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NEW YORK (AP) - When a business is in its first years of existence, it's very tempting for an entrepreneur to put every possible cent toward building the company, often at the expense of a personal financial portfolio. Years later, many owners are still neglecting their own finances, believing the investment they've made in a now-successful company is all they need.
Financial advisers vehemently advocate against this very common practice, which can include tapping an owner's home equity to fund a company. Focusing all your financial resources on a business can jeopardize retirements, children's education funds and leave a family struggling in an emergency.
Bob Doyle, president of Doyle Wealth Management Inc. in St. Petersburg, Fla., is sympathetic to the fact that a business can be so engrossing that an owner can make personal financial decisions that aren't the most prudent — he noted that he's a small business owner himself.
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