Guidance Center

The term asset management is often used to refer to the investment management of collective investments which usually includes investment funds, managed funds, mutual funds or any other funds etc. Financial market shows amazing moves. Asset management is must to get the control over finance and further investments. Sometimes it may be confusing to choose the best investment option as there various options available nowadays. To manage these investments and to plan further is again a confusing and hard task. Because without the asset management finance, you won’t get the actual picture of your overall investment and profit portfolio. With the help of proper asset management, you can develop your investment performance and manage financial risk exposure. Even it also helps to reduce the overall business cost which in turn benefits you to reduce the extra expenses.

Today, there are many finance companies available in the market that are specialized in asset management finance and they provide services to the customers which vary according to the type of assets, customer requirements, investment capacity and market conditions etc. Asset management finance system has developed from maintenance management system. Thus, it works out to all physical assets also such as property, heritage, infrastructure, plant and equipment. Generally, services offered by these companies also include liquidity, diversification, portfolio management and professional management service. They provide advices regarding issues like asset management and restructuring to corporations, mergers and acquisitions, partnerships, institutions and governments. The portfolio managers of an asset management finance company turn individual investment decisions into a fully diversified local, global or specialist portfolio. Such portfolios are with attractive risk-return characteristics.

Thus, get the help of asset management finance companies for your short-term or long-term investments. Proper asset management finance is the key to become a successful investor.

A stock is a share in the ownership of the company you have invested in. By owning an amount of stock, you will be paid dividend as and when the company declares. When you own a stock, you have the total control of this stock. You can sell it anytime if you think that you no longer intended to own it or you think that it is not worth to own it. You can also keep it for your whole life and use it as collateral to borrow money from bank or financial institution. Stock investments can be long-term or short-term investments.

A bond is a debt security which the bond issuer owns you if you have bought the bond and is obliged to pay interest or repay the principal at a later date. Bonds provide the borrower with external funds to finance long-term investments, or, in the case of government bonds, to finance current expenditure. Bonds are bought and traded mostly by institutions like pension funds, insurance companies and banks. Most individuals who want to own bonds do so through bond funds.

Though stock and bond are securities, there are some differences in their investment policies. Major difference is that stock investment gives you the share of ownership of the listed company whereas bond investment doesn’t give as bond holders are lenders to the issuers. Another difference between stock and bond investment is that bonds usually have a defined term or maturity after which the bond is redeemed. On the other hand stocks may be outstanding. Bond usually has contract type repayment schedule and once they have paid back all the money that you have lent to them, the bond will end. Once the expiration date has over, the whole investment will become worthless. On the other hand, the ownership of a stock can not be cancelled unless the company is declared bankrupt.

Thus, while choosing between stock and bond investment be aware of these facts and then decide the right investment policy for you.

Universal term life insurance is a combo of term life insurance and universal life insurance. It is a kind of term life insurance. Term life insurance is insurance for a specific term period for instance from 5-30 years. Term life insurance is meant for people who have a financial liability such as a house t be insured. Term life insurance policy is of three kinds- universal term life insurance, one-year renewable term insurance policy and adjustable term life insurance.

Universal Term Life Insurance is a novel and refreshing concept in the cash-value insurance contract. It is deemed that in comparison to other cash-value insurance policies, the universal term life insurance policy provides more transparency and flexibility.

Talking abut universal life insurance first we find that this insurance that is a type of permanent life insurance offering the low-cost protection of term life insurance and savings element that gets invested to build a cash build up; is also a transparent and beneficial insurance scheme. In the context of life insurance policies, the term ‘transparency’ means that the policy is unbundled, or broken down into savings, expense and protection components. For instance after the life insurance company receives a premium from the policy owner, it calculates a charge for expenses and adds it to the rest of the cash value policy. After this the life insurance company pays for the mortality charge, any additional charge, out of the cash value of the policy that pays for the protection of the life insurance policy. The amount so taken out also combines interest to the remaining cash value. In toto this policy acts as your savings account as well as a one-year renewable term account.

The transparency of the universal term life insurance is also reflected by the fact that the amount the premium payer invests into the policy is recycled into various features of the policy. This is of great benefit to the owner and even to the company indirectly.

