Lease Equipment or Buy Equipment? - Let's Get Technical!

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We can safely say that all growing companies need financing to fund ongoing capital expenditures, commonly called 'CAPEX' by CFO's and Wall Street. It goes without saying, also, that even established companies need to replace assets at some point in time.

When companies utilize lease financing they are in effect leverage their capital investments. They could clearly only buy so much with their own capital resources, but borrowing or leasing they can do more than might otherwise have been possible.

There is a technical term called 'WACC', which accountants and financial analyst recognize as WEIGHTED AVERAGE COST OF CAPITAL. As fancy as that term sounds, it simply says that if a company understands how much it costs them to borrow, and then can earn more on a new investment than their borrowing rate, well, then It makes sense to lease. Using a simple example, if a company wishes to purchase a new asset that will deliver a 15% return on assets, and their borrowing cost is 10%, the 5% difference is a major economic positive and benefit to the company. It would not make sense to pursue the asset if borrowing costs were 15% and the return was 12%!!

Naturally at all times business owners and CFO's know that their company can assume only so much debt, as in additional leases, etc. At a certain point there is a threshold that is reached where a company is maxed out on debt.

Leasing also has the ability to defer taxes - in essence its interest free debt. So in these case a major lease financing scenario can also be viewed as a form of deferred taxes, which many financial analysts and bankers view as quasi - equity. And that's a good thing!

Naturally an aggressive lease financing strategy in effect accelerates capital investment, business expansion, etc. The company does not have to pay out 100% of the value of the asset at inception. In companies where capital expenditure and free cash flow are critical those are important measurements of success. The lower investment in a equipment leasing strategy allows a company to invest in other assets and projects. Leasing therefore increases the speed of investment - the company is trading future cash flows for a lower cash outlay now.

In summary, companies debating a lease or buy strategy must ensure they have their primary data correct, re borrowing costs, expected returns of assets/project, etc. The company needs to clearly assess how long the asset will be used for, and ensure It matches the cash flow analysis they are using on that particular asset or project. Customer need to know their borrowing rates, and be realistic, as we have seen that they will be benchmarked against their return rates.



7 Park Avenue Financial :

South Sheridan Executive Centre
2910 South Sheridan Way
Suite 301
Oakville, Ontario
L6J 7J8

Direct Line = 416 319 5769

Office = 905 829 2653

Email = sprokop@7parkavenuefinancial.com

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com


Business financing for Canadian Firms , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing , Equipment Leasing , franchise finance and Cdn. Tax Credit Finance . Founded 2004 - Completed in excess of 100 Million $ of financing for Canadian corporations .

' Canadian Business Financing With The Intelligent Use Of Experience '

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stan has had a successful career with some of the world’s largest and most successful corporations.
Prior to founding 7 Park Avenue Financial in 2004 his employers over the last 25 years were, ASHLAND OIL, ( 1977-1980) DIGITAL EQUIPMENT CORPORATION, ( 1980-1990) ) CABLE & WIRELESS PLC,( 1991 -1993) ) AND HEWLETT PACKARD ( 1994-2004 ) He is an expert in Canadian Business Financing.

Stan has over 40 years of business and finance executive experience. He has been recognized as a credit/financial executive for three of the largest technology companies in the world; Hewlett-Packard, Digital Equipment and Cable & Wireless. Stan has had in depth, hands on experience in assessing and evaluating thousands of companies that are seeking financing and expansion. He has been instrumental in helping many companies progress through every phase of financing, mergers & acquisitions, sales and marketing and human resources. Stan has worked with startups and public corporations and has many times established the financial wherewithal of organizations before approving millions of dollars of financing facilities and instruments on behalf of his employers.

Stan Prokop






Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Stan_Prokop/432698


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3588687

Equipment Financing : The Solid Financing Alternative For Canadian Business

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Anxiety Attack When It Comes To Acquiring Business Assets? Problem Solved !

Leasing Equipment in Canada continues to be a major source of Business financing for Canadian business owners and financial manager. Many hundreds of millions of dollars was invested during the past year in plant equipment, computers, software, and other capital assets purchased by Canadian firms who are optimistic about the future.

