All posts by Michael Stoop

Michael Stoop is the president of Metropolitan Risk Advisory. He leads a team of smart & proactive risk advisors whose acumen and protocols yield a substantive outcome for their customers. The goal is to achieve a cost efficiency and cost consistency that better positions them for growth and continuity in their native markets. Michael has been in the industry for over 20 years.

Builders Risk Policies Do Not End at the Expiration Date

Very few purchasers of Builder’s Risk insurance are aware that coverage ceases in two ways and not just at policy expiration.   At expiration as everyone is aware , coverage  also ceases  when a project, recently completed is awarded it’s Certificate of
Occupancy by the municipality it is located in. Rather than write the article again here, I just thought I would provide the link.

 

Do You Know When Your Builders Risk Policy Expires??

 

Hopefully you are reading this prior to your loss!

Made in the USA – The Story of the Ear Muff

At 15 years old Chester Greenwood went ice skating on a pond near his home in Farmington Maine. It was so cold his ears nearly froze off. The next afternoon he covered his ears with a woolen scarf that proved to be too itchy and heavy. The next day he bent
some wire into ear shaped loops and asked his grandmother to sew fur around them. It worked perfectly, so much so that he soon received requests from neighbors and friends for a pair of "muffs for the ears". Ultimately he patented his design and founded the
Greenwood Ear Protector Factory in 1877. He became extremely wealthy supplying them to U.S. Soldiers during World War I. 

There you have it Made In the Good Ole USA!

1099's for Vendors Paid More Than $600

Starting in 2011, landlords will be required to issue 1099’s for all vendors paid more than $600 in fees for that fiscal year. There will be an exemption for those who have a temporary rental. The IRS also has the ability to exempt landlords below a certain
rental income limit. My question is how will they execute this without having all of those tax ID numbers on file to connect the dots for the IRS. 

No wonder the economy is not growing. Small business is too burden with tax compliance and tax payments to actually earn money. I can’t decide who is worse ; the politician’s or those of us that elect them to a 90% incumbency rate, then complain about their
policies. Rome is burning as the Roman’s stare in wonderment at the dazzeling auburn sky sipping red wine and eating grapes in their soft linen robes.

Don’t get me started…….