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Fees, Fines & Dues spin off from Withdrawal
Hi:
The discussions about fees and comments about how different
clubs work and charge members was enlightening to see how
differently clubs operate. Without further discussing the
pros or cons of fees I was wondering if other clubs work
WITHOUT DUES or requiring partners to put in money on a
periodic basis?

I was particularly struck by someone commenting that the
goal for their club was educational but at the same time had
a buy in over 10k and a requirement for monthly purchases.
The club I started in 1990 has never required anyone to put
in money except $100 at the start. From that $100 we join
them to AAII for a year and use the remainder to purchase
units in the club. We did amend our partnership agreement to
include that a partner missing all meetings in a calendar
year would be completely withdrawn and that a fine or
special dues would be levied for missing 6 consecutive
meetings. We made these amendments to avoid passive
ownership in the partnership and possibly being viewed as an
investment advisory firm and have to meet requirements
imposed by the SEC.
scott
My club has a "traditional" contribution rate of $105/month (way back in ancient history we contributed $100 for investment and $5 towards anticipated expenses). However, we have no requirement that contributions be made monthly or that they be made in $105 multiples. Members who contribute more get a bigger share of our successes, those who contribute less get a smaller share. That's how the unit based accounting process works. Of course, the absence of a required contribution means that some months we have more to invest and some months less. That's life.

We still have an initiation fee of $105 (again, an ancient vestige) only because we want some initial commitment from a new member. The only other fee we charge is to cover a bounced check fee or any other fee the club incurs due to the action of a member.

Ira Smilovitz


On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 8:08 AM, Scott Freeman <scottbefreeman@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi:
The discussions about fees and comments about how different
clubs work and charge members was enlightening to see how
differently clubs operate. Without further discussing the
pros or cons of fees I was wondering if other clubs work
WITHOUT DUES or requiring partners to put in money on a
periodic basis?

I was particularly struck by someone commenting that the
goal for their club was educational but at the same time had
a buy in over 10k and a requirement for monthly purchases.
The club I started in 1990 has never required anyone to put
in money except $100 at the start. From that $100 we join
them to AAII for a year and use the remainder to purchase
units in the club. We did amend our partnership agreement to
include that a partner missing all meetings in a calendar
year would be completely withdrawn and that a fine or
special dues would be levied for missing 6 consecutive
meetings. We made these amendments to avoid passive
ownership in the partnership and possibly being viewed as an
investment advisory firm and have to meet requirements
imposed by the SEC.
scott

Our club does not have many rules. We require an initial investment of $60 and after that $40 a month is suggested. All members have put in the $40 month and some considerably more. I am the one that collects and deposits these "dues" (check only) and our co-treasurer makes the entries in Bivio. When I took over the job we had a more rigid system of dues collection which I decided was a waste of time & effort and resembled more a police state. After all every member only has what they put in +/- gains, losses, expenses etc. Expenses are shared equally.

Dave Rowekamp
Roundtable Investment Club
Winona, MN

Sent from my iPhone

> On Mar 7, 2017, at 07:08, Scott Freeman <scottbefreeman@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Hi:
> The discussions about fees and comments about how different
> clubs work and charge members was enlightening to see how
> differently clubs operate. Without further discussing the
> pros or cons of fees I was wondering if other clubs work
> WITHOUT DUES or requiring partners to put in money on a
> periodic basis?
>
> I was particularly struck by someone commenting that the
> goal for their club was educational but at the same time had
> a buy in over 10k and a requirement for monthly purchases.
> The club I started in 1990 has never required anyone to put
> in money except $100 at the start. From that $100 we join
> them to AAII for a year and use the remainder to purchase
> units in the club. We did amend our partnership agreement to
> include that a partner missing all meetings in a calendar
> year would be completely withdrawn and that a fine or
> special dues would be levied for missing 6 consecutive
> meetings. We made these amendments to avoid passive
> ownership in the partnership and possibly being viewed as an
> investment advisory firm and have to meet requirements
> imposed by the SEC.
> scott
>
Ira,

For clarification: is your club's initial $105 "fee" actually a fee, or simply an extra contribution? (Does it buy units?)

