Will demonstrate to neighbors tax relief provided under Fair Tax using Fair Tax Calculator at www.FairTaxCut.com and urge them to contact state legislators before May 1^st deadline

 

Chicago, IL - At noon today, April 15^th, just hours before the deadline for residents in Illinois to file their state tax returns, taxpayers will gather at local post offices in communities throughout Illinois to spread the word about the urgent need to enact the Fair Tax in Illinois.  Using the Fair Tax calculator at www.FairTaxCut.com, they will show their neighbors that they could have paid far less in taxes under a Fair Tax, and urge legislators in Springfield to put the Fair Tax on the ballot so voters can decide in November.

Right now, the Fair Tax - with lower rates for lower incomes and higher rates for higher incomes - is not allowed due to an antiquated provision of the Illinois Constitution from 1970. The Fair Tax - implemented with a rate structure proposed by the Fair Tax Act's chief sponsor, Sen. Don Harmon - would cut taxes for 94% of Illinois residents, including everyone making up to $205,000.  If state legislators pass the Fair Tax Act by May 1^st, voters will be allowed to modernize the constitution in November with a Fair Tax.  The Fair Tax is supported by 77% of Illinois voters.

Armed with smartphones and iPads, volunteers standing in front of local post offices will be demonstrating the tax cuts offered under a Fair Tax.  They will be using the Fair Tax Calculator at www.FairTaxCut.com, which allows users to type in their household income and the number of persons in their household to calculate their tax cut (or tax increase if they make over $205,000).  They will also urge citizens to contact their legislators to pass the Fair Tax Act ahead of the May 1^st deadline, which people can also do via the Fair Tax Cut website.

For months, the large and growing statewide coalition known as A Better Illinois has been advocating for a Fair Tax.  It has drawn support from every single legislative district - Republican and Democrat - including nearly 250,000 petition signatures, nearly 500 community and civic organizations, including both business and labor alike.

***Media interested in covering the event can RSVP to  neal@abetterillinois.org***

 

What: Local citizens demonstrating how large a tax cut people would get under a under a Fair Tax via www.FairTaxCut.com and urging citizens to contact legislators to pass the Fair Tax Act

 

Time & Date: Noon.  Tuesday, April 15^th

 

Who: Local taxpayers

 

Locations

Downtown Chicago - Post Office at Federal Plaza (at Dearborn and Adams) 219 S. Dearborn, Chicago, IL 60604

Joliet - Post Office at 51 E. Cinton St, Joliet, IL 60432

Quad Cities - Post office at 2633 11th St, Rock Island, IL

Decatur - Post Office at 214 N Franklin St, Decatur, IL 62523

Metro East - Post Office at 120 W Washington, Belleville, IL 62220-9998

 

Visuals: creative signs, people using www.FairTaxCut.com on iPads & smartphones

 

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Forget the 'Likes' - How to Market Effectively
Using Today's Facebook

3 Ways to Benefit from Paid Ads & Boosted Posts

It seems nothing changes faster than the big social media platforms -- Facebook, Twitter, Google+. No sooner do marketers figure out how to best promote a product or business than they change the rules!

That's been especially true for Facebook, which had to find new ways to make money after going public two years ago. Twitter has also been making changes since its IPO in November, but most of them - including a visual redesign, tagging people and uploading multiple photos - are geared toward user friendliness. Even Google+, owned by Google, which went public way back in 2004, is constantly tweaking.

But the tweaks bringing the most squeals of protest are those being made by Facebook. Basically, it has taken away users' ability to reach - for free - all or even most of the people they've worked so hard to attract to their pages.

So, do brands and businesses just abandon the platform and the audience there?

"No - they just have to change how you use Facebook," says Jonathan Sellers, a social media strategist at EMSI Public Relations, (www.emsincorporated.com).

"In the past, the goal was to get as many people to 'like' your page - or to 'friend' you if you were using a personal page for marketing purposes," he says. "Forget likes. Now, Facebook makes you pay to get people to like your page by charging you to promote your posts, and then it makes you pay again to get your posts in front of them. That seriously devalues the like!"

Only 5 to 10 percent of people following your business or brand pages - sometimes even less! - will see what you have to share if you don't pay for extra visibility via a "boosted post," he says.

