Archive for April, 2009

Residential Property Investment – Barriers > What if Interest Rates Goes Up?

Okay, Here’s the first one of the fears!
What if Interest Rates Goes Up?

If you are scared of interest rates going up then the solution is to fix it. Just remember that interest rates can both go up and down. Fixing the interest rate reduces the risk that you will have to pay more interest in the future (i.e. guarantee that your interest expense is constant over the period) However, if interest rate drops and you have fixed it then you won’t get any benefit of the interest savings. A suggestion is to fix half the loan so that you can get 1/2 the benefit of interest movement in either direction.

Most people think are scared that interest rates, fixing interest rates will only guarantee that your expense is known (ie. it will not increase or decrease). The factor to note when fixing your interest rates, especially in the more recent economic time (2008) when interest rates all over the world has dropped dramatically, is that fixed rate break cost will go up approximately proportional to the interest savings from the rate drop.

Remember that Banks lend money based on your current financial situation, so as the financial situation improves (e.g. interest rate drop) you would benefit, however if the financial situation deteriorate (e.g. interest rate rise) you would suffer. That is why some people prefer the certainty of being able to service the interest payments through good times or bad times (assuming their financial situation does not change through time)

So think about this the next time you think about fixing your interest rates!

Residential Property Investment – Barriers > What if Interest Rates Goes Up?

ANZAC Day – The Knights of Gallipoli
Saturday, April 25th, 2009

Today is ANZAC Day… Just incase you don’t know what ANZAC stands for… Australian & New Zealand Amry Corp. ANZAC Day marks the anniversary of the first major military action that Australian & New Zealand was involved in.

The ANZACs got their name after being deployed in an expedition to capture the Gallipoli Peninsula, Turkey. The plan for the expedition was bold and had it succeeded it would have brought the War much closer to the end… Though the campaign failed, the incredible personal qualities the soldiers on the battlefield shown during their hardship have now become the true spirit of ANZACs. The endurance, courage, ingenuity, good humour, and mateship of Australian & New Zealand soldiers now lives on as the ANZAC spirit. This ‘spirit’ is in all Australian and New Zealanders (and hopefully many others) and ANZAC Day is all about remembering the sacrifices and those remarkable qualities which is inside everybody today.

I hope you have a special ANZAC Day today and find some time to look deep inside to reflect on some of the ANZAC qualities you have within yourself!

Source: Hale School

First Home Owner Grant Discontinued
Thursday, April 23rd, 2009

I’ve just found out that the Australian First Home Owner Grant bonus ($14,000 for existing property and $21,000 for new property), is unlikely to continue.

PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd has confirmed the first home buyers grant will not be extended past its deadline of June 30.

Under the government’s $1.5 billion first home buyers boost, the first home buyers grant was doubled from $7000 to $14,000 last October.

Those first home buyers who purchase a new home receive an extra $7000 to take the total cost of government assistance to $21,000.

The construction and real estate industries have hailed the boost with some calling on it to be continued.

They have voiced fears that if the grant is removed the real estate market will collapse.

The Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) described the move as ”very disappointing” and called on the Government for more stimulus measures.

Read more at News.com.au

There’s been a lot of speculation about whether the First Home Owner Grant Bonus would continue or not through the current economic situation, and as a first home owner myself, I had some mixed feelings about it. On one hand you get an extra $7,000 incentive to get into the property market, on the other hand the property prices may be more inflated than they should be.

Either way, I’ve been having a look at what’s out on the market… it’ll be a matter of time before I get my hands on one regardless of the First Home Owner Grant incentive. I’m quite interested in what property prices will look like when the last of the First Home Owner Grant buyers are out of the market.

My economics tells me that when demand falls, price falls….

Value for Money
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009

Here’s an friendly email I received from an author of one of the many resources we have available at Your Success Club which you get instant access to by doing our 21 day Test Drive.

The email below is just to show you the quality and value for money of information that we have at Your Success Club, so much so that even authors of the resources are on our backs to get it removed! So if they can see the incredible value that we are literally giving away then I’m sure you will too!

To whom it may concern,
 
[link removed to protect identity]
 
[name removed] here from [name removed], the official office of the authors [name removed].
 
We are writing to advise you to remove all e-books that you currently have listed on your website that are written by either [name removed] as these are unauthorised versions.
 
If we do not see these e-books removed from the site immediately we will be seeking legal counsel on this matter.
 
We look forward to your immediate reply that you will be doing so, by return e-mail.

Don’t worry about missing out on the incredible resources that we have available here, we sorted this out with them and we still have full access to all their resources

If you didn’t already read about this in the Success Tips Newsletter, Roger Hamilton is back in Australia this April!

Brisbane: 27th April 2009
Melbourne: 28th April 2009
Perth: 30th April 2009
Sydney: 29th April 2009

Roger Hamilton Live in Australia - April 2009

Here’s a taste of why you’ll want to come see Roger Hamilton Live in February 2009:

  • One of THE most lauded entrepreneurs and speakers in the world: people like John Demartini, Mark Victor Hansen, Nobel prize-winner Muhammad Yunus, former president Bill Clinton and thousands of top-ranked entrepreneurs around the world are all part of Roger’s trusted circle.
  • Amazingly insightful: even if you’ve seen Roger before you’ll get so much more as he takes you not just literally behind the scenes on what happened in 2008 but way beyond so you’re fully aware and able to move forward positively and strongly.
  • Specific wealth direction: Roger’s the developer of the breakthrough Wealth Profiling – a stunningly powerful process that gives you a specific path to wealth that’s unique to you – a path that really does get you on track, particularly in these ‘interesting’ times we’re experiencing right now.
  • Inspiring without the ‘rah-rah’: Roger knows precisely how to keep you inspired and enthralled without the manipulation and ‘rah-rah’ we so often see. This is grounded ‘stuff’.
  • Social purpose: Roger’s company is the only entrepreneurial and personal development entity that’s part of the UN Global Compact.
  • Enormous take-home value: an evening with Roger is simply one of those experiences you’ll look back on and say, “I’m so glad I did that!” It leads to increased wealth in all senses of that word.

