Introduction to Angel Investing

What is Angel Investing?

Angel Investing is the process of finding start-up companies and funding the early stages of their development in exchange for a share in the company and percentage of turnover. Businesses often opt for angel investment as the funds do not appear as a debt on the balance sheet. If the business chose to raise capital with a bank loan then if the company fails they are still liable for the debt.

Angel Investors are normally confused with venture capitalists. An angel investor is a passive investor that will fund an enterprise during the first stages of development. They will provide seed capital to companies who have potential for massive growth. Angel investors are normally wealthy individuals and their contributions are anything up to a $1 million. Venture Capitalists generally take a more proactive view of controlling the project as they often provide significant funding of $5 million or more.

Angel Investors make money by claiming a portion of ongoing turnover and also realize a large lump sum gain when the company is sold or floated.

How Angel Investing play a part in your portfolio

Angel investors can invest in a number of ways; with their own money direct into a start-up company, as part of a pooled fund known as an 'Angel Group' or through an Angel Investing Managed Fund.

The target exit time for angel investors is fairly long with a sale of their share coming after at least 5 years. That can seem a long time to tie up amounts around $1million. Angel Investing can be very risky if the correct due diligence is not conducted. As in every kind of investment you should thoroughly research your proposed strategy and make a decision based on the facts. Not on gut feeling or even market sentiment. Markets can change in an instant but solid numbers take time to appreciate or deteriorate.

If you have insufficient funds to directly invest into a business you could join an Angel Group. With a minimum investment of $100,000 you could join an Angel Group and have your funds diversified into a number of start-up projects. This will diversify your investment and you realise a gain that is an aggregate of the group's total turnover.

If you are not comfortable with having your money tied up for a long period of time then an Angel Investing Managed Fund may be a suitable option. Returns are vastly diluted by fees, failures and by having your investment more liquid.

Angel Investing is definitely worth an investigation as the returns can be very high. The perceived risk of this kind of investment is high but relative to the potential returns, and relative to potential falls that can occur in the stock market, this kind of investment is stable.

Murray J. Priestley is the Managing Partner of Portofino Asset Management, a private asset manager and publisher of the Portofino Report, an alternative investment education newsletter. For more information - http://www.PortofinoReport.com

Investing the Right Way 

The world of investments offers a dangerous draw: huge rewards with the chance of terrible losses. Investors love the idea of accumulating wealth, but no one likes losing money. The trick is to know how to invest with minimal risk. Nobody can predict the fluctuations of the market completely accurately, but as you start investing, you'll learn to take the losses and look forward to the next market high.

The market is uncontrollable, but it helps to know what you're investing in. Become familiar with the products and businesses you invest in before you make the jump. Too many new investors invest in a hot stock from the previous year, excited by the market high. Remember: market highs never last. It's smart to invest in a strong stock with a record than a trend that's in one year and out the next.

Just as important as the product is the reasoning behind your choosing it. If you know why you're investing in a stock, you'll always know what your next move is. For example, if you invest for the sake of profits only, when prices fall you'll know to drop out, instead of fretting over whether to wait and cross your fingers for the next market high, or cut your losses.

Investments are all about timing - not the timing of the market highs and lows, but the timing of your moves in relation to them. You have to know when to take profits and when to cut losses. Some say when the market is up, run a profit in case the market keeps climbing. However, others worry the market will fall, so it's best to back out while you're up. When the market is low, everyone knows to cut your losses - back out before it gets worse.

Don't invest in what you can't afford, and don't invest without a good reason. While the market highs are satisfyingly rewarding, the market lows are part of the ride. Although much of investing is gut instinct, you can't afford to make reckless decisions. Invest to your advantage, rather than let the market rip at your bank account.

The best thing to do is study the market. Don't jump to invest before you study the product's record and think over your reasoning. Some good books about investing include The Real Life Investing Guide by Kenan Pollack and Eric Heighberger, The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need by Andrew Tobias, and The Wall Street Journal Guide to Understanding Money and Investing (3rd Edition) by Kenneth M. Morris and Alan M. Siegel. Know what you're doing and why before you start investing.

When you make informed choices, you can gain many benefits from the market. The business world is unpredictable, but when the market's up, the rewards are well worth the gamble.

About The Author:

Alan Jason Smith is the owner of http://www.stinvestments.com which is a great place to find investment links, resources and articles. For more information go to: http://www.stinvestments.com

Two Timeless Rules in FOREX Investing

RULE #1) ~ Cut your losers; let your winners ride.

One important thing that every new trader must know before entering this highly profitable business is that life is not perfect, even in FOREX land, and you should always know one fact: YOU WILL HAVE LOSING TRADES.

Every FOREX trader does. The key to being a consistent, predictable, reliable trader is to, at the end of the day, add up more wins than losses. And, when you KNOW(based off your trading rules), without a doubt, that YES, indeed you are, in a losing trade, don't keep losing money (lowering your stop loss) just to *prove you are right* or your rules are wrong (however you want to look at it).

