The Goal of investment is to buy value, and not to blindly predict the future. Bank of America is currently undervalued. It has managed to survive the scare of rumor of bankruptcy filing when the stock price reached $5.00 at some point, just a month and a half ago. Since then the stock went up almost 25%-30%.  BAC is currently at $8.00 right now. There is still value there, and this is what investors should be mindful off. How can any one pass by a pot of wealth that could be generated with Bank of America?

If we are only able to get another 25% out of BAC $8.00 we will be ok with that, but again I don’t buy stocks that I don’t feel like owning forever. If any reason surfaced that I feel like I have made enough from BAC, I may only reduce my position with the bank. I will highlight that; from here, if the bank goes lower I will continue to buy. I believe in the leadership of the current CEO Mr Brian T. Moynihan who took over the bank in 2010, Mr Moyinhan has shrunk the oversized bank down enough to add value to the bank and his decision to downsize has proven profitable for the bank. A good management is very important for any business that will be successful for a long time. Now let review why bank of America has value.

1. It is a great business with temporary problem (bad mortgage loans).

Temporary problems are only here for a while. Imagine what will happen soon the bank is able to position itself to a good balance sheet to catch up and beat its peers; it will be a great story.

1. The bank is undervalued; it was sold off because of fear of the bad mortgage loans, although there  were a lot of downgrades here or there, so far we are not buying the business of an overpriced bank, the sell off is a good news for us, a great discount.
2. The bank is positioned to turn profit.
3. It has great management.
4. And it was a very great business before the problems and it will get there with patient. It may ever go back up at a lightning speed.

The reasons above are why I think it is time to catch the run with bank of America. It will be a great addition to our portfolio. Thank you for joining me today…. Happy president’s day. Good bless.

Disclaimer; I don’t currently own position in bank of America, I will be adding some over next few days…. And again these are my honest analysis of business that I think are very valuable.

The first four letters that start the title of this post “Gold” is very expressive of what I think about Goldman Sachs. As we all know there is value in Gold and that is why I compare Goldman sach to gold. Goldman Sachs is well undervalued right now and the last time Goldman Sachs sold for under $120 was around 2008 and at that time we all remembered that the market crashed; right after the crash it was able to rebound. The resent research that I read about Goldman Sachs valued Goldman at $180, the report came from a well trusted source, an unbiased analysis of Goldman Sachs shows that we can profit from it, at this figure there is a lot of room for Goldman to run, the stock is now a very uncommon popular stock that is selling at cheap price. The stock was affected by the Euro debt resolution doubt, and along with few other issues the stock is selling at a price lower than its book worth. Real time price and daily figures does not dictate what I buy, what I sell, how I buy, how I sell or when I buy. The only key thing is the value, sooner or later the value will work itself out and that is all that matter to me. I am with this stocks, I believe in the business that they operate, they will benefit from the value of how they conduct their businesses, the market will rebound and several public offering that they expected this year will improve Goldman Sachs value. I personally don’t go with time table of when to sell, therefore I can’t tell you to hold till certain date. But I can tell you to hold until the value is good enough or till you can move on to another stock if you wish.

Disclaimer: this post is not meant for profit purposes, I owned position in this stock and I may or may not sell anytime soon. Thank you for joining me here today. See you later.

While some of you are aware of the benefits of spinoff stocks, many are yet to learn about what spinoff stocks are and how to go about investing in them. The following may enlighten you on the investment process that is gaining great momentum of late.

On the overview the spinoff process is typically an incompetent technique of distributing stock to people due to an emergency of the parent institution. Mostly, investors that have invested in the parent company’s business are forced to get hold of the shares of the subsidies owned by the company. The distributed shares are often sold much lower than basic value proposed at the initial stages. Although during initial stages the stock tends to depress due to various reasons, the involvement of new entrepreneurial forces often uplifts the firm creating huge hike in the value of the shares.

Many well diversified companies opt to spin off parts of their businesses, which is technique that creates significant value for shareholders. Some of the several reasons companies opting spinoffs include a parent organization’s choice to pull out from an area of business due to lack of synergies or related core competencies and the like. The newly constituted company however, is no longer embarrassed by the ineffective strategies of their former parent. It is the new found independence that enables it to develop its own strategies toward success. Although risks are involved in it, often the percentage of success have be much higher attracting newbie investors that are willing to take the risk and grow exponentially.