The flexibility of universal term life insurance is about the premium and death benefit. The policy is quite adaptable in the sense that the policy owner can increase as well as decrease the premium at his discretion but in accordance with the concerned life insurance company. For instance changing the death benefit can affect the rate of growth of the cash value. So in case the death benefit increases unexpectedly, the life insurance company intervenes to ask the insurer to qualify again for the universal insurance on the grounds of evidence of insurability. Thus in order to avoid this re-qualification due to health and job related issues; you should not make any sudden ad significant increases in the death benefit of your policy.

However prior to purchasing a universal term life insurance make sure that you have in hand a written contract or agreement that delineates the manner in which the policy takes up the federal income taxes. This is mainly due to the fact that sometimes under prevailing tax laws, when it comes to federal income taxes the death benefit can be disqualified as being term life insurance. As a result the beneficiary bears the brunt by paying hefty taxes on the death benefit after the death of the insurer.

What is a Bridging Loan?

A Bridging Loan is short term funding to provide temporary financing until more permanent finance can be found. Bridging Loans are available for a whole range of financial requirements and can be on the basis of a 1st, 2nd or even 3rd charge equity release, usually provided for any legal purpose.

Examples: 

Commercial & Residential Purchase Commercial & Residential Refinance Auction Purchases Capital Raising * Chain Breaking Refurbishment Speculative Deals Business Cash Injection Defective Property

 

* Capital raising funds can be used for many reasons including holidays, overseas property investment and tax bills etc.

Security 

Residential Property Commercial Property Land (with or without planning permission in place) Real Property (such as Plant machinery)

 

Bridging Loans carry a higher interest rate than standard mortgage lending and at the offer of loan stage there will be an agreed term of repayment, normally between one day and two years.

Bridging Loans are most commonly used when the financing requirement is urgent and beyond the timescales that a standard mortgage lender or bank could provide. In some cases Bridging Lenders can provide funds within 24 hours. Another common use of bridging finance would be to fund the purchase a new home prior to the existing property being sold.

Characteristics 

Bridge loans will almost certainly carry higher fees which can include: 

Administration Fees Arrangement Fees Legal Fees Completion Fees Valuation Fees Exit Fees ** Broker Fees (normally non-disclosed)

 

** A fee charged to redeem the loan, typically equivalent to one month’s interest payment.

As most bridging Loans are not regulated by the Financial Services Authority the above fees can vary substantially as they fall within no boundaries or guidelines, only competitive pricing.

Application 

Bridging Lenders will consider loans to discharged bankrupts and clients with adverse credit such as CCJs and IVAs. They will lend to individuals as well as Businesses, Ltd Companies and tax efficient vehicles such as SPVs.

Variations 

Bridging Loans are split into two main categories:

Closed Bridging Finance 

At the time the funds are drawn down there is a firm exit in place to repay the loan normally within a short period of time. The most common use of Closed Bridging Finance would be the pending sale of an existing property on which contracts have been signed and exchanged/missives concluded

Open Bridging Finance

At the time the funds are drawn down there is no fixed exit or repayment method for the lenders comfort, only an agreed maximum term that the loan can run for. Seen as higher risk than closed Bridging Finance it is therefore more expensive.

Other forms of short term finance:

Mezzanine Finance

Often a combination of debt and equity stake which is typically used to finance the expansion of existing companies. To secure mezzanine finance the business would normally have to demonstrate a track record in the industry with an established reputation and product, a history of profitability and a viable expansion plan for the business (e.g. expansions, acquisitions, IPO).

Lenders

There are over 20 Primary Bridging Lenders in the UK that are able to lend their own funds and therefore set their own criteria of risk.

Private Financers

Should Bridging Lenders decline to lend, Private debt and equity financers can be sort to provide funding for the examples above. This type of finance is normally very expensive.

Specific Uses

Bridging Loans can be used as a Below Market Value (BMV) purchase instrument where the initial purchase takes place at the lower purchase price allowing a subsequent refinance application to be placed with a mainstream lender for borrowing based on the Open Market Value of the property with the purpose of releasing the difference in equity between the purchase price of the property and the higher resulting remortgage loan.

Costs

Bridging Loans typically cost between 1-2% per month. Variable rates with margins over Libor can sometimes be applied as an alternative or an addition.

Find an Independent Bridging Finance Broker to give you all the available options.