By MICHAEL LIEDTKE, AP Business Writer

PALO ALTO, Calif. - As Facebook.com’s mastermind, Mark Zuckerberg is sitting on a potential gold mine that could make him the next Silicon Valley whiz kid to strike it rich.

But the 22-year-old founder of the Internet’s second largest social-networking site also could turn into the next poster boy for missed opportunities if he waits too long to cash in on Facebook Inc., which is expected to generate revenue of more than $100 million this year. The bright outlook is one reason Zuckerberg felt justified spurning several takeover bids last year, including a $1 billion offer from Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news)

“We clearly have a bias toward building than selling,” Zuckerberg said in a recent interview. “We think there is a lot more to unlock here.”

The build-or-sell dilemma facing Zuckerberg is becoming more common among the precocious entrepreneurs immersed in the latest Internet craze, a communal concept of content-sharing that has been dubbed “Web 2.0.”

Besides Facebook, other Web 2.0 startups frequently mentioned as prime takeover targets include online video site Metacafe Inc. and Photobucket Inc., which has emerged as one of the Internet’s busiest destinations by hosting personal videos and photos that are routinely linked to top social-networking sites like MySpace and Facebook.

These sites find themselves at a critical juncture reached several years ago by the Internet’s first big social-networking site, Friendster.com, which chose to stay independent instead of selling. That decision is now regarded as one of Silicon Valley’s biggest blunders.

Web 2.0 startups have emerged as hot commodities because they are drawing more people away from television, newspapers and other media traditionally used for advertising. Online video channels and socials networks, a catchall phrase attached to sites that enable people with common interests to connect and deepen their bonds, are particularly hot.

Deep-pocketed companies are now angling for a piece of the Web 2.0 action — a quest that already has yielded a couple big jackpots, helping to propel the sales prices of startups to their highest levels since the dot-com boom.

News Corp. paid $580 million in 2005 to buy MySpace, the largest social-networking site, and Google Inc. snapped up video-sharing pioneer YouTube Inc. for $1.76 billion late last year.

“I’m surprised a lot more companies haven’t already been bought,” said Reid Hoffman, a veteran Silicon Valley executive who has invested in many startups, including Facebook. “My hunch is the deals are only going to get more expensive in 2008 and 2009.”

In 2006, the average price paid for a startup funded by venture capitalists rose 19 percent to $114 million. That was the highest amount since the dot-com frenzy of 2000 when the average price of venture-backed startups peaked at $337 million, according to data from Thomson Financial and the National Venture Capital Association.

If the dealmaking market continues to heat up, Zuckerberg will end up looking smart for rebuffing Yahoo and other suitors that included Microsoft Corp. and Viacom Inc.

Assuming Facebook hits its financial targets, the Palo Alto-based company should be able to command a sales price well above $1 billion or pursue an even more lucrative initial public offering of stock in the tradition of Google, Yahoo Inc., eBay Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. — a group of Internet icons now worth a combined $250 billion.

A Facebook sale or IPO is bound to happen eventually so the startup’s early investors, consisting mostly of venture capitalists, can realize some profits. Facebook has raised about $38.5 million since Zuckerberg started the site in 2004 while he was still a sophomore at Harvard University.

Zuckerberg has some flexibility in deciding when to cash out because Facebook already is profitable.

An IPO or sale will “make sense at some point for the company, but I never think that’s the goal,” said Zuckerberg, who is believed to control nearly one-third of Facebook’s stock. “The goal is to … continue introducing certain revolutionary products that push us to the next level.”

Marc Andreessen, who made a fortune during his 20s as co-founder of Web browser pioneer Netscape Communications, is among those who believe Facebook is going to become even more valuable during the next year or two.

“Facebook is doing the smart thing. If you are in a big market like social networking, you are usually better off waiting (to sell),” said Andreessen, who is now chief technology officer for another social-networking startup, Ning Inc. Had MySpace remained independent, it would probably be worth $5 billion now, Andreessen estimated.

Should Facebook stumble, it may some day be suffering the same pangs of regret tormenting Friendster Inc., which turned down a takeover bid from Google in 2003 when it reigned as Internet’s hottest social-networking site.