There are several types of spinoffs classified according to the nature of the involvement of the parent organization in the venture. For example, pure spinoff or the complete spinoff is where the parent organization distributes all of its ownership in a subsidiary to its share holders. Partial spinoff or Carve-outs is where the parent company holds a major portion of the stocks and distributes a certain percentage of the new subsidiary in public offering (IPO) for cash profits. This often is a prelude to a complete spinoff, however, not necessarily one. Stubs on the other hand is the investment in parent company’s core business to exploit the unrealized value of it, however it holds a considerable risk factors.

Some of the snipoff stocks in 2011 and 2012 that could help you in finding a suitable investment.

About the Author:

www.knowmutualfund.com is a comprehensive website that provides highly useful information on various mutual funds and the ways to sow and reap from mutual funds. To learn more about the benevolent investment options do visit the website.

The evidences collected at time of his death were made available in court to the jury of 12 people who believed that it was enough to found Dr Conrad Murray guilty.  Part of the argument in court was about how Mr. Jackson died; clearly the only one who could answer this question was Mr. Conrad the person who was there as his personal physician at his time of death, Dr Conrad said that Mr. Jackson might have taken larger dose of Propolof while he was away from his bed side, that he did not administer the lethal dose that was found in Mr. Jackson’s body after the autopsy.  According to the court reports, the court questioned an anesthesiologist Steven Shafer, an expert with propolof who testified that the amount of Propolof found in Mr. Jackson’s body was more that what he could have administered by himself, Steven Shafer said that the amount of Propolof found in Mr. Jacskons’s urine was consistent with a timed Intravenous drips at a set rate.

Based on the court ruling Dr Conrad Murray has been held without bound until the judge decided his sentence, but the question still remains at large, who is guiltier? late Mr. Jackson or Dr Conrad Murray?, are we clearly confined from accepting that May be Mr. Jackson influenced the administering of the lethal dose of Propolof? And what was the medication history of Mr. Jackson for months or years prior to his death; he might be a drug abuser who was able to get his hand on any medication he wanted.  Until the above question are honestly answered we could only go with the argument in court, as we all know about the court system in America, only the well proven cases wins.

This new deal could prove to be the beginning of the road to getting back to even for BP but it is hard to see BP succeed as quickly as they will expect due to repeated setbacks. In the past BP dealt with issues like; the Gulf oil spill, government fines, refunds to small businesses and residence affected by the oil spill and newly, they could not execute deal to sell stakes BP own with Argentina based Oil and gas group Pan American Energy after its deal partner CNOOC who owned 50 percent unit in Bridas Energy Holding; Bridas Energy holding was suppose to buy the stake from BP but new development confirmed that the deal has been called off, this is another hold up that BP could not afford to deal with right now,  BP need to raise fund as quick as possible in other to perform and meets its shareholder expectations.

Although supply will be low tomorrow, it is expected that demands will surge the price of GRPN which expected to start at $20. As usually the price usually goes up by time it hit the market when trading begin tomorrow Friday October 04, 2011.

Credit market issues and property investment

The property credit market is a mixed bag. For regular personal property purchases, it’s comparatively stable most of the time. For investors, however, looking for what is effectively business credit can be far more complex in terms of getting best return on investments after credit costs.

Reading the investment property credit market can be like reading tea leaves sometimes, particularly during global financial market troubles. There are several factors involved here, and they’re all hard dollar issues:

• Line of credit costs: Professional property investors like to have some room to move on their credit so they can buy top quality investments. The returns on these investments are excellent, but when you’re looking at a large amount of money, the real costs of credit need to be well defined.

• Investment property quality: This is a core business issue. Quality of investment is a natural hedge against credit costs, and this directly impacts your ROI. When you’re buying a good, safe, top quality upmarket investment property off the plan you can see clearly that you can maximize your returns relative to your costs. If you’re buying a “handyman’s dream”, you can be absolutely sure that your credit costs are likely to reflect the extra dollars required to turn the place into a quality property.

• Tight credit markets:A tight credit market is a curse for property investors. The fact is that low credit availability costs property investors money in more ways than one, because it directly affects their bottom line. Money is either unavailable, meaning they can’t acquire properties, or it costs more, affecting their ROI. The solution is to lock in a line of business credit in advance, which is the investor’s equivalent of a pre-approved loan, guaranteeing capital and defining costs in advance.

• Capital gain, rental and credit: The natural offsets to credit costs are capital gain and rental, but both are property market-sensitive. The trick here is to retain well-defined credit costs at a rate which is preferably at or below net adjusted returns on rental, with the capital gain defining the baseline ROI. This is simple enough, provided you’ve got your line of credit pinned down at a good baseline rate.