The average Canadian cannot probably fully appreciate the breadth of assets that are financing by leasing companies in Canada. From aircraft, to computers, to office equipment, to mining and plan machinery, if it was a revenue producing asset Chief Financial Officers, business owners, and operations mangers all probably considered lease financing as an alternative to purchasing the asset outright.

There are many accounting and financial aspects to lease financing in Canada. Capital leases , which are leases presuming your firms ownership of the asset are recorded on balance sheets, operating leases are buried deep in the footnotes of your firms financials – in those cases you are using the asset with , generally speaking, no intent of owning the asset. With changes forthcoming in world wide accounting treatment of leases more and more firms seem to be opting for capital lease transactions.

One of the major beneficiaries of lease financing is IT leasing, aka computer leasing .As the Canadian economy continues to slowly improve after a somewhat disastrous 2008 and 2009 more and more firms are upgrading computers and technology . It is not surprising that in one of the fastest areas of ‘asset aging ‘, i.e. computers that more and more firms wish to upgrade assets.

When we start to consider the huge amount of capital expenditure that is involved in purchasing computers it makes perfect sense that business owners, ‘ IT ‘ managers, and chief financial officers reflect on lease financing as a solid solution for this asset class. Although computer and other related technologies (i.e. telecom) continue to drop in price and provide more performance at the same time the current low rate environment, in addition to cash flow savings, make lease financing a strong business financing choice. As we have said many times in the past, as a general rule you want to use a computer, not own one.

In many cases it is the manufacturers themselves that provide major incentives for the customer to finance technology via the equipment lease. This makes sense of course given they retain a certain amount of account control and influence on future purchases and upgrades.

Naturally prudent business owners and financial mangers will want to ensure they clearly understand the lease rates, their ability to purchase, upgrade or return the equipment, as well as having a solid knowledge of any hidden fees with respect to maintenance, returns at end of lease, etc.

Canadian business owners who place a strong importance on understanding all their financing options with respect to asset financing and leasing should ensure that they retain the services of a trusted an experience lease advisor who can ensure they will receive optimal rate, terms, and structures in their asset financing needs .



7 Park Avenue Financial :

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com

Business financing for Canadian Firms , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing , Equipment Leasing , franchise finance and Cdn. Tax Credit Finance . Founded 2004 - Completed in excess of 100 Million $ of financing for Canadian corporations .







7 Park Avenue Financial

South Sheridan Executive Centre
2910 South Sheridan Way
Suite 301
Oakville, Ontario
L6J 7J8

Direct Line = 416 319 5769

Office = 905 829 2653

Email = sprokop@7parkavenuefinancial.com

' Canadian Business Financing With The Intelligent Use Of Experience '

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stan has had a successful career with some of the world’s largest and most successful corporations.
Prior to founding 7 Park Avenue Financial in 2004 his employers over the last 25 years were, ASHLAND OIL, ( 1977-1980) DIGITAL EQUIPMENT CORPORATION, ( 1980-1990) ) CABLE & WIRELESS PLC,( 1991 -1993) ) AND HEWLETT PACKARD ( 1994-2004 ) He is an expert in Canadian Business Financing.

Stan has over 40 years of business and finance executive experience. He has been recognized as a credit/financial executive for three of the largest technology companies in the world; Hewlett-Packard, Digital Equipment and Cable & Wireless. Stan has had in depth, hands on experience in assessing and evaluating thousands of companies that are seeking financing and expansion. He has been instrumental in helping many companies progress through every phase of financing, mergers & acquisitions, sales and marketing and human resources. Stan has worked with startups and public corporations and has many times established the financial wherewithal of organizations before approving millions of dollars of financing facilities and instruments on behalf of his employers.