Had that offer been accepted, Friendster founder Jonathan Abrams and a small group of early investors reportedly would have received $30 million in Google stock that would have been worth about $1 billion today.

Abrams left Friendster in 2004 after a falling out with the company’s venture capitalists. Now working on its fourth chief executive since Abrams’ departure, Friendster so far hasn’t been able to recapture the buzz that once made it a prized commodity.

In January, Friendster attracted just under 1.3 million U.S. visitors, leaving it far behind MySpace (61.5 million visitors), Facebook (19 million visitors) as well as several relative newcomers to social networking like Bebo.com, MyYearbook.com and Hi5.com, according to data from comScore Media Metrix.

Other tales of woe are bound to emerge after the latest dealmaking cycle winds down, predicted Ken Marlin, a technology investment banker in New York.

“The world is filled with companies that waited too long to sell and missed their window of opportunity,” he said. “We think this land grab (on the Internet) probably will only last another year or two.”

Palo Alto-based Metacafe fielded a takeover offer shortly after Google and YouTube first got together in October before deciding to remain independent, said co-founder Arik Czerniak. “We are 100 percent committed to building the business ourselves,” he said.

Toward that end, Czerniak recently turned over the chief executive reins to Erick Hachenburg, a former executive for video game-maker Electronic Arts Inc. Czerniak remains an executive and major shareholder at Metacafe.

Denver-based Photobucket also prefers to remain independent as it strives to nearly double its registered users to 60 million by the end of this year, said Alex Welch, who has raised about $15 million in venture capital since co-founding the site in 2003. Photobucket’s 35 million members currently upload about 7 million photos and 35,000 videos per day — second only to YouTube and MySpace.

Other trendy Web sites that could elicit takeover interest include: Linden Research Inc., the maker of the virtual world, “Second Life”; Digg Inc., which displays news stories based on the recommendations of readers; and Slide Inc., a photo-sharing site launched by Max Levchin, who already struck it rich as a co-founder of PayPal Inc., an online payment service bought by eBay Inc. for $1.5 billion in 2002.

But no startup is stirring more takeover chatter than Facebook, which began as a site exclusively for college students before opening up to high school students in 2005 and finally accepting all comers last fall.

The site now has nearly 17 million registered users, most of whom fall into the under-35 demographic prized by advertisers. And Facebook gives advertisers plenty of marketing opportunities because its users churn through about 1 billion Web pages per day.

Facebook struck its first major financial partnership last summer with Microsoft, which reportedly guaranteed to deliver about $200 million in ad revenue through 2008. Zuckerberg said the advertising contract with Microsoft recently had been extended through 2011. Terms of the extension haven’t been disclosed.

Although he dropped out of Harvard in 2004 to move Facebook to Silicon Valley, Zuckerberg still leads the ascetic lifestyle of a college student even as he runs a business with 200 employees.

Zuckerberg says he keeps little more than a mattress in his apartment, which is located just a few blocks away from Facebook’s office. The proximity allows him to walk to work every day, usually wearing Adidas sandals ideally suited for lounging around a campus dorm.

Being comfortable is important to Zuckerberg because, like so many of the Silicon Valley prodigies before him, he tends to spend long hours at the office plotting strategy.

“For now, I just think it’s very important to have a good sense of direction about where we are going,” he said.

Problem Number One: The homeowner has bad credit, significant high interest credit card debt and a home with substantial equity. In order to pay off the high interest bills, the person refinances his/her home and cashes out all or part of the equity. The cash from the equity is used to pay off the high interest obligations. Although the interest rate on the bad credit mortgage refinancing loan may be higher than that of a conventional loan, the house payment should still be less than the total of the high interest consumer debt.

A bad credit mortgage refinancing where the owner intents to use the cash from the home’s equity to pay off bills is called a debt consolidation loan. The value of the home being refinanced must have grown so that the home’s appraised worth will justify a larger loan. The new loan amount must be high enough that the owner can cover the loan’s closing costs and still have enough left over to pay off the credit card debt.

A bad credit mortgage refinancing such as this can have several advantages. The term of the loan will be longer. Since even a high interest subprime loan carries a lower interest rate than do high interest credit cards the new house payment will be smaller than the total of the old house payment and the consumer debt payments. However, choosing to refinance in this manner carries risks. If the homeowner does not change the behavior that led to the high debt, even more high interest credit card bills may be accumulated. Since the homeowner’s equity has already been “cashed out” of his/her house the only alternative in a money crunch may be bankruptcy or foreclosure.