Borrowing for property investment is a numbers game. Check out your credit options, and ensure that your credit costs are well scouted in advance. Always invest in good quality properties, and you won’t have any issues regarding your ROI or your ongoing credit costs. It’s a good idea to talk to your financial institution about long term lines of credit and get a clear picture of your options. You’ll find that some credit providers can give you really excellent deals.

On Wednesday October 19^th 2011 the story changed, Groupon (GRPN)  decided to proceed with what may be one of the record breaking IPO in history, they are expected to worth  about $12billion in valuation, if many  people rushed in to this offering, Groupon may worth twice as much or more, therefore valuation will be around $ 28billion plus. For a company who is not making any product of its own, this valuation is bizarre, especially that Groupon share sector with lots of large Coupon and discount companies that are well up to date competition wise. It will be reasonable to reconsider buy this stocks here, they have not reported any convincing profit in the past, and their board of directors couldn’t make a lot of sense on how they plan to beat all competition and how they will meet market expectations.

Techcrunch reported that  “ Groupon had a staggering net loss of $102.7 million for the second quarter of 2011. How can a company that reported loss of about $102 million recently deserve billions of American dollars? Here at investingport, our focus is to make you all an investor and not a speculator, making money is our goal and we will show you the game that wallstreet plays with new companies like this that make them look attractive.  First the valuation of a company at offering is based on bidding, just like a car auction people name the price owner sell at top price, the amount of people that show up at the offering price will tell what price Groupon will go for, although its road show price was to be around $18 or $20, obviously it will not open to the public at that price, chances are it will open at the top double digits like $80 or $90 per share, if you catch it at $80 or above this is a steroid filled  price and we all know what happens to stocks that are on steroid they deflate and bust, guess who takes a hit? the general public that aren’t  familiar with the wallstreet ball games. Second why bid on a company you have little information on how it operates money wise, a company that you are not sure what they spent vs what they earned, thank goodness for SEC filings  that told the public that Groupon lost money in it Q2 earning reports. That tells us that the future of Groupon is like a candy it will soon lose its taste, majority of buyers at the time this company become public will end up dumping the stocks and it will later bust, it may take days, months or years but it will happen, don’t be a victim here. Choose wisely based on the report we gave you above, feel free to read it twice.

In the past six months of trading, stocks has plummeted all together, many secured portfolio feel apart, lots of panic from the world news about troubled economy, fear of defaults, troubled leadership, protests, and job loss reports added to the trouble the current market is facing. The above problems made most analyst to think the market is heading for correction, “Correction?” this is a word that is hard to adopt, it is too soon to diagnose a market of this kind, a different kind of animal, very hard to forecast.  Although all radar may pick it up as a possible correction, but it is obvious that it is too soon to be at correction when we just got out of market meltdown on 2008. However, in the midst of all the market commotion there are winner stocks out there, I will only discuss one stock that you all don’t want to miss, this stock will make you an investors all over again, enough of speculating, enough gambling, enough guessing; my next publish will be about Conocophillips see you all back here shortly.

There are many cases where investors have lost everything they invested, at no fault of their own. Sometimes, some people are just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Here is look at the issues you should consider before buying into a hotel in a country that is not your own:

• Political Conditions. If you come from a democratic and relatively free country, like Australia or the United States, you know you have legal rights, and the rule of law is the fabric of the economy and life. This is not the case in many countries. It might not always seem that way. It takes considerable time in a country to really understand what the political situation is like. Colombia is seeing huge investment from international investors, and yet the country is plagued with many problems. Do you want to take the risk?

• Access. Just because you are buying property or investing in a country, will not always guarantee your access to that investment. You will have to look at the visa and immigration laws very closely. You are going to need professional help with this issue. Some countries do not like to give out information about the possibilities of visas very easily. Their embassies may state one thing, but the actual process of that application may be so complicated, the visa is unobtainable.

• Ownership Laws. Each country has very different laws for foreign investment. This is another very important area for you to research. There might be a ‘right’ and a ‘wrong’ approach to your investment. You will probably need professional help with this issue.

• Management. The best hotels have the best management. This management is more than just running the operations of the hotel it is about bringing customers to the hotel. It is about the relationships of the management company and many other areas of global tourism. You should have a good understanding of the tourism industry and how it really works.

• Local Partner. There is rarely any hotel built on international and foreign investment that will not have a local partner. Understanding that local partner, their history, and why they are involved is extremely important. There are many cases, where even the biggest players in the hotel investment world have been left high and dry in a foreign country.

