The 3rd Annual Mayor's Entrepreneurial Spirit Award was recently kicked-off. This year's competition is sponsored by SpiritBank of Tulsa. Representatives and business leaders from the local and state levels were all there to lend their support to the new entrepreneurs getting involved in this year's business competition.
For interested entrepreneurs, you can enter the competition by submitting your executive summaries to
the Spirit Award website anytime between April 2nd and May 15th. The lucky first place winner will win the grand prize of $30,000, second place will win $5,000 and third place will win $2,500. All prize money is being donated by SpiritBank.
Many people don't know this, but Tulsa was built on entrepreneurial spirit and creative thinking. So, for the past three years, the Mayor has been making sure the city will continue to grow and strengthen through business success.
The Entrepreneurial Spirit Competition is open to anyone in the City of Tulsa with an existing business from a start-up business, an idea for a new business or one that has been in operation for five years. Two more things entrants need to know before entering: the company must be based in Tulsa and the entrant must agree to establish or expand in the City of Tulsa if they win.
Once submissions are complete, the top 25 business will be contacted. These companies will then go through a series of judging and coaching rounds where entrepreneurs will pitch their business idea to a panel of judges. The top three winners will be announced on November 17th during the Entrepreneurial Celebration of Global Entrepreneurship Week. They will also receive their cash prize on this day.
Anyone interested in entering the competition can find more information on instructions and submissions at www.tulsaspiritaward.com.
We wish luck to all Tulsa's entrepreneurs entering - Good luck!
Realtors® Tom & Bev Herring - Tulsa, Oklahoma Real Estate
Tulsa and some of its surrounding communities are celebrating Easter with many great activities for the whole family to enjoy. Therefore, we are taking the opportunity to blog about these activities to keep our community's residents and visitors up-to-date.
· Egg Hunt and Food Baskets - April 4th (2:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.) at Faith CP Church, 2801 S 129th E Ave. Children ages 3-8 join one another for a fun egg hunt complete with prizes. Parents can register for drawings for a chance to win a meal basket.
· Egg Hunt at Bixby Community Center - April 8th (9:45 a.m.) in Haikey Creek Park, 113th & S. Garnett Ave. For children ages 12 and under. Rain date is April 9th at 12:45 p.m.
· Egg Hunt at Chandler Park - April 8th (9:45 a.m.) 6500 West 21st. For children ages 12 and under.
· Egg Hunt at Glenpool Community Center - April 8th (10:00 a.m.) in the practice field near Glenpool High School, 144th & Fern. For children ages 10 & under.
· Egg Hunt at LaFortune Park Community Center - April 8th (10:00 a.m.) in LaFortune Park Gardens, 51st & West Hudson. For children ages 3-8.
· Egg Hunt at O'Brien Park Community Center - April 15th (11:30 a.m.) 6149 N. Lewis Ave. For children ages 12 and under. Doggie hunt will immediately follow the children's hunt.
Each Easter celebration is within Tulsa County and is free for all to enjoy. We hope everyone can get out and enjoy as many activities as possible.
Realtors® Tom & Bev Herring - Tulsa Oklahoma Real Estate
As real estate professionals who have our own website and two real estate blogs, we have personally seen an increase in web traffic. Today, you can go online and find any and everything you want to find about real estate. And this is good news for buyers, sellers, real estate professionals and builders. It helps everyone make better decisions when they can go online and find the information they are looking for.
So, what kind of information are homebuyers spending time looking for online? Homes for sale seem to remain the top searched real estate item. However, following closely behind are community information, school information, demographics, things to see and do, buyer/seller tips, dependable real estate professionals, remodeling tips, home maintenance tips, real estate trends, current market conditions and real estate blogs.
Homebuyers are seeking trustworthy, comprehensive and timely information as they consider making such a large investment in real estate. Therefore, real estate search tools and resources are on the rise to deliver the right information to the right people at the right time.
Many homebuyers that once put off buying a home because of economic conditions are now considering buying a home within the next 12 months because of the information they were able to find on the internet. The numbers speak for themselves: homebuyers spending time online are now turning to real estate professionals for expert services and advices.
When the Tulsan Million Mile began just four months ago, we knew it would be one of the most challenging events for Tulsans. However, many Tulsans have gone the distance and have been happily logging their activity miles every day on TulsaMillionMiles.com. The website's odometer has just turned over to 125,000 miles. That means, Tulsans are an eighth of the way to their goal of one million miles. Yeah!
Mayor Kathy Taylor began the Tulsa Million Miles so Tulsans can get up and get active. She started the website so they can track their exercise miles by walking, running, swimming, biking or any other form of exercise activities that will keep them fit and healthy. With the help of the website, individuals and groups can progress together with the miles they have logged.
We all know that small changes to our health can pay off. One way to help track your miles is to clip a pedometer on your pants and wear it everyday. It will track your steps and you will soon see those miles add up quickly. A stationary bike will take you five miles in approximately 22 minutes. You'll not only start to look better, but you'll start to feel better too.
It's never too late to sign up for the Tulsa Million Miles for those who have not done so yet. Just visit www.tulsamillionmiles.com. You can begin logging your exercise after signing up. You can also check out Tulsa's 2009 fitness events, join contests and much more. And don't forget to share your success stories.
We want to congratulate all Tulsans who are taking the Tulsa Million Miles challenge. Keep up the good work.
Tulsa, Oklahoma Community Information
Homes for Sale in Tulsa, Oklahoma
There are around 11 million real estate investors in the United States, though many of them didn't consciously choose this. Due to the recent real estate market conditions, many investors became so accidentally. People who were buying homes and flipping them for a profit are no longer able to sell them. However, they can rent them out to avoid foreclosure. These types of investors are more likely to lose out on tax deductions if they are unaware of how to manage their investment properly.
There are many tax benefits and write-offs for real estate investors to take advantage of. However, to take advantage of these benefits, you have to keep careful track of your income and expenses.
There are five areas you should pay close attention to to make sure you are not losing money on your real estate investment.
1. Depreciation deductions. Set up a depreciation expense so you can write-off all the value over 27.5 years. The IRS allows real estate investors to use an accelerated depreciation method. Only 13% of investors actually take advantage of this method. Ask your accountant for more information.
2. Track your travel to the property. All your travel to and from the property can be written-off, so keep up with all your millage.
3. Tax preparation. The Schedule E form, which you have to fill out for rental property, can be written off.
4. Document repairs. As long as the repair was done in the same year, it can be written off.
5. Property damage. If there was damage to the property from rain or a storm, then you can file a casualty expense for a write-off.
These tax deductions will help you get the most from you taxes this year and each year you own your real estate investment. Good luck with it.
More Tips and Advice for Homeowners
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