Most of the time, if one musician in an orchestra misses a note, it doesn’t impact the orchestra as a whole. Certainly, if a musician misses a note in one performance, it should not impact a future performance of the orchestra or musicians who join the orchestra in the future. Until now, the same as been true of partnerships, limited liability companies, and other entities taxed as partnerships under federal tax law.
Read MoreFine violins do not have serial numbers, but they do typically have a label inside identifying the maker and frequently the year and location where the violin was made. Many violin makers, or luthiers[i] as they are known, like to copy well-known instruments, sometimes even down to the label inside the instrument, and the most famous violin maker, Antonio Stradivari, is also the most frequently copied.
Read MoreA real estate investor might start small, with a single duplex and eventually, through a series of purchases, sales, and reinvestments, the real estate investor may own multiple large apartment complexes, office buildings, or even high-rise mixed-use buildings. In those instances, although the primary purchase was real estate, each purchase would come with a certain amount of personal property in the form of appliances, furnishings, supplies, and other equipment necessary to operate the real estate. Comparing a real estate transaction to a violin purchase, purchasing the violin would be akin to purchasing the real property, and purchasing the bow and case would be more like the personal property that is purchased with the real estate investment.
Read MoreConsider that you are a professional violinist who lives in Maryland. To build your career as a solo violinist you are planning your first tour to Pennsylvania and Ohio, and you need to attract local audiences in those states. It would be a lot more difficult if there were rules that required that your advertisements for the Ohio concerts only reached individuals in Ohio and the advertisements for the Pennsylvania concerts only reached individuals in Pennsylvania.
Read MoreMy parents grew up during the Great Depression. As children they had, by necessity, been trained to save everything that had any possible future use, and that carried into their adult lives. It is no surprise that I carried the idea of savings things which might become useful. When I became a violinist, that extended to used violin strings. When I started playing the violin, there was a logic to saving used strings in that they had already been “stretched out.” Just as I hung onto old strings after their usefulness was over, a company, also, can fall victim to keeping records so long that they interfere with the company’s business.
Read MoreSustainability simply means the ability to be maintained or to continue. Today, we usually think of sustainability in the context of energy or the environment. However, sustainability also is important to every individual and every business, because without a sustainable foundation, the individual or business will “burn out.”
Read MoreMost people have heard of Antonio Stradivari, who likely is the most renowned violin maker of all time. Few outside of the violin world, however, have heard of Francois Tourte, who developed the modern violin bow and has been called the “Stradivari of the bow.” Just as the violin student may overlook the importance of the bow, the real estate investor may overlook the importance of financing options and structure.
Read MoreMy son started at age three playing a 1/32 size violin, which with an eight-inch body looked more like a toy than a violin. A few months ago, my son traded in his ¾ size violin for a 7/8 size instrument, which is valued at 20 times the price we paid for that original 1/32 size violin nearly nine years before. When we made the most recent violin purchase, I realized how our “investment” in violins is like real estate investment.
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