• Professional Evaluation. You can never believe your own calculations to be true. You also cannot believe the investment sales person’s calculations to be true. You will always need to get a second and even third opinion. You need to know what returns are realistic.

• Incentives. Any international investment should be in a location, region or country that is providing incentive, for that investment. The political, economic, and taxation benefits should be guaranteed.

International hotel investment is not for the inexperienced. You need to be working with professionals who have a legal structure for your smooth entry and exit. Always get advice from a number of sources. Do not consider this type of investment without many years of experience.

The talk of the past few months is the fear that Greek may default. The fear has grown so much that it has negatively affected the stock market trades worldwide. United state stock market took a deep nose dive and threw all previous gains down the drain, because of the fear of default. Europe may experience a similar disaster that happened to United State of American’s economy few years ago right after the mortgage default and the crash. But there is a good end to this story, if the Greek market defaults, it may be a great opportunity to buy big into the European market, as it will be a great entry point for investors; especially to investors that will survive the default if any;  or those with few loses or none, they will be able to reenter and make money as the market start to rally again. It will be a great chance for investors worldwide to tap into; eventually the market will stabilize itself, as the leaders of the IMF will not allow this matter to be a disaster. They will finally come to rescue, it may just require that they split or take strong regulation and give up collaterals for the loan they will need to maintain the market.
The process about the funding for the market should not be a much concern to investors, the fund will come regardless of default or not. The only major focus for investors here is to either take money of the table or raise cash to buy more, and be very ready and attentive to news so they can get right back in as soon as coast is clear of all damages expected from default. At this time there will be a great rally 10%, 15%, or 20% gains is possible, with that alone you can easily beat the S&P500 or be very close on the gains for the year, just for buying into the market at the right time.

Can you really afford it?

One of the first things you’ll want to ask yourself is, can you afford this property? Do you have enough cash saved up? Not only for the deposit but for all the other expenses that come with the loan? And what about the costs involved in running the property? Thinking about this long term is crucial, because even though you may be able to afford it now, things might change down the track. For instance, if you’re looking at investing in say some Port Campbell accommodation, you may want to look at what the options are if Port Campbell suddenly becomes a place that no one wants to visit. If you’re unsure, you can always aim for an investment that is low risk and which will still make it manageable if the market changes.

Do you have a steady income?

This is one of the key questions almost everyone will ask you, especially before lending you money, so you need to consider what your job situation is. How long have you been in your role? Are you a stable stayer or a job hopper? All of these things will contribute to your borrower profile and could affect your borrowing capacity.

Don’t forget to also think about your income and career long term. If you’re intending to stay in your job or industry for a long time, this could be beneficial. However, if you’re planning to pack up and go volunteer in a village in Cambodia in 2 years, your investment could be less feasible. If you’re investing with a partner or a team, you’ll need to consider their financial stability too. For example, if you’re married and steadily have two incomes, but you’re planning on having kids in the next year, your inflow of money will drop considerably.

Do you have many other debts?

Banks love to scrutinize, especially when they are lending money to someone. One of the main things they’ll look at is your other debts. It’s important to consider if you can manage your investment along with everything else. Do you have a car? Another mortgage? A maxed-out credit card? These things, along with things like student loan debts, dependents and anything else you’re paying off will be vital in considering how much you want to invest and how much risk you should be taking.

Are you experienced enough?

Of course, you have to start somewhere, so don’t be deterred if you don’t have much experience. However, if you are less-experienced you’ll probably want to consider an investment that is at a lower risk than someone who has been playing the property market for years and has some useful property valuation software at their disposal. The golden rule is to start small and then you can build up your portfolio and aim for higher-risk investments when you’ve got more experience under your belt.

How does this investment fit into your goals?

You probably wouldn’t be thinking about investing if it didn’t fit into your life plans, but it’s important to be specific about your goals and how your investment will fit into them. Are you young and planning on travelling? If so will your investment stop you from doing that? Are you supporting a family and if you invest in something, how will this change? Are you planning on buying shares or a new car or an expensive home entertainment system and if so, would you be better off investing the money in property? Overall, if investing is the right choice for you, then great, but thinking about your other objectives too will help you fashion what kind of investment you want to make and will assist you in analysing the bigger picture of your life and how investing can help you in the long run.

Bank of America is one of the largest financial institutions in America, and as expected it is one of the worst performing stocks in its sector because the bank is at an injury mode from the inflected wound of the mortgage meltdown due to humongous defaults of home loans. Recent development show that the bank is doing all it can to recover, and also Bank of America has shown that it can’t take any more pains which is what is presumed to lead to decisions to sell some assets.

