To begin the initial activity process, assemble the team that will be responsible for implementing the activity. Once the team is together, review the Initial Activity Team Checklist (Exercise 15) for use during the team-building and planning session. This session will probably take place over a period of days or even weeks, depending on the scope of the activity. The checklist covers both the Stages of Relationship Development and the Stages of Partnership Development. In the initial meeting it is important to spend time on developing the relationship. Note, however, that people will want to move right to tasks. It is important that they understand that by establishing the relationship issues first, they will save time in the long run. Ultimately, when people go directly to tasks, relationship issues impede task development, causing conflict and frustration.

In our Bank of America/Exult case, the task portion of the business was easy. Each team had process integration people paired up to ensure seamless flow of information and data between the two organizations. But it was the time spent up front that enabled them to build trust with each other, helping them endure the tough times.

Once the partnering team for the initial activity has been selected, it is important to choose an initial project that creates a win-win outcome for all parties and has a good chance of success. An example of such a project is one undertaken by the Public Works and Traffic Division of the District of Columbia. The city government was in a state of chaos. Among the more evident symptoms was its inability to replace damaged and vandalized parking meters within a reasonably quick time frame. The city was losing thousands of dollars a day in revenue since people couldn’t drop coins into the meters. In an excellent example of a public-private partnership, the district formed an alliance with Lockheed Martin IMS to remedy the situation.

Lockheed Martin IMS agreed to take over maintaining and replacing city parking meters. In exchange, the city agreed to give Lockheed Martin a percentage of the total revenue collected. Each party won. Parking meter revenue began to increase, and the city’s image began to improve as the public perception of meter care improved. Things looked less run-down and seemed better cared for. Lockheed Martin began to turn a small profit in the deal and was assured of continued city contracts.

Make sure key leadership is present to kick off the initial activity. When key leadership is visible, the partnering activities are generally more successful. Key leadership being absent sends the nonverbal message “This is not important.” Plan a launch. Invite people in the organizations to witness the kickoff. Write articles in the employee newsletters and provide media releases. Send the message “This is important! You are partnering with another business and you can look for these benefits.”

Make sure everyone knows the partnership’s vision and goals and inform them when these change or are updated. Keep this information in the forefront of people’s minds. One sure way to kill a partnership is to be ambiguous about or miscommunicate the vision and goals for the partnership.

When initiating your partnership, it is important to remember to keep the task and relationship activities balanced. Spending the time up front will result in exponential benefits in the end. In the first trimester of development, you want to spend about two-thirds of your time on relationship development and about one-third on task design. This is also true once you have identified your partner and are initiating an activity. It is important to build the relationship with the partnering team implementing the initial activity. The challenge at this step is to build a strong relationship between the partners while creating a plan for a successful task.

Many times, when it comes to deciding between Property “A” and Property “B,” emotions will take over and attempt to dictate what you should buy. Many novice investors indignantly declare, “I refuse to purchase any building that I wouldn’t live in.” If you recognize yourself making that statement, you should realize that you’re on the verge of leaving lots of great opportunities behind for someone else to discover.

But don’t fret, you are not alone. In fact, it’s easy to see why emotions rule the day—you’re fearful of losing what little money you have been able to save. In fact, many will argue that the fear of losing their nest egg is as much (if not more of) a motivator as is the promise of gain from investing it. To illustrate, let’s say you were invited to a get-together at 9 PM to learn about a business opportunity that could very well make you $1,000 on a $5,000 investment. After a bit of thought, you might decide to spend that time watching the news or Seinfeld reruns on TV instead. But let’s turn the tables: What would happen if you got a call and were told you would lose that $1,000 if you didn’t go to the 9 PM meeting? Precisely.

There is no shame in a bit of apprehension. In fact, playing the devil’s advocate will usually help you make prudent decisions along the way. But beware unfounded fear about losing money by buying the “wrong” building could very well keep you from obtaining just the perfect fit for your long- term plan. Thankfully, unlike investing in commodities such as stocks and bonds via the advice of a so-called expert, there are concrete things you can do in this game that will minimize the risk of ever overpaying for a building, namely, learning how to value property accurately for yourself.

Expert help is nice, but when it comes to protecting your own nest egg, the peace of mind that will come from conducting your own analysis will be nothing short of invaluable.

Owners who have properties that are managed particularly well prefer this technique. What’s more, if you’ve managed your property correctly, the increased rents should more than cover any increased mortgage payments. If you are in a market where you can pull out most of your equity to move into another property and still keep the original property, you could be well on your way to creating a comfortable retirement scenario for yourself.

To sum up a long and complicated chapter, this information is designed to give you a basic understanding of real estate taxation and some tax-deferral methods. The goal is to make you aware of the complexity of this area so you will seek the advice of your tax expert before you make any move. When it comes to taxes, even minor mistakes could be costly. To that end, we recommend the following.

First, before you ever list a property for sale, make sure you schedule a general review meeting with your tax consultant. Review your goals, discuss all the alternatives, and get a general idea of your position. Second, when listing a property for sale make clear to your agent and in the listing contract that any transaction must be reviewed and approved by your tax consultant. And, finally, when negotiating a potential sale or exchange, include a contingency that gives you a right to have the final purchase agreement reviewed and approved by your tax consultant. This will give you an out if your tax expert advises you against the transaction.

Until you actually receive the profit from the sale of  your property, you don’t owe the IRS a penny. Instead,  with an installment sale you would be carrying the note  (and your profit from the sale) long term and receiving  interest-only payments from the buyer. The idea is to keep  earning a high interest on the taxes due for many years.

By doing this you would delay paying the capital gains  until the contract is complete.  The rules for qualifying for an installment sale were significantly  modified by the Installment Sales Revision Act of 1980. In the  past there were rules regarding the amount of down payment and  the number of years needed to qualify. These no longer exist. The  advantage of an installment sale now is that you are required to pay  capital gains tax only on the amount of the profit you receive in one  year. You pay the balance of the tax due as you collect the profit in  subsequent years.

The same is true for investment compatibility. There are hundreds of asset classes. Step 1 discusses the emotional implications of all the major and many minor investment classes. Fortunately, if you find yourself incompatible with the stock market, the chances of finding better investment satisfaction elsewhere are high. In the case of Michael and Susan, once they work on their investment maturity, they will find many asset classes that suit them better than stocks.

With a tax code that many accountants and financial planners struggle to master, there are hundreds of thousands of individuals who are caught off guard and unprepared by large tax bills. If you find yourself in this situation, it’s crucial to begin communicating with the IRS about eliminating this debt as soon as possible.

The legal system and states have become increasingly aggressive in pursuing people who fail to pay what they owe. Because of this increased aggressiveness, failure to pay child support or alimony can lead to garnishment of your wages and a debt that follows you even if you declare bankruptcy of move out of the country!

Like legal and medical debts, proactive negotiations can often reduce or even eliminate amounts you owe to other parties. Hence, if you find yourself in this situation, you need to put it at the top of your prioritized list.