If a homeowner chooses a debt consolidation loan as the method of bad credit mortgage financing, it is imperative to use the cash received to pay off the accumulated debts. Credit counseling to keep from returning to poor credit practices should also be considered.

Problem Number Two: The homeowner had bad credit when the home was originally purchased and had to take out a high interest subprime mortgage loan at that time. Two or more years have passed since the loan was made during which time the homeowner has made all of the loan payments on time and has incurred no other bad credit. Now the time has arrived to refinance the loan and receive a better interest rate.

Even with two years of excellent credit history, a homeowner trying to refinance a bad credit mortgage may not be able to obtain a conventional low interest loan. The type of loan that can be attained will depend on a variety of factors such as current income and how much debt the homeowner has.

Refinancing a bad credit mortgage under these circumstances may be a good idea if the following two statements are true.

1. The new loan will carry an interest rate two or more percentage points lower than the current loan.

2. The homeowner plans to stay in the house for three or more years.

http://www.bestsyndication.com

So, you’ve found the perfect home. You’ve already decided where to place each piece of your furniture inside the home, and in your mind, all of your family photographs are hanging alongside the stairwell. But wait-do you know that even if you believe that your credit report is spotless, it could negatively affect your chances of getting that home mortgage approval?

The credit bureaus handle hundreds of thousands of credit reports, and it’s only logical that they will make mistakes. In fact, studies show us that there are some types of errors on at least 50 percent of all credit reports.

Could an error be lurking on your report?

Here’s a simple step-by-step guide to ensure that your credit report reflects exactly what it should.

Step One: Avoid a Bad Credit Report by Requesting a Copy of It

Under the law, you are entitled to a copy of your credit report from each of the three credit reporting agencies. You should simply submit a request in writing or visit their web sites and request a copy.

Step Two: Check the Personal Information

Maybe your name is Jane Smith, but the agencies have you listed as Jayne Smith. If you don’t think that it matters, you’d better think again. If the agencies have a miss-spelling in your name, the wrong address, reversed digits on your social security number, or even wrong employer information, it could mean bad news for your report. If the person who they have you confused with makes a late payment, then it will appear on your report. What’s worse, if they file for bankruptcy or default on a car loan, it will take some time to sort out the erroneous information once it’s found its way onto your report. Avoid all of this, and report any bad information now.

Step Three: The Credit Information

It may be too late, and you may find that there are loans or other items on your report that you’ve never taken out. In addition, you may find that late payments are on your credit report when you’re sure that you made them on time. If you find such erroneous information, then you’ll need to send the credit reporting agencies a letter explaining the error, along with any proof or documents that you have that will back up your claim. They are required to investigate your complaint and report back to you with their findings.

It’s important to do all of this before you apply for a home mortgage. It will not only reduce the amount of time that it takes to get an approval, but it could positively affect the interest rate that you end up with.

To view our recommended sources for bad credit mortgage lenders, visit this page: Recommended Bad Credit Mortgage Lenders.

Carrie Reeder is the owner of ABC Loan Guide, an informational website about various types of loans.

Refinancing vs line of credit are two popular options you have when deciding the best way to take equity out of your home. Sometimes it makes sense to establish a line of credit. But in other situations it’s better to get a cash back refinance mortgage loan.

You can find out which loan is best for your situation by doing some simple math. The amount of money you need to borrow and the length of time you need to pay it back really determines if refinancing vs line of credit loan makes the most sense.

Home equity lines of credit are based on adjustable type mortgage rates and move up or down when the Fed raises or lowers the prime rate. If you don’t need to borrow much money and plan to pay off the loan in a short amount of time, an equity line of credit may work best for you because you pay the least amount of interest.

An advantage of a home equity credit line is banks offer their lowest interest rates on adjustable mortgage rate type loans. Also, equity lines of credit usually come without the typical closing costs you pay with a cash back refinance mortgage loan.

Average closing costs on a refinance loan usually amount to several thousands of dollars. So when you are trying to decide between refinancing vs line of credit that should factor into your decision.