Assets selling has proven to work for majority of companies because it is a form of relieve from pain as bad assets or risky business are let go by institutions for sake of shares valuation. In this case it could also work for bank of America, if the bank is able to sell any money loosing or underperformed assets that it still owns it will a good decision that will make stocks of Bank of America more attractive; Bloomberg reported that “Bank of America is in exclusive talks to sell its stake in NPC International Inc., the biggest U.S. Pizza Hut franchisee, for more than $800 million, said two people with knowledge of discussions. The lender also agreed to sell about $880 million in commercial mortgages at a discount of as much as 25 percent” if the reported development does come to pass, then the value of Bank of America will rise, it will attract many investors and finally the bank itself will be able to keep  earnings from other parts of its businesses. As stated above, if the NPC international Inc is later sold it will give the company more cash to work with, when a company has cash at hand it is a good look when compared to debts; but this is not all that is to the story here; because they also planned to sell $800 million of commercial mortgages, that means a lot to investors that has money on the table but waiting to see what the future looks like for bank of America. Here is why it very important that they will increase in value, According to Micheal Lewis in his book (The Big Short) “Bank of America sold millions of dollars worth of credit default swaps of subprime mortgage bond backed by a collateral debt obligation (CDO)” and this means that bank of America assumed responsibilities to outstanding mortgages that were given to consumers, Bank of America did these in the hope that consumer will be able to make their regular payment as the housing valuation was expected to rise higher, but unfortunately, this wasn’t the case, the housing market plummeted and bank of America was dealt the debt left from majority of  bad loans and CDO deals, if they are able to sell some mortgage loads, the bank will be able to focus on other business that is profitable and it will make bank of America to be well positioned for profit.

Earlier this week United tech announced that it plan to buy Goodrich Corporation with a price tag of 16.5 billion Dollars. Goodrich is a company that is specialized in making product and service for Aerospace and Defense industry. Bloomberg news reported that United tech planed to acquire Goodrich for $127.00 per share; before the announcement of the acquisition Goodrich traded at $104.00 as early as Monday this week. Right now Goodrich stock is trading at $121.00, those who bought into Goodrich on the day of the announcement were able to catch the stock at a discounted price of between $101 – $104, remember that the price didn’t jump to $116.00 until few days later after the price of $127 per share offer was announced by United Tech. After the announcement Goodrich stock price has jumped over 16 points which gives majority of investors a huge gain. Since the expected acquiring price will be $127 per share, there is still money to be made here, six points is still up for a grab, but then the condition is that the deal has to be approved by the shareholder, for the acquisition to go through as planned, if this plan fail, please run because the stock may take a hit back to its initial trading range of ($101-104).

He asserted that this that this fear made the company stop its intention in expanding its portfolio even though it will still retain some of its refining business in few countries in the continent.
Right now, Muller says the company is focusing on growth opportunities that will yield and guarantee adequate return on investment fund.

The myths are revealing:

• You need a fully set up, pre-packaged invoicing system, cashbook, etc. You don’t need these things if you can do them on a spreadsheet. You do need them if you’ve got a complex ordering and invoicing system or a large range of regular diversified entries which need to be kept very well organized and have direct operational applications.

• You need a lot of subfolders. No you don’t, unless you’ve got subcategories that require a lot of space. The entries can be configured otherwise, if appropriate, and they can be properly entered.
• You need a consolidated balance sheet. Well, do you? The default format for most businesses is a ledger which translates into a single balance sheet. What needs to be “consolidated”? Bear in mind these things use up a lot of time and tend to be pretty frustrating, and that working with multiple balance sheets is definitely an acquired taste.

The facts about business accounting

There’s a very unambiguous bottom line about business accounting- You need what works for you. The rest is just dross. Good accounting software packages can give you some very useful features in this area, but the accounts are by definition all about your business

The best business accounting software is actually very straightforward. It does what you want it to do, it’s easy to understand, and doesn’t include mysterious entry rituals. You just click on the function and do the job- No fuss, no “issues” with the software. The last thing any business needs is more “procedures”. The idea is to get the accounting done properly, and that’s all that matters.

As a matter of fact, if your business is growing, you can get some good customized business accounting software that will do the job very well. This is a little more expensive than the off the shelf software, but it pays for itself with efficiency and time saving.