Stan Prokop

Equipment Finance – Sale and Leaseback Solutions Canada

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You Probably Want To Know About This Under Used Asset Refinance Strategy

OVERVIEW – Information on the asset refinancing strategy known as the sale lease back solution . The sale leaseback strategy, when properly implemented allows owners/mgrs to access valuable cash flow while maintaining control of key business assets

Equipment Finance is one of the most popular and widely used financing strategies used by Canadian business owners and financial managers. It is a unique financing opportunity because it is kind of the opposite of a normal lease financing strategy. Why is that? Normally your firm has the need for equipment, and has cash flow and working capital to make the payment.

In a sale and leaseback financing the opposite is true. You have equipment, it’s paid for, and the capital is of course tied up in the fixed asset account of your balance sheet. How can you unlock that capital and put it to work to generate sales and profits? The answer is the sale leaseback strategy.

You should consider a sale leaseback strategy when you have a need to improve your liquidity. What is the sale leaseback – very simply speaking it’s the re financing of equipment you own under a lease strategy, so it is not a loan per se. There is one key accounting issue that we should point out though, and it’s simply that if you refinance that equipment and the financing is more than you are carrying the asset for on your balance sheet (you have depreciated the asset over time) then the excess you receive over book value might be taxed as a profit. Bottom line, talk to you accountant on that point.

Implementing a sale leaseback strategy for your Canadian firm is easy – along with the normal business lease application you will need to generate a bill of sale to the lease company that transfers title back to them and title will once again revert back to your firm when the lease is repaid.

Depending on the size of your transaction, or the number of assets involved it might be advisable to get an appraisal , in fact one might ever be a requirement, as opposed to a ‘ nice to have ‘. We point out to clients that often work in your favor as it gives you a sense of what the true value is of the equipment and it might increase the amount you receive under the sale and leaseback strategy.

Another benefit of a sale leaseback strategy is that it potentially will make your balance sheet look better. In many cases your current ratio improves because you use the funds to reduce payables. You are more liquid and can use funds for such things as buying more inventories and taking discounts for prompt payment

In summary, a sale leaseback strategy is a great way to improve working capital and your balance sheet. Speak to a trusted and credible leasing advisor and determine if you can take advantage of those benefits








7 Park Avenue Financial :

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com


Business financing for Canadian Firms , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing , Equipment Leasing , franchise finance and Cdn. Tax Credit Finance . Founded 2004 - Completed in excess of 100 Million $ of financing for Canadian corporations .







7 Park Avenue Financial
South Sheridan Executive Centre
2910 South Sheridan Way
Suite 301
Oakville, Ontario
L6J 7J8

Direct Line = 416 319 5769

Office = 905 829 2653

Email = sprokop@7parkavenuefinancial.com

' Canadian Business Financing With The Intelligent Use Of Experience '

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stan has had a successful career with some of the world’s largest and most successful corporations.
Prior to founding 7 Park Avenue Financial in 2004 his employers over the last 25 years were, ASHLAND OIL, ( 1977-1980) DIGITAL EQUIPMENT CORPORATION, ( 1980-1990) ) CABLE & WIRELESS PLC,( 1991 -1993) ) AND HEWLETT PACKARD ( 1994-2004 ) He is an expert in Canadian Business Financing.

Stan has over 40 years of business and finance executive experience. He has been recognized as a credit/financial executive for three of the largest technology companies in the world; Hewlett-Packard, Digital Equipment and Cable & Wireless. Stan has had in depth, hands on experience in assessing and evaluating thousands of companies that are seeking financing and expansion. He has been instrumental in helping many companies progress through every phase of financing, mergers & acquisitions, sales and marketing and human resources. Stan has worked with startups and public corporations and has many times established the financial wherewithal of organizations before approving millions of dollars of financing facilities and instruments on behalf of his employers.

Stan Prokop

Equipment Financing : Exclusive Strategies For Asset Financing

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Equipment Financing : Your Rock When It Comes To New Assets For Your Business

OVERVIEW – Information on equipment financing in Canada . The ability to benefit from using lease finance to acquire new ( and used ) assets to grow business is key to long term success

Equipment financing in Canada is both wanted... and needed. As the Canadian economy continues to improve your business has the need for new or replacement equipment.

