My blog

Just another WordPress site

Thomas

Eyeing a New Set of Wheels? Avoid These 3 Common Car Loan Mistakes People Often Make

By on

Over 6.3-million cars sold in the United States in 2017. CNN Money says, “A record 107 million Americans have auto loan debt, according to data released this week by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. That’s about 43% of the entire adult population in the US.”

Borrowing money to buy cars—new or pre-owned—is part of the American lifestyle. That doesn’t mean buyers and borrowers are making good lending deals. Too many make too many mistakes when seeking a loan to finance their car.

Avoid these 3 common car loan mistakes:

Forgetting your budget

You must approach the car dealer with a firm budget in mind. Buyers can be swayed by car color, trim, and finish. But, you must have a budget in mind. That budget has little to do with the sticker price on the car. It has everything to do with what you can afford.

You must budget the monthly payment along with your mortgage payment or apartment rent. You must include monthly payments for utilities, food, entertainment, and other debts. So, you don’t want to see extras and add-ons run up your monthly car payment. Our loan calculator will help you budget better.

Buying blind

There is no excuse for not shopping around. You don’t want to be drawn to the dealer’s advertised deals in the Sunday paper when the Internet lets you explore the products on sale at every dealer within miles of your residence.

Other websites, including Kelly Blue Book and Edmunds, offer extensive reviews on the performance of make and model of every car on the market. They also give you the estimated cost of a purchase and/or trade-in. In any case, you do not want to approach a car salesperson without a detailed choice in mind.

Ignoring pre-approval

It’s one mistake to tell the dealer what you are willing to pay each month. It’s another if you can secure loan approval ahead of time. The auto loan interest rate at your favorite bank or credit union are likely to be well below what the dealer offers.

Securing pre-approval for the amount and monthly payment you can budget lets you shop more widely. And, it gives you more control over the purchase. Because car shopping can be emotional and impulsive behavior, separating the lending arrangement from the purchase option gives you more leverage to make an intelligent deal.

Eyeing a new set of wheels?

The Los Angeles Times reports the downside, “New cars depreciate by about 20% as soon as you drive them off the lot and lose roughly half their value in the first three years. The vast majority continue losing value until they’re sold for scrap. Only a handful of classic cars ever appreciate.”

Having said that, most people will still finance their cars with loans. It’s helpful to realize you are really financing a loss when you do your budgeting. That should not discourage your borrowing, but it can shape your deal for the better.

The Many Ways a Virtual Receptionist Can Help a Car Rental Company

By on

If you run a car rental business, the telephone is a very important tool. Aside from website bookings, most customers who want to rent a vehicle would call the car rental company and by using a virtual receptionist service, you can cost effectively handle all your incoming calls. The virtual receptionist might be in a remote location, but she is fully briefed on all aspects of her client’s business and is more than capable of making a rental booking or dealing with an enquiry.

Online Booking System

Most car rental companies are already using a cloud-based booking system, which allows authorised staff to make bookings regardless of their location, which means that the regular phone staff and the virtual receptionist can work to the same calendar and vehicle availability is known to all.

The receptionist at a car rental office has many essential roles to carry out, such as inspecting vehicles before and after rental, filling out paperwork and liaising with other staff members regarding car care. Answering the phone can be affordably outsourced, leaving key employees free to focus on providing the kind of service that brings customers back again and again.

Global Coverage

The market leaders in providing virtual receptionist services can cover just about any global location, and whether you want a virtual receptionist USA, Australia or the UK clients will appreciate, they can provide trained receptionists with local accents which is essential for a local business. Thanks to a high speed broadband Internet connection, the virtual receptionist can instantly receive any incoming calls and the caller would naturally assume the recipient is sitting in your offices.

Flexibility

The virtual receptionist provider offers a wide range of tailored packages, so there’s bound to be one that suits your needs perfectly. You might, for example, only require call handling outside of office hours and every day. When your regular receptionist clocks off, her virtual partner is ready and waiting. If your regular desk staff is sick for any reason, a single call and your back-up team are ready to step in and as you only pay for the service you use, it is very affordable. In the unlikely event you are not familiar with the term cloud-based system, there is a definition and detailed explanation online to help you understand how it works.

No Expensive Hardware to Install

Configuring your telecommunications network to allow a virtual receptionist to be factored into the system is very simple and most providers are happy to give a potential client a free trial, which is a sign that they are very confident that their services are indeed first class.

If you would like to know the ins and outs of call handling and what it can do for your business, all it takes to talk to a provider is a simple online search. With very flexible packages and a desire to please, the service can take the strain from your car rental staff and allow them to focus on servicing clients as they collect and drop off vehicles.