This software is usually related to business management software packages like small business ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software, good management systems which improve information management and provide real time data. The business accounting packages are all customized, statutory-compliant, and even professional tax accountants won’t have any “quality issues” with them.

It’s worth looking for the right software. Check out the ERP software and see what you can achieve.

Author Bio: Tom Mallet is an Australian freelance writer and journalist. He writes extensively in Australia, Canada, Europe, and the US. He’s published more than 500 articles about various topics, including small business accounting software and tax accountants

]]> http://investingport.com/2011/09/basic-business-accounting-software-getting-what-you-need/feed/ 0 http://investingport.com/2011/09/making-business-profits-count/ http://investingport.com/2011/09/making-business-profits-count/#comments Tue, 20 Sep 2011 14:06:53 +0000 Neel http://investingport.com/?p=7386 Read more »]]> After developing a company to the stage where you are turning over steady profits it is tempting to sit back and reap the benefits. But doing so could be very costly in the long run because you will miss out on the benefits of expanding your business. This 5 part article will provide you with an insight into ways to invest your profits and streamline your business so that you may enjoy greater returns later on.

1. Profits outside the business

Investing in property is one of the safest things you can do with business profits. It gives you the benefits of accruing assets which can be used as collateral against a mortgage for expansion and will offer you healthy returns. Businesses are wise to buy investment property off plan because it enables larger returns in the short term and allows for large asset bases with minimal risk. Off plan property is property that has not yet been built and can be purchased for a fraction of the price of a completed construction. This favours construction companies because they are able to secure funds sooner, but it also benefits investors because they can buy properties at a cheaper rate. This is a sound investment for businesses which are seeing large profits.

1. Making it better

Improving your company with your profits is key to future success. Whatever you are doing as a business could always be better if you make small changes to the systems that you operate. A wise investment is that of erp software which will make all of the processes in your company simpler and easier to manage at every level. This is an essential move before expanding your business because it will make it far easier to control a diverse and disparate set of branches around the country or state.

1. Using people outside the team

By outsourcing carefully you will be able to cut down on the number of staff you employ and often get better results whilst doing so. Once you have outsourced it is of vital importance to ensure that the quality of your service and products does not decrease. Make sure you put checks in place to be sure that you are getting full value for money from those you outsource to. When outsourcing you will get the benefit of someone else managing an element of your business and this will both simplify and ease your workload as long as you monitor it correctly.

1. Bettering your talent

After creating a successful business you will find numerous businesses which are willing to pay high charges for the wisdom of your system. Use your existing staff as consultants to create a separate revenue stream in addition to your standard business practice. Be sure when doing so to protect your own interests and instruct your staff on which pieces of information they are not allowed to share with competition.

1. Controlled growth

Once you have diversified your income and managed to reduce your administrative load then it is time to think about expansion. When expanding you need to be wary that you are not biting off more than you can chew. Be sure to secure a healthy and sustainable profit in each branch before opening another and ensure you do not create too large a financial burden by taking out mortgages to expand.

Author Bio: Tom Mallet is an Australian freelance writer and journalist. He writes extensively in Australia, Canada, Europe, and the US. He’s published more than 500 articles about various topics, including investment property off plan and erp software

]]> http://investingport.com/2011/09/making-business-profits-count/feed/ 1 http://investingport.com/2011/09/nigeria-inflation-drop-to-9-3/ http://investingport.com/2011/09/nigeria-inflation-drop-to-9-3/#comments Tue, 20 Sep 2011 13:19:55 +0000 olubussy4u http://investingport.com/?p=7401 Read more »]]> Nigeria inflation rate dropped from 9.4% in July to 9.3% while the GDP also grew to 7,72% as against 7.69% in 2010,National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
According to Dr Olayemi Kale the statistician General of NBS, the monthly change of the CPI is 1.67% compared to last month .Also, on a year to year average, Consumer Price Level fo Urban and rural dwellers rose by 7.1% to 11.1% respectively.
However, oyeyemi said the increase in the monthly food index caused by the upward movement of the prices of most items due to fasting period and the reduction in the inflation rate does not mean fall in price provide the month on month percentage changes.
Average food prices rose by 2.7% in August when compared to July but higher than the corresponding level a year ago by 8.7% resulting in the 11.6% for the period of 12 months.
NBS also indicated that the GDP has grown by 7.72 % in the second quater of the year from the 7.69 recorded in the corresponding quater last year.
The agricultural sector remains the largest contributor to the GDP at 41.49% in the second quater of the year as it was in 2010 with 42.43%.
From the total of 7o countries that have published their GDP result, only China(9.5%), Turkey(8.8%), Estonia(8.4%) grew faster than Nigeria, an evidence of progress towards achieving the country’s vision 2020.