Another advantage of a home equity credit line is they are more flexible than a cash back refinance mortgage loan. With a home equity credit line you only pay interest on the amount you borrow. The remainder of the credit line is available at any time without paying any interest.

Home equity credit lines work well for smaller loan amounts, but if you need a large amount of money, say $75,000 to $100,000, you may want to consider a cash back refinance mortgage loan.

A cash back refinance mortgage loan is a first mortgage and most are amortized over a 30 year payment schedule. That keeps your payments more affordable on a larger loan amount. Most home equity lines amortize over 10 years or 15 years because they are a second mortgage loan.

Another consideration when trying to decide between refinancing vs line of credit is the interest rate you currently have on your first mortgage. If you have a low interest rate on your first mortgage you may want to take advantage of a home equity credit line so you can keep your low rate on the first mortgage.

If you have a high interest rate on your first mortgage, a cash back refinance mortgage loan with a lower interest rate might make more sense. Just remember to do the math because the average closing costs on a refinance loan will amount to several thousands of dollars.

Until you repay the loan closing costs you won’t be saving any money even if your monthly payment is lower. Figure the number of months it takes in payment savings to cover the typical closing costs of a cash back refinance mortgage loan to see if this makes sense for you.

These simple tips should help when deciding if you should establish a line of credit or get a cash back refinance mortgage loan. Do the math to find out if refinancing vs line of credit makes the most sense for your situation.

Copyright © 2005 Credit Repair Facts.com All Rights Reserved.

This article is supplied by http://www.credit-repair-facts.com where you will find credit information, debt elimination programs and informative facts that give you the knowledge to correct your own credit and credit report. For more credit related articles like these go to: http://www.credit-repair-facts.com/articles_1.html

A home equity loan is a loan that is guaranteed by your home. Are you in urgent need for cash and want to get the same without selling off your home or property? Getting a home equity loan is a good way to do so.

Equity on your home is essentially the difference between the value of your home and the outstanding mortgage. Lot of finance companies today offer good deals on home equity loans, letting you borrow money based on the available equity on your home.

This type of loans product basically works on the idea that you use the amount you own within your property as collateral against a loan. You put it up as a guarantee to your lender that you can repay any loans. This allows you to free up the amount you already own within your property and use it as hard cash.

Most lenders will work out how much equity you have for you - but it’s simple enough to do it yourself. All you need to do is to work out how much your property is currently worth and then subtract your mortgage from it. If you’re not sure how much is currently outstanding on your mortgage, have a chat with your lender and they’ll be able to help you out.

A home equity loan allows homeowners to access the equity in their primary residence without having to sell the property. Equity is the difference between what a home is worth and what is owed against it. Traditionally, home equity loans were called second and third mortgages.

You might have heard about using these types of financing products to meet your financial goals. Most home equity loans are simply second mortgages, structured either as a lump sum loan similar to a first mortgage, or as a line of credit.

Home equity loans are also referred to as “Equity Release Scheme”. The money you get on a home equity loan can be used for a variety of purposes such as to fund home improvement, buy a new car, consolidate your debts or finance a travel plan.

Home equity loans are particularly useful for the elderly. Elderly people can release the equity on their property and use the money to supplement their pension. This additional amount can be used to pay for the cost of residential care if they need it.

Home equity loans allow the elderly to borrow money at relatively low interest rate and with a low monthly repayment, thus easing the financial burden considerably in the old age. Under certain schemes there is no need to make a repayment at all. Depending on the equity in the home, these lenders simply reclaim the loan and interest by selling their house when they pass away or move on.

If you’re looking to borrow money this is probably one of the easiest and most cost-effective ways of doing it. Lenders like giving out home equity loans because they know that they’ll get their money back whatever happens.

This all means that you can get the most preferential rates and deals in comparison to other loan products. Another big advantage is that this is a way of freeing up cash that is already technically yours. Without any of the hassle or costs associated with moving.

The cost of the loan will depend on many factors including your personal circumstances, the amount you wish to borrow and over what period you wish to repay back the loan.

In a typical home equity loan, the home is used as collateral against the loan, meaning that should you be unable to maintain the loan repayments, your home will be at risk.

You may freely reprint this article provided the author’s biography remains intact:

About The Author
John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.