To find out more details go to: Roger Hamilton Live In Australia – April 2009

Otherwise, you’ll want to act right away, today
Let me stress though that it’s really important to choose to come now or you may miss out on being able to see Roger live. Last time Roger was here in Australia in 2008, over 2500 people experienced him and each event was a complete sell-out.

So let me explain again how you can register immediately.

Here’s all you need do:

Notice I said ‘ticketS’. That’s because when you register now AND USE THIS SPECIAL CODE: LAI you’ll get not one but two tickets to the evening program PLUS you’ll be able to join Roger for a very special breakfast the following morning (and that’s all included for you as well).

And because you are reading this right now I have been given the opportunity to offer to you a very special discount. So rather than you paying what others are paying to see Roger, and that’s $95, you get to come for just $39 through me. And to top that, I am also able to offer you a second COMPLIMENTARY ticket to give to a friend or loved one to come as your guest, on me.

Do please get online to register right now (or if you need help with the registration process or if it’s just easier for you, just call TOLLFREE on 1800 895 707).

PAYG Withholding Variation Application 2010
Thursday, April 16th, 2009

Lodge your PAYG withholding variation application 2010 using e-variation from 1 May 2009.

After 29 April 2009, the current 2009 PAYG withholding e-variation will no longer be available.

You can use e-variation to lodge any PAYG withholding variation application: simply enter the relevant reason code.

  • To access e-variation at www.ato.gov.au
  • select ‘Find a form or publication’ from the left menu
  • select ‘All forms’
  • then ‘Search’
  • then enter ’2036′ into the NAT number field
  • then click on the link to the PAYG withholding variation application 2010 (NAT 2036)
  • then follow the prompts.

How long do you have to wait for your PAYG Variation?
When you lodge your e-variation application, you should receive an on-screen message with your reference number. If you do not get this message, the transmission may still have been successful. Do not transmit the e-variation again as this will delay the processing of the application.

We will send you an email confirming receipt or your application. If you do not get this email, please phone 1300 360 221 between 8.00am and 6.00pm, Monday to Friday.

In most cases e-variation applications are processed within 14 days. Please wait 21 days before phoning to check on the progress.

More information
If you have more questions:

  • visit the ATO website www.ato.gov.au
  • phone 1300 360 221 between 8.00am and 6.00pm, Monday to Friday, or
  • email ATO at ITWvariation@ato.gov.au

If you want to find out more information regarding the benefits of doing a PAYG Withholding Variation then you may want to visit:

Video: Team Hoyt
Wednesday, April 15th, 2009

The inspirational story of Team Hoyt: father and son.

Remember: “Yes You Can!”

Happy Easter
Thursday, April 9th, 2009

Easter is just around the corner and I’ve planned a road trip over the long weekend with some friends to explore Geraldton and Kalbarri. We decided to not go to the usual Easter destination, i.e. Margaret River, Dunsborough, Albany etc. and opted for something a little more adventurous… hopefully less traffic too… As some of you may know, we usually post our monthly Success Tips newsletter about the 2nd week into the month, but I’ve decided to delay it until after the Easter break so that you guys can have some R&R (I know I will be) before getting back into it!

So from the team at Your Success Club, we wish you a safe and relaxing Easter with your friends and family!

Most small business are built on the same business model and hence have the same profit drivers. when thinking about small business strategy, small businesses all have certain key similarities.

  • customers
  • goods/services
  • cost of goods/services

Before thinking about strategies to attract more customers customers we need to understand the two main drivers which leads to a customer.

  1. how many people know about your business and the good/services that you provide?
  2. how many of them can you attract to become your customers?

Once a small business has acquired a customers, the obvious next step is how much money do we make from this customer. To understand this we need to understand the two drivers of revenue or gross income.

  1. how much does the good/services sell for?
  2. how many good/services does the customer buy?

Another way of seeing this is:

  1. how much value in a basket of good/services?
  2. how many times does the customer purchase in a given period?

In short, to find out how much revenue is generated per customer we need to know how much and how many.

Lastly, once a small business finds out how much revenue each customer is bringing for the business they need to understand their cost of acquiring the customer, goods/services. The driver for this is:

  1. Profit Margin

Obviously the higher the better, but businesses in certain industry group or businesses that sell certain type of goods/services will tend to have different margin. auto-manufacturers have lower margins compared to online business selling ebooks.

Summary
The five key drivers to small business profits are:

  1. Leads
  2. Conversion
  3. Revenue per Transaction
  4. Number of Transactions
  5. Profit Margins

To find out more about the 5 key drivers of a business and strategies to improve each areas go download your 5 Free Gifts and you will discover the following:

  • Discover five effective ways for expanding your business
  • How business coaching can increase your turnover and help you achieve business success
  • Learn the secret to creating serious cash flow and leveraging time and money
  • Master the technique of franchising and handling a growing business
  • Become a successful entrepreneur with credible marketing and sales skills.