Tip 1 – Set a Limit

The most important thing in any negotiation is to set a limit. You need to work out your finances and make sure that you’re quite realistic about how high you can go. Don’t allow yourself to get pushed over the limit by the agent. Always stay firm to your ceiling and be prepared to walk away. In the long run you’ll be better off and you may find that in sticking firmly to your limit the vendors will be prepared to compromise.

Tip 2 – Never Open With Your Best Offer

Negotiating is like a game of poker where neither the seller nor the buyer know the other one’s hand. This may seem obvious but never start with your maximum offer as this leaves you nowhere to go during the negotiations. A good rule of thumb is to go around 10 – 20% less than the asking price. It’s also important not to start too low either as your offer could be rejected out of hand and you need to show you are serious

Tip 3 – Research the Vendor

Information is power. The more information you have about the vendor, the stronger your negotiating position will be. For instance, what are the vendors reasons for selling? If the vendor is in a desperate financial situation and needs to make a quick sale then this gives you an upper hand in the negotiations. Also find out how long the property has been on the market. If it’s been sitting there for months then chances are you may well be the only one bidding. Sometimes properties can be listed with one agent, fail to attract a buyer and then get listed with another agent. That kind of knowledge gives you a huge advantage when negotiating. So you need to research the property’s history in great detail.

Tip 4 – Don’t Get Emotional

Whether you’re trying to purchase a home or an investment property it’s very easy to fall into the trap of becoming emotionally attached. You may genuinely have fallen in love with a property especially if it’s well presented. Remember at the end of the day that this is a business transaction. You must be able to walk away from the negotiations and know that there will be other properties out there. Becoming too attached can only weaken your negotiating position. Like a game of poker you must not ever show how desperate or keen you are.

Tip 5 – Put It in Writing

Make sure you put all formal offers – whether to the agent or the vendor – in writing.  This means there’s a clear paper trail and there’s no chance of confusion or miscommunication. If you email your offer then that also means there’s a date for all to see and this prevents you being gazumped by a rival bidder

These are just a few things to consider when negotiating but you shouldn’t hesitate to also consult a professional to get further property investment advice.

• Do Your Research

Check out the agent’s profile on their agency website. Usually, they will have a listing of their recent sales. This will help give you a gauge on how successful they are. You should definitely look at properties they’ve sold that are similar to yours. You’ll also see how versatile they are as agents. For instance, do they specialise in high end properties? Do they sell better in certain areas? Every single agent has their own speciality. Another important area to research is how long it generally takes them to clinch a sale. Have they had properties sitting on their books for months or years before they sold them? The flip side to watch out for is if they are an agent who always goes for the quick sale and doesn’t try to get the best possible price. Also, check out all their testimonials. Even contact them if you feel that will help and ask their previous clients what their experience was like.

• Don’t Be Tempted By Low Commission

Some agents will use the promise of low commission as an inducement. Beware. Low commission usually means that they are an agent dealing with a high volume of properties and they’re after a quick turnover. Because they’re not making much money out of your property then they won’t put as much effort into the sale. Hence you won’t get the best possible sales outcome. The normal rate of commission for an agent is around 2% or 2.5%. If an agent is asking for much more than this, you’re certainly entitled to question him or her what they’ll be doing for you to deserve such a high cut of the profit.

• Look For Honesty

Make sure that the agent is transparent and upfront about what they can do for you. At any initial interview or meeting they should be exact about their marketing strategies, costs and how they’ll operate. Be careful if they start promising the world. A common thread is for agents to dazzle you with high price evaluations just to get you as a client. They may end up selling your property for far less than they quoted. It’s often the better agents who will be more cautious and conservative when they give you a valuation.

• See Them In Action

It’s an excellent idea, before you meet with the agent, to go and watch them operate at an open for inspection or an auction. This is the best way of seeing how they work. You’ll be able to witness how they deal with potential buyers and get an idea of just how enthusiastic or knowledgeable or personable they really are. So, don’t be afraid to go undercover and spy on them.

• How Much Time Can They Give You?

Many agents these days will work with a junior assistant who they will get to attend all the opens on their behalf. Some senior agents will even get the assistant to do most of the leg work and ring and chase up potential buyers seeking a property investment. There have been cases where the actual agent hasn’t been involved until the very end (i.e. the clinching of the sale). As a client, the agent has to give you all the time that he or she promised and not delegate you to a junior.  After all, it’s only fair if you’ve chosen them because of their experience. Make sure they are up front about this when you meet them. Also it’s a good idea to find out how many properties they sell at any one time. Realistically, an agent with a high volume of properties on their books isn’t going to be able to spend much time working for you. So find out early if they are spreading themselves too thin.