All traders have to face it - you can't turn a donkey into a ferrari. You can't change the strips of a zebra and you can't turn chicken poop into chicken salad. The best trades are usually "right" immediately (the techniques, rules, methods and strategies you can learn in my website will be your best indicator for just what a "right" trade really is).

Remember, people have been trading the markets for a hundred and sixty years. The smart traders know there's going to be another trade. Cut your loses short and compound those winning positions.

RULE #2) ~ Thou Shall Not Trade the FOREX Without Placing a Stop Loss Order.

When you place a STOP order, right along with your ENTRY order, via your online trade station, you've just automatically prevented a potential loss from "running" too far.

Before initiating any trade, if you haven't already figured out at what point you would be wrong and would want to cut your loses or, at the very least, reevaluate your position from the sidelines, then you shouldn't be putting on the trade in the first place.

Show me a FOREX trader who doesn't use stop loss orders and I'll show you someone who loses a lot of money

Adrian Pablo; Forex trader and freelance writer.

http://www.1-forex.com

Investing In Tax Foreclosed Properties

Tax Properties

Every property that is owned is assessed property taxes that must be paid every year. Property taxes are paid to local and state governments based on the appraisal value of the real estate. All states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the American Virgin Islands and Canada have property taxes.

When a property owner doesn't pay their taxes, they are usually penalized and warned. If the owner still doesn't pay the taxes, the property is either seized, gets a lien placed against it, or both. After due process, the property is sold at a tax auction.

Tax auctions provide one of the most extraordinary investment opportunities that exist to date. If properly educated, an investor can by real-estate for a small fraction of what it is worth. They can rent, sell, or use the property for themselves.

In most states, the government taxing agency allows investors to pay a delinquent owner's taxes. The investor receives a tax lien certificate. If the owner wants to keep the property, they have a limited time to pay off the lien, including interest, fees, and any additional taxes that had been paid after "possession". If the owner fails to pay off the lien, the property is deeded to the investor.

In some states, the government taxing agency will not allow investors to pay the taxes, so the property is seized and goes to the agency. The property is then auctioned off, usually for back taxes, penalties, and interest. The successful bidder typically gets 1st lien, so the dead is free and clear.

In other states, the delinquent property is sold at auction for the amount of taxes, penalties, and fees, but the original owner has a time period to buy the property back. The buy-back price includes interest (often very high), penalties, fees, etc. The taxing agencies make the deal as sweet as possible to encourage investors to bid on the properties and solve the delinquent tax problem

James Ficarro provides an excellent resource for finding and buying tax foreclosed properties and liens in every county in the United States. http://www.tax-property-sales.com

Equity Discount Real Estate Investing

Consider these parameters for a real estate deal:

Property Value: $250,000 Purchase Price: $160,000 Repairs: $2,500

If you analyze the numbers, you see that the equity available in this deal is $87,500 (Property Value minus Purchase Price minus Repairs).

So here's a hypothetical question for you: Assuming that the information above is accurate, and the property is located in an area that you view as acceptable and/or favorable, then:

If I offered to give you this deal in exchange for $10,000 in cash, would you do it?

Remember - this is hypothetical. The real question here is this:

Would you exchange $10,000 in cash for $87,500 in equity?

For most savvy investors, the answer is: Absolutely YES!

This is called "Wholesale Real Estate Investing" - the process of buying a lot of equity at a very significant discount from another real estate investor who has already done the hard work of finding a deal and getting it under contract.

Just think about that - consider how easy real estate investing would be for you if you had a network of real estate investors in your area (and maybe even all over the country) who, several times each month, offered you the opportunity to purchase significant amounts of equity for a severe discount...

...It would be quite easy to become wealthy, fairly quickly, wouldn't it?

The answer again, is: Absolutely Yes, it will.

It is through smart "wholesale real estate investing" that you can increase your net worth by $20,000 to $100,000 on every real estate deal that you do.

...Now the burning question becomes, "Where exactly do I find these wholesale real estate investing deals?"

I know of at least 3 solid sources...

You've got to admit - it will be a pretty wonderful thing when you know how to find great real estates deals in which you can trade a small amount of cash for a large amount of equity without even having to find the deals yourself...

...And that's exactly what "wholesale real estate investing" is all about.

So let's get right to it. Here are 3 places to find wholesale real estate deals:

1.) Visit the local real estate investing club in your area. Almost all of these clubs have networking opportunities to work with other investors who wholesale deals regularly, and this is an easy way to find great opportunities.

2.) Watch for ads in the newspaper, television, and in other media that advertise slogans like, "We Buy Houses", or "Sell Your House in 9 Days" or anything similar to that. Most of the time, these people are real estate investors, and they are happy to wholesale deals to people like you.

3.) Watch your email-box. Why? Because if and when you choose enrollment in various free e-courses online, such as that via tm-RealEstateInvesting.com, you'll be provided with automatic notification about great local and national deals as they become available. But be forewarned - you've got to act quickly whenever these deals are announced, because obviously the response is always significant.

Happy Hunting!

James Louis writes about things that impact our society. A long time real estate investor, he likes to share his knowledge, insights and tools. One of his favorite tools is the 1031 exchange. For more information visit: http://www.the-1031-exchange-site.com

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