How do you do that efficiently, economically, and cash flow smart? Finance those new assets! Let's dig in.


Pretty well every asset can be financed.

Computers ('Information technology" 'IT ‘)
Plant and production equipment
Software - (Yes, software!)
Rolling stock - i.e. trucks, trailers, etc
Specialized Equipment

Etc! Emphasis on Etc!

So what lease partner should you deal with?

Many of our customers focus on 'rate ', or in effect the price. It goes without saying that your firms want a competitive rate, and clients are surprised when we say they get to pick their own rate! What do we mean by that? We simply mean that your company's overall credit quality will always determine the rate and structure and term of the lease. However, in order to achieve that best rate or ' pricing ' you need to ensure your company is presented in the best light possible.

The right lease advisor/partner will allow you to reap some, or all of the following ten benefits:

Conserving cash

Cash flow predictability

Ability to use cash for more pressing current liabilities

An alternative to ' the bank'

Letting new assets improve your processes/production

Flexibility re adding on, upgrading, trading in

No equity give up

Allows your other borrowings to stay current

Reap the accounting benefits - i.e. depreciation, etc

Stay competitive with what your competitors are doing



How is lease approval decisions made? No one factor determines an equipment lease financing approval. It's quite frankly what our firm likes to call the 'weight of evidence '. That simply means that several key factors such as your financial statement health, the current state of your industry, the asset quality, and your ability to demonstrate re payment are the key factors in any lease financing approval.

But wait - there's more!

1.You don't have to be an established business - lease financing can be for a start up or emerging company also

2. Your equipment doesn't necessarily have to be new, it can be used if you can demonstrate its value and that it has been maintained and still has a useful economic life

3. You might already own an asset - let's say it is not financed, you can lease it back to the lease firm and generate cash flow and working capital from that transaction!

4. Banks in general in Canada do not provide lease financing - two of the Canadian banks have lease financing operations but credit quality must be quite good to achieve bank type lease financing

5 . Being declined does not necessarily mean that you can't get the equipment financing - we simply re structure the transaction to meet the approval criteria - that might mean a simple restructuring of the lease

Seek out and speak to an equipment finance expert!



7 Park Avenue Financial :
South Sheridan Executive Centre
2910 South Sheridan Way
Suite 301
Oakville, Ontario
L6J 7J8

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com


Business financing for Canadian Firms , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing , Equipment Leasing , franchise finance and Cdn. Tax Credit Finance . Founded 2004 - Completed in excess of 100 Million $ of financing for Canadian corporations .







7 Park Avenue Financial

Direct Line = 416 319 5769

Office = 905 829 2653

Email = sprokop@7parkavenuefinancial.com

' Canadian Business Financing With The Intelligent Use Of Experience '

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stan has had a successful career with some of the world’s largest and most successful corporations.
Prior to founding 7 Park Avenue Financial in 2004 his employers over the last 25 years were, ASHLAND OIL, ( 1977-1980) DIGITAL EQUIPMENT CORPORATION, ( 1980-1990) ) CABLE & WIRELESS PLC,( 1991 -1993) ) AND HEWLETT PACKARD ( 1994-2004 ) He is an expert in Canadian Business Financing.

Stan has over 40 years of business and finance executive experience. He has been recognized as a credit/financial executive for three of the largest technology companies in the world; Hewlett-Packard, Digital Equipment and Cable & Wireless. Stan has had in depth, hands on experience in assessing and evaluating thousands of companies that are seeking financing and expansion. He has been instrumental in helping many companies progress through every phase of financing, mergers & acquisitions, sales and marketing and human resources. Stan has worked with startups and public corporations and has many times established the financial wherewithal of organizations before approving millions of dollars of financing facilities and instruments on behalf of his employers.

Stan Prokop

Equipment Leasing In Canada : Now You're A Know It All!

