Business

The most popular thread we’ve had at the First Class Forum is “What’s Your Biggest Personal Expense?” It’s funny how a thread could launch a whole new company. But, that’s exactly what has happened.

The exercise is to look at your biggest expense. This is something that you currently can’t get a write-off for from your business. It could be a luxury car, designer clothes, or European travel. It could be anything!

Think about your biggest expense. What would you love to write-off?

One of the topics we discussed briefly at the past weekend’s seminar was the fact that you can start or invest in businesses using your self-directed pension plan. There was quite a bit of interest in the subject, so I thought I’d go through some of the details to give you an idea of how it’s done.

In all cases, the big issues are steering clear of disqualified persons and prohibited transactions. Get to know your self-directed pension custodian well - you’re going to need their information, referrals and assistance to make sure you stay within the rules.

My son David has been researching a new idea that he presented this past weekend to a gentleman who has made tens of millions of dollars developing Internet companies and then selling them. This is one David did all on his own. And, at the first meeting, he convinced the gentleman to partner with David on this new project.

So, now my son is asking me the questions that a lot of people ask when they start a business and need a business structure fast. What is the best business structure? What state should we incorporate in?

You might have seen the “no money down” real estate deals. But, what if your issue is “no time”? Learn how investing in a Real Estate Investment Trust can be a simple way to real estate wealth.

We discovered yesterday that internet access at the venue was a bit spotty, and my machine was spottier than most. Here’s what happened after I left off yesterday morning:

Business Alchemy: The Game

We spent the afternoon playing the Business Alchemy game. The game helps people explore themselves and the members in their group, with a goal of finding the intersection of talent, passion and product.

You can always tell when there’s a seminar going on at TaxLoopholes - things get really quiet on the boards and the blog.

With Diane on stage all weekend, I figured I’d play “Johnny-on-the-spot” reporter and give you updates of what’s happening today.

Got kids? Don’t have kids, but need to do some shopping? Depending on where you live, there’s a tax “holiday” just around the corner!

I had some comments and questions that came in after my email yesterday about what to do after the IndyMac failure. I thought it would be good to put the questions and answers in the blog. I’ve also got some very good information from a former FDIC employee on how the insurance works.

First question: I am trying to find the list of 100 banks on the current watch list, as Diane mentions. Where can I get this list?

You might have seen the “no money down” real estate deals. But, what if your issue is “no time”? Learn how investing in a Real Estate Investment Trust can be a simple way to real estate wealth.

There are a growing number of states looking at the gross receipts tax as an option for collecting tax from businesses. Why? That’s the easy part to answer. States need money. Some states such as Texas have a state constitution that forbids taxing income at the state level. So, how do they raise needed money?

The answer is the gross receipts tax. There are currently a handful of states that have a form of this tax. These include Arizona (only for 16 industries), Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, MIssissippi, New Mexico, Ohio, Texas and Washington.