Finance Corp finds you the best rates and fees for your small or mid-size business.

If your start-up small business or high risk business is in need of a merchant credit card account or better rates for your high risk rating, contact the Visa and MasterCard experts at US Business Finance Corp – we’ll save you money while you make money!

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