Law Firm

By Joel Barth

Credit Crunch Killed the Banks and They are Not Lending. But You Can! Learn How Private Trust Deed Investors are Using Their IRAs to Make Home Loans

By Joel Barth;

In the midst of this nasty housing slump/credit crunch/recession/depression some investors are actually quite excited about the increasing foreclosure rate! These are private trust deed investors who are using their Self-Directed IRAs to make trust deed investments or mortgage loans to homeowners. The fact that the banks are no longer lending has helped these investors fill a valuable niche while the once flowing credit spigot has turned off the need for money still remains.

By using a self-directed individual retirement account, investors can pursue a wide variety of investments including such things as real estate, trust deeds, commercial paper, annuities, tax certificates, receivables, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, options, currency, futures, etc. The first step is to roll over an existing account or open a new retirement account at a trust administration company that specializes in this type of account. Such companies include firms like Pensco Trust (http://www.penscotrust.com ) and Equity Trust (http://www.trustetc.com ) among others.

Generally, trust deed IRA investors don’t make the traditional 30-year fixed loan but instead make loans ranging in term from a few months to a couple of years. The loans are usually structured like a hard money loan with points paid upfront and interest-only payments in the range of 12%. Typically, the average loan to value is 50% or less. Investors generally find borrowers through an informal network of real-estate agents, mortgage brokers and other investors. The liens are usually made in first-lien position; which means it is first in line to get the money back from the borrower. Foreclosure is generally rare even in this environment, even though some trust deed investors do not worry about default. What is the worst that can happen? You get a property at 70% of market value or less?

Investors must tread carefully however. It is recommended that investors work closely with a real estate attorney and other competent real estate professionals as there are numerous rules, regulations, and laws that must be carefully considered and observed or an investor can quite quickly and innocently find him or herself on the wrong side of the law.

There are also a number of taxation and financing issues to take into consideration when using your self-directed individual retirement account. For instance, your real estate investments must generally be funded by the liquidity in your IRA and not with a mortgage. Trust Deed Investors generally don’t have this problem since they are acting as a lender but if you are using your IRA to purchase real estate yourself pay close attention. Using debt financing can trigger taxes such as UBI and UDTI. Pursuant to IRS regulations your retirement account cannot guarantee the mortgage debt nor can you personally. This makes obtaining a mortgage from a lender very difficult.

However, there are a handful of lenders that do provide non-recourse loans to IRAs but it is a niche market. These loans very often require at least 30% down payment on average.

IRS publication 598 states the income from debt-financed property within an IRA is considered unrelated business income (‘UBI’). UBI is defined as ‘the income from a trade or business that is regularly carried on by an exempt organization and that is not substantially related to the performance by the organization of its exempt purpose or function, except that the organization used the profits derived from this activity.’

If the IRA receives more than $1,000 of UBI during a tax year, it is subject to taxation and an additional tax form must be filed (If there is less than $1,000 of UBI, no filing is required). Some advisors recommend using the excess UBI to make principal reductions on the mortgage each year since once the debt is paid off, the income is no longer considered UBI.

In this regard, it is best to consult with a real estate professional, tax advisor, attorney, and trust administrator prior to making any investment decision. However, there are ‘riches in niches’, and using a sophisticated trust deed investment strategy might be just what you need to make attractive stable low-risk returns at a time when most other investments are crumbling.

Disclaimer: Information is provided for educational purposes only. Please consult with you legal, tax, financial, real estate, and other advisors prior to acting upon any information contained herein.

About the Author: Visit Our Blog!

Source: isnare.com

Permanent Link: isnare.com/?aid=361167&ca=Real+Estate

By Louis Rix

If you want to be absolutely sure that the vehicle you are thinking of buying is actually a bargain you should consider getting a car history check. A data check can reveal an awful lot about the background of the used car and it can be made easily and quickly online. It isn’t expensive and in the long run can save you not only money but gives you peace of mind.

A vehicle history check will reveal if the used car you are considering has been listed as being stolen. If the vehicle has been stolen then should you buy it you would have to give it up and return it to it’s rightfully owner. This means you will lose out as in the majority of cases you will not be able to get your money back.

A used car can also show up online to be sold that were written off by the insurance company. If the vehicle has been in an accident and been declared too badly damaged to be repaired, then the insurance company will payout. However in some cases the car goes on to be repaired and then the unscrupulous owner put its up for sale. In some cases the vehicle can have been welded together from two different cars to make a complete car and even worse is not road worthy. Having a check can reveal not only if the vehicle has been written off but also the extent to which it was damaged which in the long run can be crucial to your safety.

