Banknotes Blog

Before you get started on plans to expand your business, there are several steps experts recommend to properly prepare for an effective expansion. Your banker or potential investor will want to know you took these steps seriously and may even ask for data supporting your conclusions. Here are five ways to improve your chances of obtaining financing from a bank or investor.

It's hard to believe that we've turned the page on 2021, a year full of ups, downs, and everything in between. But before you look ahead to the possibility that 2022 holds, it may be a good idea to evaluate how you did financially over the previous 12 months. Budget & spending, emergency & other expenses, and savings are good places to start.

You’ve heard the saying: “You have to spend money to make money.” While the underlying concept is true, the real trick is knowing when to spend and when to save to create a stable, thriving business. When it comes to spending, the most important thing is to fully understand your return on investment. Let's take a look at some to rules to guide your saving and spending decisions.

We made it – 2021 is now behind us, and 2022 has arrived! While last year certainly had its challenges (inflation, Covid variants, supply-chain issues), the markets took it all in stride and performed reasonably well ... at least, if you take a 30,000-foot view. This year promises more obstacles, as inflation continues to surge, the Fed shifts from easing to tightening, and Covid concerns remain as prevalent as ever. Hopefully, by planning for the unexpected this year, investors can come out ahead. Let’s assess where we've come from, and contemplate where we may be headed.

After reading the title of this post, you might be thinking, "Can electronic bank statements really improve my life?" A reasonable question, surely, but the answer is yes! In my opinion, electronic statements are simply the best banking service available to our customers. And what makes the humble eStatement such a game-changer? Let’s run down the list...

Lots of times, the security and fraud-related articles we share are scam-focused – that is, they involve fraudsters tricking victims into voluntarily, and unwittingly, sharing their sensitive personal information. Sometimes, though, there's an even more devious way that schemers get what they're looking for, and its targets are frequently none the wiser until it's too late. The following article contains good advice for how to make sure the wolves never make it through the door.

For 2022, the conforming loan limits will jump an unprecedented 18 percent to $647,200 for single-family homes, with laddered increases for multi-family residences with up to four units. While you may think the upper limits for borrowing don’t really affect you, the truth is that this big increase is good news for homebuyers at a wide range of borrowing levels.

How do small businesses make large purchases, start new construction, or finance other development opportunities? Here are several ways.

Volatility seems to be back, as is a rising sense of uncertainty over what the future holds. “It’s like déjà vu all over again,” as Yogi Berra said. Let’s dive in and try to make some sense of what we’ve been seeing.

Ensuring you receive payments reliably and on time is important for efficient cash management. Here are some common payment questions from businesses and how we answer them.

With all of the welcome distractions that this time of year provides, scammers typically up their game and try to take advantage people who may take their eye off the ball, so to speak, when it comes to safeguarding their finances. The following article lays out a new scam that’s increasingly being run, and how to stop it in its tracks.

Failure assumes added significance for sales and business professionals, because we tend to interpret ‘no’ in personal terms as rejection when, in reality, ‘no’ is normally driven by a prospect’s circumstances and needs at that time. Here are five ways to reconsider failure.

In an Amazon world, where everyone is accustomed to unlimited selection and two-day delivery, the current supply chain crisis is officially affecting all aspects of life, from groceries to gift giving and from cars to kitchen remodels. What are your options for serving customers through this challenge when so many factors feel like they are outside your control?

“Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” Most people are familiar with this time-worn adage, or some variation on the theme, and for good reason: there’s a lot of truth in it. The same principle can be applied to finances.

As a business owner, you have a company to run, and when it comes to retirement options, you just want something that is easy and inexpensive to set up and operate. This is where an SEP IRA or SIMPLE IRA can make a lot of sense.

Inflation is on the rise, the economy slowed dramatically in the third quarter, and yet, the markets staged a strong rally in October. Like the song says, “We got to beware,” and “Everybody [needs to] look [at] what’s going down,” if we want to be able to navigate through the uncertainty.

"Together, everyone achieves more." More than simply a clever mnemonic device that encapsulates the importance a unified collective working toward a common goal – a TEAM – this phrase underpins the approach that Lake Ridge Banks' commercial & ag, treasury management, wealth management, private banking, and other financial professionals bring with them to the office (or home office) every day. It's a mindset that allows us to maximize results for our partners, and that's helped propel our own business forward for the past 110+ years.

Cryptocurrency is, in a lot of ways, the new Wild West of finance. The following PSA details one of the newer scams out there, and how to avoid it.

Interest rates may go up, prices may come back down. We simply cannot predict the future with any certainty. The best strategy is to just do what is best for your current business operations.

Choosing the right person to administer your estate can be hard. Many feel compelled to choose a family member, not realizing there are other, perhaps better, options.

As things continue to play out in ways both expected and unexpected in the markets and economy, we can’t really say that this is just what we thought would happen.