The Doctor Is In : Expert Advice on Canadian Leasing

OVERVIEW – Information on equipment financing in Canada. The ability of business owners/financial mgrs to maximize leasing benefits conserves cash and provides financial flexibility for asset acquisition

Equipment financing basics allows the business owner/mgr significantly increase their chances of approval, and, equally as important, ensuring the Canadian lease financing they are looking for comes with rates, terms, and general structures that are commensurate with their overall credit quality and business financing needs . Let’s dig in.

A lease and equipment financing provider has some basic needs around your initial application for financing. Some of the key areas you should focus on are detailed below.

Leasing is available for firms with all durations of ‘time in business ‘. Although a start up firm can be financing via a lease financing solution your overall time in business can be a great factor to increase your chances of a proper approval. Equally important is the overall industry and business model you are in – as on occasion some industries are out of favor. In 2008-2009 the auto industry was clearly ‘out of favor ‘.

Lease financing is a segment of ‘asset based lending ‘- therefore the asset you are financing has a considerable role in determining your overall approval and pricing. Equipment that is financed generally tends to depreciate, so your lease firm will focus on the value of the equipment during the term of your lease. As an example a lessor could only reasonably expect to recover 5 or 10% of a computers value three years from now, simply because a computer and telecom equipment in general as asset classes depreciate quickly .

Equipment that is not purchase for bona fide vendors and manufacturers also on occasion can present financing challenges. Therefore if you have a choice work with repeatable dealers, wholesalers, manufacturers, etc.



Any lease firm will draw commercial credit reports on your firm and look for payment trends to suppliers – if personal guarantees are required on private small and medium sized firms quite often a net worth statement and credit bureau check will be asked form . Quite frankly these types of information and credit diligence are associated with any borrowing, whether that is a corporate credit card, a business loan application, etc. In reality lease firms in Canada probably provide the quickest overall approval times than any other type of business financing. Many lessors use automated credit scoring systems and smaller transactions fewer than 50k for example can actually be sometimes approved in a matter of minutes or hours.

Lease transactions in Canada can run into the many millions of dollars, lease financing is one of most vibrant financing initiatives in the country – so expect on larger deals that a higher level of due diligence will be performed on your firm for larger lease facilities .

Finally , leasing is all about ‘structure ‘ so you should feel free to be creative in your lease structure request in order to maximize the particular benefits of lease financing that you are trying to achieve – they might include lower rates re your credit quality, seasonal payments, flexible end to term options etc .

In summary, business owners should learn some key leasing basics around what is required to make a lease approval successful. Being armed in this manner will ensure a more prompt approval and the overall approval you are seeking re asset type, term of lease, and flexibility at end of term. That is sensible, proactive financing. Seek the advice of a trusted and credible lease financing advisor who can assist you with asset finance needs.




7 Park Avenue Financial :
South Sheridan Executive Centre
2910 South Sheridan Way
Suite 301
Oakville, Ontario
L6J 7J8

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com



Business financing for Canadian Firms , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing , Equipment Leasing , franchise finance and Cdn. Tax Credit Finance . Founded 2004 - Completed in excess of 100 Million $ of financing for Canadian corporations .







7 Park Avenue Financial

Direct Line = 416 319 5769

Office = 905 829 2653

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stan has had a successful career with some of the world’s largest and most successful corporations.
Prior to founding 7 Park Avenue Financial in 2004 his employers over the last 25 years were, ASHLAND OIL, ( 1977-1980) DIGITAL EQUIPMENT CORPORATION, ( 1980-1990) ) CABLE & WIRELESS PLC,( 1991 -1993) ) AND HEWLETT PACKARD ( 1994-2004 ) He is an expert in Canadian Business Financing.

Stan has over 40 years of business and finance executive experience. He has been recognized as a credit/financial executive for three of the largest technology companies in the world; Hewlett-Packard, Digital Equipment and Cable & Wireless. Stan has had in depth, hands on experience in assessing and evaluating thousands of companies that are seeking financing and expansion. He has been instrumental in helping many companies progress through every phase of financing, mergers & acquisitions, sales and marketing and human resources. Stan has worked with startups and public corporations and has many times established the financial wherewithal of organizations before approving millions of dollars of financing facilities and instruments on behalf of his employers.