"So the focus should shift from working to get people following your page to getting your content to your market."

Facebook's inexpensive ads and "boosted posts" actually offer some great benefits, he notes. Here are three he says we should be taking advantage of:

•  Flexibility. Facebook allows you to create ads and boost posts for any number of reasons.  For example, you can create content designed to drive people to your website; get them to engage with you; to sign up for an event; or even track visitors.

•  Targeting. Did you know that when you create an ad on Facebook, you can choose the specific types of people you want to see the ad?  Targeting on Facebook goes far beyond the traditional demographics of age, sex and location. You can target people based on their interests. Are you a sports bar owner in Miami who wants to attract Chicago Bears fans to watch the games at your place every week? Facebook makes it super easy for you to reach people who live in your ZIP code, who are over 21 and who love the Bears.

•  Reporting. Facebook offers very detailed reporting so you can rest assured that you will see exactly where your ad dollars are going.  There is a slight learning curve to figure out the best ways to utilize the data, but it's there for you.

"This experience should be a lesson to all of us that we cannot become too dependent on any single platform," Sellers says.

"They're all going to continuously evolve to find the best mix of optimal user experience and profit."

About Jonathan Sellers

Jonathan Sellers is a social media strategist at EMSI Public Relations, a social media marketing and national pay-for-performance PR firm. A graduate of the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga, Sellers specializes in online content marketing strategies, driving engagement through blogging best practices and use of multiple media formats including video, photos and graphics. He has managed online marketing initiatives for companies in a variety of industries, including health care and advertising.

Ideal Location at I-80 and US-65 in Altoona

(April 14, 2014)   New England Development announced its plans today to develop a 325,000 square foot outlet center in Altoona, Iowa at the intersection of I-80 and US-65. Featuring approximately 75 of some of the best brand names in retail, Des Moines Outlets will serve the Des Moines metropolitan area and beyond. With no other outlet center located within 80 miles, this new center will meet the region's need for brand names at outlet prices.

Des Moines Outlets will be an integral part of The Shoppes at Prairie Crossing, being developed by Heart of America Group. The site consists of 174 acres and over 1.4 million square feet of leasable space with plans for hotel, additional retail, office, and residential uses. This summer, Johnny's Italian Steakhouse will open on the development's eight-acre lake.

New England Development, one of the nation's premier real estate developers with a growing portfolio of outlet centers, expressed enthusiasm about the Des Moines market and this location in particular.  Douglass Karp, Executive Vice President of New England Development, commented, "The Des Moines market is well-known nationally for its dynamic growth and quality of life.  The Shoppes at Prairie Crossing provides an ideal opportunity for us to be part of this market in an exciting development at a terrific location."

The 32-acre Des Moines Outlets site, at exit 142 off of I-80, is at an established destination for shopping and entertainment and just six miles from downtown Des Moines.  The Shoppes at Prairie Crossing sits adjacent to Prairie Meadows Racetrack, Casino and Hotel, Adventureland Amusement Park, Bass Pro Shops, and the Facebook Data Center.  Currently, these established uses attract over 6 million visitors a year to the surrounding area and Des Moines Outlets will significantly add to these counts.

New England Development is in the initial stages of developing a plan to submit to town officials.  Mr. Karp commented, "We look forward to working with Altoona, the state, and the local community on this exciting project."  Mayor Skip Conkling calls this a "tremendous opportunity for the City of Altoona. Des Moines Outlets are the perfect complement to Altoona's growing entertainment, retail and hospitality industry. This project will draw visitors to our community from all over the Midwest."  "This is exactly the kind of project that fits the regional draw already established in Altoona and it will be a dynamic addition to the State of Iowa," stated Mike Whalen President and CEO of Heart of America Group.

New England Development

Founded by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Stephen R. Karp in 1978, New England Development is one of the nation's premier real estate development and management companies, with nearly 50 million square feet of retail, commercial and residential space to its credit. Led by Steve Karp, together with principals Steven S. Fischman and Douglass E. Karp, New England Development has 35 years of retail development, leasing and management experience and is acclaimed for some of the country's most widely recognized and successful regional malls.  The firm is also known for its growing portfolio of outlet centers, in communities including West Palm Beach, Florida; Asheville, North Carolina; and Little Rock, Arkansas, and for developing mixed-use complexes featuring retail, residential, hotel and office uses; outlet centers; power centers; marinas; golf courses; resort and convention hotel properties; and even an entire planned community.

