Category: Income from your business

Insider Transfers! Ready Or Not!

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Buy and Sell Agreements, Company Wealth, Income from your business, Inside Sale, Key People_Or Group, Passive Ownership, Uncategorized, Working On Your Business

Transfers to and insiders group appears to be the most   traveled paths for succession planning by business owners today, which are being successfully used by business owners.  

This is the method by default because of the lack of essential value drivers and systems developed by the business owner.  Because of the lack of transferrable value, insiders are the key market for the business owner.   However, it is possible that even though the employees might have the capital to purchase the business, they don’t have the necessary ability to run the business without the owner.   Consequently, this scenario may lead to an inside sale at a depressed value, or the owner becomes a semi-passive owner.   

Typically, The Transfer To The Insider:   

In many situations, the employee will put very little money down, because they don’t have what is needed, or is unwilling to finance a large part of the sale.    The Owner usually will take back paper and finance the sales price.  Typically, the buyer will default because there is not enough cash flow to support the operating expenses and pay the note payment.  

Even with that scenario, there are many employers who take the path of transferring their business to key employees. Even though in many cases the arrangement is ill-fated, and the business will fail.    The actuality is the transfer to insiders is the exit path most traveled by business owners. The point being is that there still needs to be planning done in advance, even if the transfer is two key groups.   

Benefit’s For The Key Group Becoming Owners:  

  1. The key group is acknowledged for helping to build the business; The owner wants the key groups to ultimately own the business, especially since they have been part of the success of the business.  
  1. Goals of the owner: The owner can see his legacy remain unbroken and his business culture continue. The business represents the owner’s value in the community, and the company’s consistent values.  
  1.  It enables the owner to plan their retirement and exit over a longer period of time: Since the process of transferring the business to the key group takes , the owner has the ability to plan their post retirement activities.  It gives the owner the chance to start delegating more responsibilities to the new ownership, testing the group’s ability to run the business. 
  1. It gives the owner a chance to share in the excess cash flow to build wealth outside the business.  This helps in transferring the business at, a lower net amount to the buying group, as the owner would have accumulated the wealth outside the business, but with business dollars.    
  1. The process of transferring ownership and control to the insider’s takes a period of time, anywhere between five and twelve years. This allows the owner to start adapting to a post business life. It allows the owner to start picking up other activities of interest. It allows the owner to contemplate his new life and start making plans well in advance. This is very important especially if the business owner has only singularly most of his business all his life.  The time gives the owner the ability to create new activities with interest, to test the waters.  
  1. Motivates employees: To stay with and grow the company if the owner has a properly planned internal transfer the owner can start this well in advance of their exit. The key employee becomes an owner through their purchases of non-voting stock. This is part of the powerful incentives for the employees to create an increased cash flow. It also motivates talented employees to see the future opportunities in the company, allowing them to stay and grow with the company.   
  1. Maintain senior control; The owner will not lose control of his company until he completely cashes out. Usually stock acquired by the employees is non-voting. Employees acquiring   the stock should be asked to sign covenants such as a not to compete, and a non-solicitation agreement. This protects the owner from having the key person leave the company and take customers, trade secrets, and current employees with them.  
  1. Flexibility: A properly design transfer plan helps the owner maintain control until the owner can cash out. It gives the owner the ability to abandon the internal transfer so they can sell to an outside company, or a third-party at some point.   All ownership previously transferred would be subject to a buy and sell agreement requiring the employees to offer their ownership to you for repurchase at a predetermined price if the employment is terminated. 
  1. Business continuation at the owner’s death. By transferring ownership to insiders, it creates the succession plan should the owner die. The hope is that the key group has been trained well enough, to run the business without the owner. 

CHALLENGES AND LANDMINES!  Continue reading “Insider Transfers! Ready Or Not!” →

Shift Corporate Income For Your Personal Retirement! 

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Company Wealth, Executive Benefits, Income from your business, Key People_Or Group, Tax Free Income, Uncategorized

 If you own a business, using a split dollar life insurance plan can help you shift business income to you on a tax effective basis, without involving other employees!

 Split dollar life insurance refers to the concept of two or more parties splitting the benefits and costs of a life insurance policy, such as the premium, death benefit and cash value.   

The most common type of split dollar life arrangement involves an employer and the employee or owners, with one part owning the policy, one or both parties’ contribution to the annual premium, but both parties having a vested interest in the policy benefits.   

Split dollar plans are inexpensive and easy to administer as an executive benefit arrangement.   

Here is how it works:  

One party establishes a cash value life insurance contract under the ownership of the key executive.   

