Setting up a home based business might sound like a fantastic idea at the outset, no boss to worry about, no morning panic and commuting miseries, no more traffic jams and road rage and best of all the flexibility to do what you want when you want. Sounds like a dream come true, however if you do not discipline yourself to work conscientiously you will not make any money!There are many articles and informative websites on setting up home based businesses, but what they fail to enlighten you about is the things you need to avoid doing to be successful. Read this article to find out what steps you need to take to make your business flourish.When you are deciding what business to set up from your home, you need to consider the possibility of having employees work out of your home. Do you have enough space for this to be possible? What about employee insurance and workers compensation coverage? You will also be taking a huge risk letting strangers into your home so prospective candidates will need to be very carefully screened. If you have to employ people for your business try to get people who come highly recommended, run credit checks, police checks and reference checks to make doubly sure.Do not entertain the thought of making do with your existing telephone for business. One phone call from a friend can tie up the line for ages and ruin good business opportunities. Moreover, until people realize and accept that you are running a business the tendency to call and chat will be strong, simply because you are at home. Invest in a good telephone system and phone service. Give your business that professional touch with a good system.Bringing clients to your home for business meetings is really not a very professional approach, unless the room you have set up as an office has a separate entrance to it. You wouldn’t want your client to see your home with the toys and clothes strewn all over the place! Use the local coffee shop for your business meetings; it will be a lot better than inviting them to your home. Find a coffee shop that has an internet connection, most of them do and you can be on line and very professional at your meeting.Take your business seriously and do not mix home and office. Set your self work timings and take a dedicated approach to building your business. If you need coffee, install a coffee machine in your office, don’t wander into the kitchen, you will be tempted to do a few dishes or start tidying up!
Property Management – The Key Ingredient To Success
If someone were to ask me how we remain a successful business during a down economy, I would say it is because we have found a need and filled it.
Just like the Wright Brothers when they invented the airplane.
The world was evolving and they realized a need and filled it.
In our business we find that people NEED a property manager to oversee their properties. That need would arise if an owner lives out of town or may travel consistently. In some cases you would need an experienced property manager because tenants can very easily take advantage of a less experienced landlord. A good property manager can help manage the tenant-landlord relationship to help make sure everyone is happy and that you are not being taken advantage of.
Some property owners need help in recognizing what improvements or repairs need to be made to their properties. An experienced property manager has an eye for those details and can be of great assistance when it is time to make those decisions and can often save an owner time and money with their experience. Your property is constantly being compared to other properties that the prospective renter is looking at. Unfortunately, the other apartments may not be 40 years old like your building. A good property manager can spot quick and inexpensive ways to update the look of your unit and attract the new renter.
Most owners aren’t aware of all of the legal requirements when renting out a property. This could expose you to some very expensive risk in dealing with your tenants. We are living in a very litigious society and if you are not an experienced landlord this could land you in hot water as renters are becoming more and more savy and know more about the laws than you do.
Many property owners buy their property when they are younger and more able to handle a 4 unit building or even a 12 unit building. As we get older we have less desire to handle 12 different tenant personalities and 12 different bathrooms that need to be maintained. These smaller apartment buildings can’t afford a full time manager, even giving someone an apartment for free to watch over things is probably too much expense for your building. Leave it to the professionals that can handle your building and make you more money than you may be making doing everything yourself.
Home Based Business Owners – Do You Have Enough Insurance?
Are You Covering Your Home Based Business With Homeowners Insurance? Many home based business owners rely upon their normal home insurance policy to cover their business assets. Sometimes, this will be ok, but very often, this is a big mistake. To understand why it could be a mistake, please take a moment to learn about typical homeowners policies.Personal Property vs. Business PropertyThe first problem that usually crops up is that the typical home policy does not have enough personal property coverage. A home based business may add supplies, equipment, computers, inventory, and records to the normal personal property in the home. Combine this with the furniture, TV sets, and appliances in that same home. Whatever coverage you and your agent thought was enough before you ran you home based business may be woefully inadequate now!Also be sure that your personal property is covered at the replacement costs, and not the real value. If your property is covered at real value, you will have to accept garage sale prices if your precious items are damaged. You laptop may cost $1,200 to replace, but would be unlikely to fetch more than a couple of hundred dollars if you sold it on eBay. You do not want to have to replace your business items that way.Do you even know how much personal property coverage you have in your own policy? Lots of homeowners have no idea. It is time to dig out your policy or call your agent or insurance company to find out.Home vs. Business Liability Insurance Typically, a home policy covers the home owner in case a visitor makes a claim for damages while they are visiting. This may not cover damages that happen in the course of business. Your normal policy will not contain professional or business liability coverage at all.Personal vs. Commercial Car InsuranceAnother coverage issue that many small business owners forget about is coverage for their cars. Personal auto insurance policies may not be adequate if you use your own car for business quite a bit. This can be especially true if you let employees drive it, carry inventory, or drive a lot more than you originally stated when you bought your policy.How Can You Find Adequate Home Based Business Insurance? It is no time to fret but just to take some action! It may be very simple to fix the problem with your homeowners and home based business insurance. Here are some of the solutions you may find.
If your business if fairly small, your insurer may be able to adjust your policy to cover business items by adding a rider. This is probably a simple and fairly affordable solution.
Business Owners Policies (BOP) are insurance packages that many small businesses purchase. They contain a package of coverage that are typically adequate. If your business is a bit larger, this may be the solution you need.
You may also be able to adjust your car insurance policy to cover some business use. If not, you may need to purchase a commercial vehicle policy.
Your auto and home insurance policies may be very simple and affordable to adjust. But if you ignore the issue you run the risk of having big financial problems if some essential business supplies are damaged or a customer claims damages.