How To Hire The Right Bookkeeper For The Job

By on

Bookkeepers are an important part of any business. We’d go so far as to say they could help make or break your company. Making sure you take the time to hire the right person for the job is important.

So, just how do you find the right bookkeeping services Sydney CBD professionals are offering?

Follow the below tips for advice.

  1. Efficient, Organised and Process-Driven

The right bookkeeper for you is one that understands your industry, your requirements and your business processes so they can get stuck into the task at hand. They make sure your processes are streamlined, as well as theirs, to provide timely reporting and meet necessary deadlines.

The right bookkeeper will be dedicated to the financial success of your business, have an eye for detail and care about keeping your books error free and current.

  1. Trust and Ethics

Both you and the bookkeeper need to be comfortable with each other, so you can build a trustworthy professional relationship. It’s important that you give your bookkeeper all the right information, so they can keep accurate records for you.

However, you should also make sure that your business is protected. For example, your bookkeeper should never need access to the company’s bank accounts. They can certainly prepare a supplier payment file, but it is you as the business owner that should process payments.

What’s more, whenever new suppliers are created, there ought to be checks in place to ensure the account being paid is the real deal and that the bills are legitimate.

  1. Technical Know-How

Current software knowledge is essential. Bookkeepers who know how to use online accounting software are better able to automate a wide range of processes and reduce time spent on data entry. Further, cloud-based systems help your bookkeeper keep your business’s accounts up to date and it lets you identify any issues and make decisions much quicker.

  1. Communication

It is important to keep the lines of communication open between you and your bookkeeper. He or she should be aware of business operations, issues and goals so as to effectively do their job. The ideal candidate will be able to enhance relationships with staff, managers, customers and even suppliers.

  1. Questions

The right bookkeeper for your business will ask the right questions. He or she will also be happy to share ideas when it comes to financial planning, ways of increasing your bottom line, budgeting, cash flow and a range of other cost-saving strategies that can improve business performance. With a decent understanding of your business and your financial position, a bookkeeper can help your business grow while effectively keeping costs down.

Most of important of all, a good bookkeeper will continue to train, certify and upskill. Those who are registered with boards will be required to have the necessary training, learning and qualifications in certain areas, especially when it comes to tax.

Employing the right bookkeeper for your company takes away the stress of dealing with the books yourself. He or she should be able to render your business more profitable and keep up to date with accurate financial information.

4 Things You Can Do To Improve The Look Of Your Website

By on

As the owner of a small business, you have lot to handle. Aside from running your business, managing inventory, and keeping customers happy, you need to stay on top of your website to make sure it looks good and provides visitors with valuable information. If you think your website is not getting enough traffic, making certain changes could improve the way the site looks and help you keep traffic flowing all day and night.

Create a Frequently Asked Questions Section

If you do not already have an FAQ section on your website, you should create one that consists of all the important questions the consumers commonly ask you before they decide to purchase something directly from the site. It is important to create the FAQ section for several reasons. It answers a lot of the questions people have so that you do not need to constantly respond to the same questions all the time, but it is also a way for you to optimize the content.

After doing some keyword research, you probably already know what keywords you should use in your site’s content. While you can add some of those keywords to blog posts and even product descriptions, you may be able to fit a few of those keywords into the questions and answers, ultimately increasing visibility of your site on search engines.

Choose a Modern and Simple Design

Some small business owners fail to realize that keeping things modern and simple is the way to go. If you are using too many colors, designs, and images all throughout your site, it is going to take much longer to load and it is going to take away from the content you are posting. If you want to keep traffic on your site for a longer period, you should choose a simple design. Small business websites with modern, crisp, and fresh designs tend to look a lot more professional to viewers.

Use Authentic Images

The use of authentic images on your site is more important than you have probably realized during the design process. While stock photos are available and are often an affordable way to add some images to a site when you do not have images of your own to upload, they are not going to resonate as well with the consumers. If you are trying to get them interested in something you sell, you need to add authentic images to your website. You should include photos that have been taken with a high-resolution camera. It is a great idea to include people in these images because consumers often become more interested in a product when they see someone else with it in a photo. Having the right images on your website will leave much more of an impact on those who happen to visit your site.

Link to Authoritative Websites

Always make sure to include a few links to authoritative websites within your content. If you are stating facts or providing statistics, you should be able to back those facts and statistics up by linking to credible sources. When you link to credible sources, website visitors feel more confident in what they are reading because they see you have backed up the stuff that you are saying rather than just providing random information that may be inaccurate. Aside from making readers trust you a bit more, it could help you improve you with your search engine optimization strategy.