The employer receives a “collateral assignment” against the policy, entitling the corporation  to receive the lesser of the policy cash value or the outstanding loan balance.   The loan is based on the premiums contributed by the company.   The same assignment entitles the employer to a portion of the policy death benefit, equal to the outstanding loan balance.   

 The key executive pays the taxes each year on the foregone interest on the loan from the corporation to pay the premium.   

At some point in the future, the split dollar arrangement terminates when the employer’s loan is repaid (typically from the policies cash value), leaving the executive “free and clear” ownership of the accumulated gain in the life insurance policy.   

 The executive can access the accumulated gains in the policy by borrowing against it, which will typically allow for tax-free access to the values.  The policy loan is repaid to the insurance company at the death of the executive, and any residual death benefit is paid to the executives’ named beneficiaries.  

Split dollar is an easier benefit to implement than deferred compensation, and less expensive for the employer.   

 Advantages:   

  • Easy account entries 
  • Recovery of the cost for the employer 
  • Performance objectives to trigger the funding for employer 
  • Very little if any impact on company balance sheet 
  • A “golden handcuffs” for the employer and ability to set restrictions when cash value can be accessed  

 Today’s newer types of life insurance policies enhance the benefits of a split dollar plan!   Continue reading “Shift Corporate Income For Your Personal Retirement! “ →

Get Ready Now To Sell Your Business Tomorrow!

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Buy and Sell Agreements, Income from your business, Inside Sale, Strategies of growing business, Working On Your Business

To get ready to sell your business, you will need to start preparing years in advance.  It’s like wanting to sell you home, you don’t know when, but you know you wish to sell it.  It could happen years from now or it can happen tomorrow.  Key to Success of selling your business!   Be ready at all times !   

 Some things to decide  

This is not a complete list, but it is a list of things to start the process of selling your business and marketing decisions.  

 Establish preliminary exit objectives 

  • Prepare for life after retirement 
  • Get market information  
  • Start working on your team-intermediary, investment banker or broker 
  • Review value drivers and what to do to enhance them  
  • Get your employee prepared 
  • Start your tax planning (this takes time to position yourself and organization 
  • Implement the incentive plans and stay bonuses 
  • Market to potential buyers  
  • Establish  a departure date 
  • Define what you need for your financial security from your business 

 This  is only a brief list of what you need to start working on before you sell your business.  Keep in mind that the sooner you start the better the chances or selling with more potential profile.  There is a lot of work to do if you wish to extract from your business the highest possible potential profit from your business.   

 

Questions you need to ask yourself if you are a business owner!  

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Buy and Sell Agreements, Company Wealth, Income from your business, Inside Sale, Selling Your Business, Uncategorized, Working On Your Business
  1. When would like to be done working in your business?
  2.  After you leave your business how much cash will you need (each year) to achieve your personal financial objectives?
  3. Who can afford to buy your company and who would you like to buy it.
  4. As you think about leaving your business, what keeps you up at night?
  5. What is the business worth?  How do you know its worth that amount?
  6. Do you have key people that handle the day-to day operations of your business which you feel is a substantial contribution and one that would be hard to find a replacement?
  7.  Would their be a great burden if they left abruptly?
  8. Do you have a strategy in place to reward those employees who you feel are helping you grow your business?
  9. Do you and your partners have a buy and sell agreement in place which is funded and up-to-date?
  10. If so, when was the last time you reviewed the agreement, and discussed the method of business valuation at a trigger event?
  11. If you could no longer run your company , what arrangement have you made to make sure that your family will benefit from your life’s work?

 

Why Would Anyone Want To Buy Your Business At The Price That You Set?

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Buy and Sell Agreements, Company Wealth, Income from your business, Strategies of growing business, Value drivers, Working On Your Business

The present value of the cash flow is a way of pricing out your company.  A high certainty that the company will produce steady, predictable cash flow.  Cash flow is king! Predictability only creates more value.   

 A buyer is willing to pay your price  if you have a plethora of tangible and intangible assets and systems that function like a Swiss watch.  

 A  “Swiss Watch” of a company needs to produce the consistent cash flow without you.  As an owner you want to sell your business and move on.  In many cases, a purchaser may want the owner to stay on and run the company for  a period of time.  However, if your company is able to produce a cash flow without you, it not only allows you to get your price, but allows you to get out of dodge.   

It is worth your while to put together a talented management team, that can not only keep the cash flow consistent, but has the ability to keep the cash flow machine working even if you are not there.  Your key management team may be the most important element of your business.   

 Whether buyers are strategic buyers, or financial buyers, they will be looking for value drivers.  From the beginning of your business ownership, these are the things you need to start working on.   

