Starting a franchise can be a great way to open a business with a solid infrastructure and brand recognition already built in. In terms of marketing, the cost savings are enormous when it comes to opening a franchise. However, you still need some health startup capital to start your franchise, especially for fees, licenses, construction costs and other miscellaneous expenses. Yet, if you are careful, there are numerous ways to save money on your franchise’s startup costs. Many franchisees make the mistake of jumping the gun and spending too much money on some of these initial expenses, but these financial...

No-one wants to be in debt, but the reality is that most people will have to borrow money at some point during their lifetime. You cannot underestimate the importance of a sensible loan repayment service that is integrated within a loan facilitator. It is vital to plan your debts in order to avoid costly penalties. Be Honest Many people with lots of different debts, including secured and unsecured loans, credit card debt and overdrafts, don’t want to face up to how much they actually owe. However, if you’re honest about this you can start planning a strategy for dealing with...

A new year is around the corner, once Christmas is out of the way it’s always How can you make your hard-earned money work hard for you?  If you are thinking about investing, here are four options worth considering: Investing in the stock market – Although not without risk, as shares can go down as well as up, this type of investment is traditionally a strong long-term option.  A good return in the short-term is rare, but if you are patient and you are in it for the long run, investing in the stock market after the Global Financial Crisis...

Many people hear the phrase “offshore banking”, and don’t know what that means, or they don’t know that it can help individual people as much as it can help large corporations. But there are many benefits to using an offshore bank. One of the biggest benefits is that since most offshore banks operate in countries with fewer taxes, accounts in these banks will pay interest without seeing taxes deducted from it, making this a good option for those who don’t need to pay taxes on global income. Also, interest rates are sometimes higher with offshore bank accounts, offering better returns...

For fund managers, financial advisers, and Registered Investment Advisors, getting a holistic view of the risk/reward value of all the assets under management has not been easy.  A great deal of the portfolio management software currently available is still somewhat “clunky”: customized spreadsheets cobbled-together with various specialized programs, some of which depend on data uploaded from public sources. “In the past most portfolio management software has largely been accountant-driven,” explains Daniel Rotherford, investment fund officer at Legal & General Unit Trust. “But fund managers gain immensely from a global view what is happening throughout their holdings. This is now much...

As a small business owner, I’m always looking for ideas on how to improve my service and save money. It wasn’t until I received an email from a company promoting a service that would buy back my old video games that I asked myself why I wasn’t using this marketing method. Needless to say, I used this service to sell video games, which prompted me to look into how I could use email marketing on my own terms to grow my business. More than anything, I wanted to know–if that service could hook me as a customer with a simple...

There has been an increase in the number of people taking out equity release loans against their property. There have been more than half a billion pounds unlocked in equity release products in the first six months of 2013. This is a rise of 12% compared to 2012. Equity release is eligible for those aged 55 years or over, and is a way for homeowners to release cash against the value of their property. Equity release can provide you with a single substantial payment, a regular income, or both, without the need to move. In order to be eligible for...