Stan Prokop

Let Equipment Financing Remove The Need To Juggle Asset Acquisition Needs

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Need New Assets Or Technology To Run & Grow Your Business ? Tried This?

OVERVIEW – Information on equipment financing in Canada. Using strategies such as the sale leaseback and lease financing in general businesses can acquire assets they require to grow sales and profits

Equipment financing provides an ultra solid solution for companies that require new assets and technology. One way to achieve cash flow nirvana is to refinance assets you already own under a sale leaseback strategy. Let's dig in.

Simply speaking you use unencumbered assets in your business to generate additional cash flow and in some cases enhance your financial statement metrics as well as potentially positively having a positive impact on taxation and profit of your firm. Talk about a win win.

Let's talk a bit more about those 'motivations ' for considering the strategy. Your firm is of course in business to earn a profit you're you and your other shareholders. When you take debt of your balance sheet your profits become greater, because they are a larger percentage of your total assets.

The arithmetic is quite simple, your earnings divided by your asset base - when assets are taken off your balance sheet by the sale leaseback strategy ( remember, you have sold the equipment to the lease company but of course you still use the asset ) your ROA - known as return on assets is magnified! That's a good thing!


What is another motivator to consider such a transaction? If you have traditional bank lines of credit and term loans, attached to those arrangements are the ' covenants ', or promises you made to the lender with respect to certain rations of debt and operating ability. Many of these ratios 'magically' improve once you have completed your sale leaseback strategy, because debt has gone off your books.

There are two essential types of business equipment financing in the leasing world - capital leases, and operating leases. Operating leases are generally utilized by firms that have a bit more financial sophistication. You don't own the asset, but you are using it for economic benefit. You probably don't ever intend or desire to own the asset. So how does this information relate to our sale leaseback strategy?

Cash your company receives from a sale leaseback is new cash that you will invest in hopefully other growth opportunities for your firm. In some cases you can now actually refinance old loans at a better rate, which is also financially advantageous.

In lease financing your ability to properly control and minimize cash outflows is what asset financing/refinancing is all about!

In summary, sale leaseback strategies, while a bit specialized, can be very powerful if you are looking for additional cash flow, have balance sheet issues, or concerns about asset obsolescence and replacement. Seek out and speak to a trusted credible and experienced business financing advisor. Sale Leaseback financing - Think about it!







7 Park Avenue Financial :

South Sheridan Executive Centre
2910 South Sheridan Way
Suite 301
Oakville, Ontario
L6J 7J8

http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com


Business financing for Canadian Firms , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing , Equipment Leasing , franchise finance and Cdn. Tax Credit Finance . Founded 2004 - Completed in excess of 100 Million $ of financing for Canadian corporations .







7 Park Avenue Financial

Direct Line = 416 319 5769


Office = 905 829 2653

Email = sprokop@7parkavenuefinancial.com

' Canadian Business Financing With The Intelligent Use Of Experience '

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stan has had a successful career with some of the world’s largest and most successful corporations.
Prior to founding 7 Park Avenue Financial in 2004 his employers over the last 25 years were, ASHLAND OIL, ( 1977-1980) DIGITAL EQUIPMENT CORPORATION, ( 1980-1990) ) CABLE & WIRELESS PLC,( 1991 -1993) ) AND HEWLETT PACKARD ( 1994-2004 ) He is an expert in Canadian Business Financing.

Stan has over 40 years of business and finance executive experience. He has been recognized as a credit/financial executive for three of the largest technology companies in the world; Hewlett-Packard, Digital Equipment and Cable & Wireless. Stan has had in depth, hands on experience in assessing and evaluating thousands of companies that are seeking financing and expansion. He has been instrumental in helping many companies progress through every phase of financing, mergers & acquisitions, sales and marketing and human resources. Stan has worked with startups and public corporations and has many times established the financial wherewithal of organizations before approving millions of dollars of financing facilities and instruments on behalf of his employers.

Stan Prokop