Partial list:   

  • Key management group 
  • Loyal client base with diversification (most of your firms revenue should come from more than 10% of the clients)  
  • Efficient production and manufacturing facilities 
  • Leading edge products or services 
  • Supplier network 
  • Intellectual property rights (patents, trademarks, trade name) 
  • Steady, predictable solid profits and cash flow 
  • Proven growth record 
  • Effective workforce in place 
  • Transferable franchise or license 
  • Key location or territory 
  • Barriers to entry for a startup 
  • Research and product development team  
  • Company name 
  • Exclusive territory  
  • Above industry average financial ratios 
  • Systematized business processes/documented so continuing success is not dependent on any particular person (including the owner) 

 

These are the areas of your business you need to develop and maximize in order to demonstrate the potential for steady predictable growth in the future.   

 Since the price you will be asking for your business is relevant to your successful retirement (to fill the retirement gap), you will want to spend the time in the areas which will increase the value of your business.  Usually, they will be Industry-Specific Business Benchmarks.   

 Knowing how your competitors are using their resources and the efficiency which they are utilizing them can give you ideas about the strategies being used, and strategies you can compare to your methods.   If you are utilizing your resources better than your competitions, you will be able to negotiate a better price for your business.  

 

 

Your Exit From Your Company!

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Buy and Sell Agreements, Company Wealth, Income from your business, Selling Your Business, Strategies of growing business, Uncategorized, Value drivers, Working On Your Business

I read somewhere that over the next number of years, at least one in every four small businesses will be sued or threatened with a lawsuit.  The odds are great that it will come from within the company.   

Will your death, disability, or withdrawal cause a dispute?  In many cases it can come from not having communicated the exit or transition plan for the company.    

 Your Corporate Board of Directors  

 The Board of directors in your company is crucial to the short and long-term success of the company.  The board helps in the avoidance and resolution of disputes.  The board can help direct the company’s planning, officer selection and the compensation.  The board can help in dispute avoidance, dispute resolution and overall corporate management.   

Disputes, can come from compensation agreements, benefits, health co-pays, benefits paid.  These are many other ares which a dispute can occur.  The hope is that there is a board of directors to help with the resolution.   

 When the owner dies, becomes disabled or just wants out of their business, and there is no business continuation or a buy and sell, the risk of a dispute rises.  A buy and sell agreement will establish the rules in the event a trigger that sets off a change within the business.  Remaining partners will need to know what the value of the company stock will be sold for.  The surviving family will need to know what the value of the business is and what the family expects to do with the company values.  Without a solid written plan, there are unanswered questions and confusion.  Continue reading “Your Exit From Your Company!” →

PREPARING  YOUR BUSINESS FOR A FUTURE SALE

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Company Wealth, Income from your business, Selling Your Business, Tax Efficient

In some cases, when a business owner wishes to sell their business, they may not be in the best possible position.  For example, they may be a C corporation.  Because of the double taxation of the C corporation, it does not create an effective tax environment for selling the business.   Consequently, positioning to a pass-through entity would be more advantageous.  However, that takes time to arrange.

The principal advantage of this flow-through entity structure is that dividends can be paid by the company to the owners without additional tax.  In other words, the dividends can be placed into the hand of the owner with having only incurred taxation to the owner, not to the corporation and then the owner.

Under a C corporation, when the corporation distributes dividends (distribution) to the stock holders, the corporation must pay a tax on the corporate side, then the recipient pays tax on that distribution.  Dividends are not tax deductible to a corporation, so consequently there is the double tax. Bottom line, double taxes!

When you have an S corporation or LLC the Key employees can receive its share of company dividends free of additional taxation and use the dividend proceeds dollars-for dollars to pay for their stock investments.

It is important that in the future when you consider exiting your business, you start the process of planning with the most effective tax structure for the future. The C Corporation is fine when you are not in exit mode, and there are no dividend distributions.

Timing is important as it takes time to move from a C corporation to another form of pass through structure, such as a LLC or S corp.  Early planning will be a benefit.

A change from C Corp to a pass-through company can have tax ramifications, so planning is essential in when to, or if to, make this move.

Tax on Assets:

If you sell an asset of the corporation, it is possible that there is a corporate tax on that sale.  However, if you sold an asset of an S corporation, there would not be a corporate tax.

If you are considering changing your business type, we suggest you discuss this strategy with your tax advisor. 

Key group wants to buy your business, but do they have skin in the game?

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Buy and Sell Agreements, Income from your business, Key People_Or Group, Selling Your Business, Uncategorized

When considering the transfer of stock to a key employee, or a group of key employees, (referred to Key group), you need to determine how much they want to be involved in the company, and the risk they are willing to take in the future of the company.

In Tier One of the purchase, the key group will purchase stock.  They purchase stock from future salary, financing, or from future cash flow in the form of dividend payouts.

