Posts Tagged ‘family’

Family Investors? More Like Donors.

Wednesday, March 2nd, 2011

“Experts generally advise entrepreneurs to ask for an amount that their loved ones can afford to never get back, and say the recent recession is in some cases proving this point.

‘The reality is most companies do not succeed,’ says William D. Bygrave, a professor of entrepreneurship at Babson College who co-wrote a 2010 study on the expectations and motivations of informal start-up investors, including family, friends and strangers.

Dr. Bygrave’s findings show that about half of such investors anticipate a positive return on their investment, while the other half expect to lose part or all it. ‘The closer the relationship between an entrepreneur and an investor, the lower the expected return,’ his research concludes.”

What do you think?

If you borrowed money from a family member for a business venture, how likely would you be to pay it back? Would you sign a formal agreement or try to keep the loan “casual?”

Kids Get A Say In Where They Hang Their Hats

Wednesday, September 29th, 2010

They have to live there, too.

  • Real estate brokers are seeing an increase in clients under the age of 18, as more parents try to involve their kids in the decision of where to live.
  • Sometimes the goal is to teach the kids how real estate works, sometimes it’s a way to make them feel more involved in a big family change, and sometimes it’s just practical to have another person helping to make the final decision.
  • The 9- and 14-year-old daughters of a Manhattan apartment hunter were instrumental in pointing out flaws: the dining room wouldn’t fit a table for homework, the oven wouldn’t fit a Thanksgiving turkey, the layout wouldn’t allow for enough privacy.

Facts & Figures

  • Frances Katzen, a broker with Prudential Douglas Elliman, recently showed a $3.1 million dollar apartment to two children, aged 11 and 12, who came without their parents.
  • Another agent working for CORE showed an apartment to a client and his 15- and 18-year-old children, who seemed to be along for a lesson in finance.

Best Quote

β€œAt first I thought it was going to be boring. Then I thought it was fun to fit everything in.” – Julia Paris, 14-year-old house hunter