• Broker. In most cases, there will be a broker who is handling your deal. Hotel investments normally mean those who are investing are investing overseas. Different countries have different laws for ownership. Your broker or agent is probably a part of this deal. The first and very obvious rule is to know your agent or advisor.
• Hotel Management. The hotel is the building, but it is the management company that makes the business. It is important you fully research the hotel management company. A good hotel management company can make a hotel in a previously quiet area very busy. A poor management company can have an empty hotel in the busiest of tourist destinations. Brands have good names for a reason.
• Understand the Market. All hotels rely on different segments of the market. If it is a new hotel, the management company will have considerable plans to make the hotel busy. You should have a good look at their projections, how they intend to make that real, and what is the current market of the region. Hotels make money from bringing people to where they are, and not just relying on who is going there.
• Avoid Putting All Your Eggs in One Basket. Hotel investment and the business of doing it has become very sophisticated. You probably won’t even own any actual part of the building, but you will own shares in the company that owns the hotel. As with other types of investment, spreading your risk across a number of assets is always recommended. If you have the finances to invest in a hotel, you should be investing in several.
• Terms of Contract. Just like any other investment, you need to know you can make changes when you want. You should think of buying into a hotel like buying shares on the stock exchange, or trading currency. Your agreement should be flexible.

Hotel investments in a variety of countries continue to grow. You will need to have a general understanding of the tourism industry, the global market and a whole lot more to take advantage of this type of investment. Anyone who is considering this type of investment must be involved with professionals who are specialists in their field.

The trick is – don’t forget about your idea, adapt it and make it your own. Look at how those other companies have undertaken the idea, and take the best parts from their execution, and then build on those to create something that is uniquely you – and your brand. Every brand is different, so if you align the idea with your unique selling point, you should be able to start evolving the idea quite easily.

Below are 5 ideas that at a base level have been done successfully. If you’re looking for something that pops, take a look at each one, and work out which is achievable. Then start looking at your brand and your unique selling points and mould it so it becomes distinctly you.

1.       Sponsored summer pool parties

At one of the most famous Sydney beaches, renowned throughout the world, every weekend will find a cue of tanned, beautiful people lining up at a white washed, pillared hotel. Pool supplies in hand, they are hoping to get into an exclusive, sponsored pool party held on the rooftop above. These pool parties are famous – and not easy to get into. They not only give the brand that sponsors them a sense of prestige, and encourage the influential attendees to try the brand, they also help to position it is a brand that is a cut above the rest. Could your brand do that?

2.       Guerrilla Marketing

Guerrilla marketing is a form of marketing that leaves convention behind, and does something that grabs attention in a unique and interesting way. It can take place in a variety of ways – from a dare devil stunt, through to something so clever it makes you stop in your stride! One example –a very risqué one – was one brand that sponsored a ‘super hero’ to scale a very tall and prominent building in their name. Another particularly great one, was a company who had their ‘bill board ad’ – a mural, painted at street height. When people walked past, the hired promotional people who were painted into the mural would step out – shocking passersby– and talk to them about the brand. What would you do to take people’s breathe away?

3.       Showcase

Throughout each year, we are invited to many tradeshows and launches, but if you want to see how it’s really done take a look at the recent launch of Microsoft’s Kinect. A showcase extravaganza, it used holograms, actors, sound and images to bring a story to life, that announced the arrival of their new product. How can you bring your product to life?

4.       Client entertainment

This is always a tough one. If you want to go out on your own, do it with a splash – event hire, marquees, famous band to entertain… or you could use something already available. With so many amazing events throughout the year that put the entertainment on for you, why not just supply the tickets? One company, a sponsor of the Formula 1, invites key clients to join them in the prestigious Paddock Club each year the race is in Australia – wining, dining them and giving them the opportunity to rub shoulders with celebrities and look down over the garages.

5.       Street advertising

Finally, street advertising is something we all do. Ads, billboards, bus stops – but why not do something different? Some years ago in Paris, a famous instant coffer brand made use of the street in a unique way, painting branded coffee cups on the pavement on top of grates releasing steam and pressure onto the street – giving the illusion the coffee was hot. Truly spectacular, and something people couldn’t help but stop and look at.