Moore Financial Tips for Trying Times

By Phil Mattingly , CNN Updated 8:26 PM ET, Mon May 11, 2020 Some small businesses are frustrated with PPP rules (CNN) Even as states begin to navigate reopening, the staggering depth of the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic is drawing calls from increasingly desperate small business owners for changes to the massive federal program designed to keep them -- and their workers -- afloat. "Basically how I've described it to people is it's this gigantic pothole, and it's dark and so you have no idea how deep, or how long it is," Mark Harman, president of Stanz Foodservice Inc. in South Bend, Indiana, told CNN. "And you need to have something to fill that pothole." Harman, who not only is attempting to navigate relief funding for his own business but also through the restaurants his company serves, said he's eager to see specific changes to the Paycheck Protection Program to try to address the unexpected length and severity of the crisis...

One of our favorite clients sent us the simplest handout we've seen about ensuring that you meet the requirements to have your Payroll Protection Program loan forgiven.  If your business has received funding, you will want to print this checklist.  Pay special attention to pages 4 - 6.  They list and explain the documents you will need to submit when the loan is over and you apply for forgiveness. You'll want to start keeping these documents now! Here's the link to the checklist, which is from Professional Bank.   PPP Forgiveness Checklist

An interview with Andy Fried, whom many of you know from the Small Business Development Center at Kennesaw State University. Bloomberg Businessweek May 4, 2020, 1:00 PM EDT By Robb Mandelbaum What to do when not a lot of money is coming in and expenses are chugging along. For most small businesses—at least the ones that have drastically scaled back operations or shut down altogether—the crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic poses a long-term existential threat. There's not a lot of money coming in, maybe none at all, but expenses chug along as if nothing has happened: Rent, loan payments, utilities, insurance, and other obligations still come due every month. Most small businesses don't have the financial cushion to outlast a shutdown that could last for months. Indeed, a 2016 study by the JPMorgan Chase Institute of the bank's small-business customers in major metro areas found that only half of them have banked enough money to pay the bills for a month. Only a quarter...

CBS News By Khristopher J. Brooks May 4, 2020 / 1:30 PM / MoneyWatch About 1 in 4 credit card holders — or almost 50 million Americans — had their credit limits cut or their card accounts closed in the past 30 days, according to a consumer survey by Lending Tree's Compare Cards website. The reductions particularly affected men between the ages 18 and 38, according to the survey. Lenders aren't required to tell customers when their credit limits are lowered, LendingTree analyst Matt Schulz said, adding that many lenders made their moves in the past month to avert losses if cash-strapped consumers struggle to keep up with payments amid surging U.S. unemployment . The credit curbs happened just when household budgets are particularly strained from coronavirus-related job losses and families are believed to be using their cards more frequently. The Lending Tree survey reports that 42% more cardholders said they used their credit in the last month compared to the same period ...

Yahoo Finance Doug Whiteman MoneyWise   May 4, 2020 As part of the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, the floor has dropped out from under mortgage rates. They've hit their lowest levels in history , and homeowners have been rarin' to refinance. Mortgage refinance applications have been piling in at levels three to four times higher than lenders were seeing last year at this time. If you own a home, have a 30-year mortgage and have concluded that you could benefit from refinancing, it's natural to immediately consider pulling the trigger on another 30-year loan. You'll shrink your monthly payment, possibly by hundreds of dollars , which is a great way to give your budget some breathing room during this time of economic stress. But in the process, you'll raise your overall costs — often substantially. Personal finance personality Suze Orman says it's wiser to refi into a 15-year loan. "Do not refinance and extend your years,...

There are huge differences in the definition of a "small business" according to the CARES Act's rules for the PPP.  This article helps us to understand those differences more clearly. (This article is from Gusto.com)   All businesses are small, but some are smaller than others   What is a “small” business?   According to the CARES Act’s rules for the   Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) , it’s a business with fewer than 500 employees. Also according to the PPP, it’s sometimes a business with more than 500 employees   if   it’s part of a particular industry. Oh, and sometimes a small business can also be a relatively large business that operates franchises, like a restaurant or hotel chains whose individual locations have fewer than 500 employees. It can get pretty confusing! What a small business is depends , of course, on who you talk to. I’m speculating here, but the average person probably imagines a small business to be a mom and pop outfit (ev...