If you run a small business and have a website that is not performing well, you should make some changes to improve the way it looks. Consider creating an information FAQ section, choose a modern and simple design, use authentic images you have taken, and always link to authoritative sites to improve the credibility of your content.

Last Minute Money: Are You Prepared For The Unexpected?

By on

Have you ever had a rough financial month, where several unexpected expenses came up, leaving you desperately waiting for your next paycheck? Unfortunately, no matter how well you budget, there will always be uncontrollable expenses that arise. The good news is you can better prepare yourself financially with affordable and low-risk lending options that can be accessed when certain expenses occur. So, have in mind some of the unexpected expenses to plan ahead of time.

School

The high cost of education can be surprising to many. While tuition fees can be expensive, they mostly never factor for additional costs such as books, remedial classes, and dorm necessities. Loans from entities such as KingOfKash.com are an effective and simple way to cushion your savings without having to dig into your savings account.

Car Repair

Cars break down when you least expect it, and admittedly, it can be one of the most inconvenient expenses. Not only can you perform regularly scheduled maintenance on your car and ensure that your vehicle is running at maximum capacity, but you can also plan to have unexpected equipment failures sometime in the year which will need a short-term loan to have it fixed.

Medical bills

Just like car breakdowns, medical emergencies tend to arise unexpectedly and need urgent attention. The thought can be frightening if you lack substantial savings or health insurance to cater for unexpected injuries or illnesses. You can keep your family’s health a top priority by making sure you have adequate insurance and a trusted lender in mind to help you meet your financial obligations. Be it a personal loan or credit, you can get money at the time of need without having to wait for days.

Repair Costs

Home appliances such as washing machines, air conditioners, dishwashers and water heaters die at the worst unexpected moment. These repairs or replacements are not only urgent but costly. A short-term loan can be a lifesaver in some repair circumstances, so ensure to factor in the cost of most home replacements which can incur hundreds to replace.

House Payments

You may have everything worked out when the time comes to buying a home, but there’s always something you’re likely to forget. Most first time homeowners are often awed by all the unexpected expenses they have to clear. By having a reliable source of funds, you will be able to settle any recurring expenses such as high utility bills and mortgage payment.

Various demanding situations strike when you’re least prepared. And while you can’t always plan for the unexpected, you can plan to be well prepared. Preparing today for tomorrow’s unknown will put you in a position to respond faster and make better decisions when the time comes. If building up on your savings is not enough, you can explore other credit options to get you the cash you need to get you through even if you have bad credit. Keeping in mind the unexpected expenses highlighted above will help you prepare in advance so you can ensure your budget remains on the right track.

Tips on Keeping on top of your Finances

By on

When you are starting up a business, it is essential that you keep on top of your finances.  It is of course integral in ensuring that your business stays afloat.  Of course, it’s likely that you will have all kinds of advice from financial services professionals – but it’s important that you don’t feel surprised or confused by your end of year finances.  We’ve put together some tips to help out.

Don’t Forget HMRC

Income can fluctuate when you are in business.  Irrespective of whether your business has had a fantastic month or not – you should make it standard practice to put away 20% for HMRC.  To make sure you do this, setting up a separate bank account for this purpose may be a good idea.  It means when you are hit with a tax bill, you don’t need to worry. This will ensure that you always have the necessary cash on hand even for things that you’d rather not pay!

Choose the Correct Banking Solution

Choosing the correct banking solution is essential for small businesses.  It should be as convenient as possible, so it takes you as little time as possible to complete.  You need to be able to view your financial situation with ease – as well as be able to complete and accept payments quickly.  As well as this, you might want to integrate it with you accounting software for even more convenience or add trusted users to keep on top of things. You can click here for some great business banking solutions. 

Get Good Accounting Software

Having good accounting software is essential in making sure you are on top of your company finances.  There are some great free ones that you can take advantage of.  You can use the likes of Xero to do this.  Here you can generate invoices, review your incomings and outgoings at a glance, you can easily identify if someone is taking too long to pay their bills – and you can even pull profit and loss reports.  There is even a Xero app that’s available on your phone that will allow you to access this data at your convenience.

Hire the Professionals

It’s always a good idea to seek advice from professionals when dealing with company finances.  Choosing the right book-keeper or accountant can be important in terms of getting things right from the get go.  Book-keepers can make sure that the day to day operations such as getting invoices ready and receipts etc.  Accountants can make sure that you are being as effective as possible in terms of tax savings and strategic financial planning when it comes to long-term goals. 

If you are having trouble when it comes to keeping on top of your small business finances – then hopefully some of these tips will be able to help keep you on track. 

Facebook

Be a Money Blogger

Let’s Connect