A lot of information can be gained when it comes to the identity of the vehicle. A car history check will reveal the make and model of the vehicle and in some cases the type, such as if it is classed as being a luxury car. It can show you how many times the car has changed hands, so you can be sure that the seller’s claim of one careful owner is true. It can show how many doors the vehicle has and the colour of the car and also any other colours that the vehicle has been in the past. With this check you will be able to tell when the car was registered and the year it was made and all of these things combined can be checked against the actual vehicle and will reveal how truthful the seller is. You will be told how much the car is valued at on the current market which gives you an excellent indication of whether the price you are considering paying is over the odds, or if you are in fact getting a bargain.

A specialist website will be able to conduct the vehicle history check on your behalf and present you with this information so you are then able to make an informed choice regarding buying the car. Without a data check you could be buying nothing more than a heap of trouble, have to hand the car over to its rightful owner or in some cases be buying a vehicle that is not worthy of being driven.

About the Author: Louis Rix is a Director of NetCars, one of the UK’s leading motoring websites. First established in January 2000, it provides car finance, loans and insurance. NetCars also provides a Car Data Check service.

Source: isnare.com

Permanent Link: isnare.com/?aid=226990&ca=Automotive

By Beverly OMalley

There are three types of nursing if you are considering nursing as a career in Canada:

* Licensed Practical Nurse, LPN

* Registered Nurse, RN * Registered Psychiatric Nurse, RPN

In Canada all nursing professions are regulated in the public interest and you must pass a licensing exam to become registered in order to practice nursing as a career.

Nursing education for each of these types of nursing has common curricular components and some specialty components. However, the length of nursing education varies and each category has a defined scope of practice.

Licensed Practical Nurse

The Licensed Practical Nurse has 1-2 years of education in a community college or private post-secondary training institute. They have a limited nursing scope of practice that is completely contained within the scope of practice of a registered nurse and cannot work with clients who are complex or require multiple interventions.

In Ontario and some other provinces they are called a Registered Practical Nurse and this is abbreviated as RPN. This can be confusing because a registered psychiatric nurse is also abbreviated as RPN in the western provinces. In many provinces LPN’s were not fully utilized for many years and the numbers of nurses practicing as a licensed practical nurse declined dramatically. Because of the pressures exerted by fiscal restraint and by the nursing shortage which is quite acute, the licensed practical nurse is now in demand again in provinces where they can legally practice.

Registered Psychiatric Nursing

Schools that prepare nurses to enter psychiatric nursing are limited to the four western provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. There are over 5,000 Registered Psychiatric Nurses registered with the 4 regulatory authorities in these provinces.

Registered Psychiatric Nursing is not recognized as a separate type of nursing in the eastern provinces so that might be why they call practical nurses RPN’s (Registered Practical Nurses). This term cannot be used in the western provinces because it already used for psychiatric nurses.

The association of Registered Psychiatric Nurses of Canada recommends that the minimum requirement for initial registrants for entry to practice into the profession of psychiatric nursing should be a baccalaureate degree by the year 2012.

On the Registered Psychiatric Nurses Association of Canada website there are 7 education programs listed for psychiatric nursing in all of Canada. There is no legally recognized classification of Psychiatric Technician in Canada. You may see this as a one of the different types of nursing in other countries such as the United States but it is not a recognized type of nursing in Canada.

Registered Nursing

Of the three types of nursing, registered nursing (the RN) is the most common type. It is typically the registered nurse that people think of when they think of the nursing profession. Registered nursing has the broadest nursing scope of practice.

There are no hospital based schools of nursing in Canada. A university education is required. Some colleges have partnered with universities and students can enter a nursing program where the first two years are offered in the college setting and then complete the nursing degree at the university.

Most provinces have registered nurse education programs that are 4 years in length ( 8-9 semesters) but some provinces are now implementing a three year program (9 semesters) as an accelerated program in order to bring more nurses into the Canadian health care system more quickly.

One province in Canada (British Columbia) is responding to increased pressures on the Canadian health care system by broadening the scope of practice of the registered nurse to include some tasks that were previously out of scope.

When these new regulations are put in place, under certain circumstances the registered nurse will be able to provide a broader range of services than that provided by the current regulations including:

* ordering ultrasound or X-ray diagnostics (in triage situations)

* conducting tuberculosis screening * managing labor in hospital when the primary care provider is absent

These changes recognize the current education and skills of the registered nurse. However, the changes are specific to British Columbia as the nursing profession in Canada is regulated provincially. It is quite possible and quite likely however, that other provinces will follow suit.

About the Author: Beverly Hansen OMalley likes to write about health related topics that help people in their daily lives. Visit registered-nurse-canada.com where she explores the uniqueness of the nursing profession in Canada including comparison of the nursing entrance tests for the US and Canada, comparison of registered nurse salaries across the country and what it means to have a nursing license.

Source: isnare.com

Permanent Link: isnare.com/?aid=375567&ca=Career