Heart of America Group

Heart of America Group, the independent hotel, restaurant, and retail space development company headquartered in Moline, Illinois has a thirty-six year of history developing, building, owning, and operating successful hotel and restaurant operations; a niche they've mastered.  Currently the company owns and operates 41 properties across six states that fall within nine well-known brands.  The Midwest-based company was founded in 1978 by Mike Whalen, President & CEO.

Debt Specialists Offer Entrepreneurial Remedy for Continuing Foreclosure Crisis
Experts Say Simple Strategy Can Help Families Keep Their Homes, Avert Proliferation of 'Zombie' Properties'

Despite the recovering economy, home foreclosures have not abated - in fact, they surged in January.

"There's a lot of distressed debt still being held by the big banks because they can't just dump it back into the market all at once; they have to  slowly release it," explains Dean Anastos, founder of Apollo Financial Group, (www.apollofinancialgrp.com).

"That means we're going to continue to see new foreclosure filings, families getting locked out of their homes, and 'zombie' foreclosures."

In January, 21 percent of all U.S. homes were in the foreclosure process, adds Ricky Brava, senior partner at Apollo, citing a recent RealtyTrac report.

"Of those, 152,000 were 'zombie' foreclosures - homes that were already vacant, resulting in declining, unmaintained eyesores," Brava says. "That creates serious problems for neighboring home values."

As for the families facing the loss of their homes, Anastos is especially sympathetic.

"I lost a property to foreclosure during the real estate crash," he says. "That's when I realized how much power the mortgage note holder has. If the banks don't want to negotiate, you're out of luck."

Anastos went to work learning the mortgage side of the real estate business and now specializes in helping families hold onto the American Dream while averting more "zombie" foreclosures.

"Basically, we buy distressed debt bank portfolios that aren't generating cash for the bank and work with the families in the homes to refinance at affordable rates," Brava says. "Because we buy the bank note for much less than its original value, we can provide the homeowner with reasonable loan terms in line with the true value of the home."

Anastos and Brava share these tips:

•  Purchase non-performing first and second lien bank notes: Non-performing bank notes are bank-originated loans that are no longer performing according to the terms they were written - they're not generating income. Look for promissory notes with an underlying mortgage or deed of trust that secures the loan by a collateralized property.

Second lien mortgage notes are riskier than first liens so they're sold for much less, however, buyers must make sure their investment is covered by the property's equity in case they need to resort to a short sale or foreclosure.

•  Do your due diligence! Before purchasing the note, conduct a thorough title search of the property to reveal any liens. Check with the county to ascertain what, if any, outstanding property taxes are due. Contact a local real estate agent to get an estimation of the property's as-is resale value. If you don't pay for a full Broker's Price Opinion, do arrange for photos of the property to be shot from the street.

•  Help the homeowner save his or her home. Most homeowners have some equity in their home and an emotional attachment to it. The shady dealings that created the housing bubble have made them unwitting victims who now cannot afford mortgages worth twice as much as their home. But because you purchased the lien at a discount, you can work out a loan modification that allows them to preserve their equity and remain in their home. When this happens, you've made a profitable investment that preserves the American Dream for one more family.

Unfortunately, not every homeowner is wiling or able to make payments even on a modified loan.

"We've found that, because the foreclosure process can take years, some people become accustomed to not making payments and they just don't want to start," Anastos says.

Unemployment and other serious problems can also affect the homeowner's ability to pay. In such cases, Anastos and Brava say, lien holders must act to protect their investment.

"You may have to foreclose or to arrange a short sale," Brava says. "These are two of the exit strategies you should consider and plan for when buying distressed debt."

About Dean Anastos and Ricky Brava

Dean Anastos is the founder of Apollo Financial Group, (www.apollofinancialgrp.com), and Ricky Brava is senior partner. Anastos is an entrepreneur with a background in real estate, computer programming and trading data communications equipment. Brava specializes in education, marketing and new business development, with an expertise in data-driven, long-term strategic planning. Both men have a strong interest in business opportunities that help resolve societal problems.