It wouldn’t be uncommon for the owner to want to see the purchasing employee put some skin in the game.  Seeing the employee be committed allows the employer to consider future financial programs to help the employee purchase the balance of the stock under Tier 2 (the selling of the balance of the stock). 

The owner in most cases will look at the bottom line what they want in the end and the financial capabilities of the key employee.  Smaller employees will try to make it easier for the key person to purchase the stock.  Using a bonus plan to help them buy the stock can be a very useful tool for both parties.  The employer gets a tax deduction, while the employee has additional funds to purchase equity in the company.

Using lower valuation for a better cash flow when business is sold Continue reading “Key group wants to buy your business, but do they have skin in the game?” →

The Four Life Changes Of A Business Owner!

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Buy and Sell Agreements, Company Wealth, Income from your business, Passive Ownership, Selling Your Business, Working On Your Business

What is it that you think about the most as a business owner?   Chances are they are one of four things:

  • What if I don’t want to stay in business and I want to drop out?
  • What if I get sick, disabled, or die?
  • What if my key person (s) decides to leave me?
  •  What if I can’t increase and improve my cash flow (life blood of the business), or the economy crashes?  

Besides running the day to day of the business, and the stress that goes with this, the four items listed above are probably the biggest stressful thoughts business owners have.   Let’s break them down.

Why the typical business owner thinks about these issues, is because they know they put a lot of sweat, tears, money, time  into their business.  They have most of their wealth in the business,  and know that they have no way of extracting that wealth when these events happen!

What if I don’t’ want to do this any longer and just want to drop out? 

Think about it!  The business owner has most of their wealth and time tied into this business.  In most cases it is very difficult to just stop doing what they are doing, lock the front door and leave the responsibility, wealth and reputation behind.  They still need their wealth in the business to maintain their life style.

Business owners are human beings and sometimes they just get tired of doing what they are doing, they burn out.   Sometimes they feel they are trapped and living a life of desperation.  They are making a nice living, and seeking to make a great life  for themselves and their families.  Chances are when they started the business they were only looking for a place to go, a position, a paycheck, and with a little luck a dream. The stress of running a business can take its toll on the businessman and the family.

They need the wealth they have invested, but don’t have a way of selling the business at a reasonable price.   Can the business be sold to an outsider?  Or, is there someone inside the company who will buy the business?  If so, do they have the money?  Is there someone who would run the business while the owner keeps their hands in the business?  Or, do they liquidate it?   Many times, even if a business owner sells their business, they find that after the taxes and expenses there’s not enough capital at a guaranteed rate of return to produce the income needed to keep the business owner and their family in the lifestyle they been used to. Because of this factor, more stress is added to the business owner and their future income. Continue reading “The Four Life Changes Of A Business Owner!” →

The Small Issues Which Business Owners Need To Know About!

by YOUR BUSINESS WORTH, posted in Company Wealth, Income from your business, Selling Your Business, Working On Your Business

The Small Issues Which Business Owners Need To Know About!

When working with business owners, it is important to communicate many of the overlooked issues which may blindside them and cause disaster in their financial future.

Small issues turn into major problems bringing with them costly consequences. Many of them are obvious, and can be game changers in your future.

Whether you are an advisor or a business owner, some of the ideas I put forth will help you communicate these overlooked issues.

Estate Planning

I am sure if you asked 10 people to describe what estate planning is in one sentence, you would get 10 different answers.

At one time most advisors and business owners  would suggest that estate planning is about reducing taxes.  However, I would disagree that estate planning is just  about paying death taxes and mitigating estate costs.

To me, estate planning consists of three phases, creation, preservation, and distribution.  Each of the phases is distinct in and of themselves.

Creation is the concept of money, and accumulating.  Implementing strategies, which allow estate owners to create wealth, and avoid losing wealth by making financial mistakes.

Preservation is about protecting what you have from, inflation, lawsuits, expenses, and taxes. 

Distribution is the orderly distribution to your heirs.  It also is   a phase where the estate owner can distribute wealth to certain beneficiaries, at the least cost possible.

DORIS DAY:  THE EXAMPLE

Doris Day’s husband died in his 60’s.  He had taken care of all the financial areas of their life.    After his death, Doris Day did not know what she had, or what she owed.  The net result was she ended up owing a fortune to the IRS, in income and estate taxes.

Business owners not only have needs as business owners, but also have needs as individuals. Consequently, it’s not only the business planning that needs attention, but also a coordination of their personal situation.     In many situations, the owner’s planning is more complex because of the business ownership.

Continue reading “The Small Issues Which Business Owners Need To Know About!” →