By the way, I appreciate your use of the term contribution rather than "dues" because it is more accurate. Both of the terms "dues" and "fees" have connotations which can be misleading.

I also encourage people to use the term "partnership" instead of "club" but that's an even more difficult habit to change.

Linda Glein


Linda

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 7:45 AM, ira smilovitz <ira.smilovitz@gmail.com> wrote:
My club has a "traditional" contribution rate of $105/month (way back in ancient history we contributed $100 for investment and $5 towards anticipated expenses). However, we have no requirement that contributions be made monthly or that they be made in $105 multiples. Members who contribute more get a bigger share of our successes, those who contribute less get a smaller share. That's how the unit based accounting process works. Of course, the absence of a required contribution means that some months we have more to invest and some months less. That's life.

We still have an initiation fee of $105 (again, an ancient vestige) only because we want some initial commitment from a new member. The only other fee we charge is to cover a bounced check fee or any other fee the club incurs due to the action of a member.

Ira Smilovitz


On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 8:08 AM, Scott Freeman <scottbefreeman@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi:
The discussions about fees and comments about how different
clubs work and charge members was enlightening to see how
differently clubs operate. Without further discussing the
pros or cons of fees I was wondering if other clubs work
WITHOUT DUES or requiring partners to put in money on a
periodic basis?

I was particularly struck by someone commenting that the
goal for their club was educational but at the same time had
a buy in over 10k and a requirement for monthly purchases.
The club I started in 1990 has never required anyone to put
in money except $100 at the start. From that $100 we join
them to AAII for a year and use the remainder to purchase
units in the club. We did amend our partnership agreement to
include that a partner missing all meetings in a calendar
year would be completely withdrawn and that a fine or
special dues would be levied for missing 6 consecutive
meetings. We made these amendments to avoid passive
ownership in the partnership and possibly being viewed as an
investment advisory firm and have to meet requirements
imposed by the SEC.
scott


Our $105 initiation fee is a fee. Typically, a new member contributes $210 at the first meeting - $105 fee and $105 that buys units. As I stated, this is historical policy in this club. We don't have any current justification for the policy.

Ira Smilovitz

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 11:12 AM, Linda Glein <linda.glein@gmail.com> wrote:
Ira,

For clarification: is your club's initial $105 "fee" actually a fee, or simply an extra contribution? (Does it buy units?)

By the way, I appreciate your use of the term contribution rather than "dues" because it is more accurate. Both of the terms "dues" and "fees" have connotations which can be misleading.

I also encourage people to use the term "partnership" instead of "club" but that's an even more difficult habit to change.

Linda Glein


Linda

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 7:45 AM, ira smilovitz <ira.smilovitz@gmail.com> wrote:
My club has a "traditional" contribution rate of $105/month (way back in ancient history we contributed $100 for investment and $5 towards anticipated expenses). However, we have no requirement that contributions be made monthly or that they be made in $105 multiples. Members who contribute more get a bigger share of our successes, those who contribute less get a smaller share. That's how the unit based accounting process works. Of course, the absence of a required contribution means that some months we have more to invest and some months less. That's life.

We still have an initiation fee of $105 (again, an ancient vestige) only because we want some initial commitment from a new member. The only other fee we charge is to cover a bounced check fee or any other fee the club incurs due to the action of a member.

Ira Smilovitz


On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 8:08 AM, Scott Freeman <scottbefreeman@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi:
The discussions about fees and comments about how different
clubs work and charge members was enlightening to see how
differently clubs operate. Without further discussing the
pros or cons of fees I was wondering if other clubs work
WITHOUT DUES or requiring partners to put in money on a
periodic basis?

I was particularly struck by someone commenting that the
goal for their club was educational but at the same time had
a buy in over 10k and a requirement for monthly purchases.
The club I started in 1990 has never required anyone to put
in money except $100 at the start. From that $100 we join
them to AAII for a year and use the remainder to purchase
units in the club. We did amend our partnership agreement to
include that a partner missing all meetings in a calendar
year would be completely withdrawn and that a fine or
special dues would be levied for missing 6 consecutive
meetings. We made these amendments to avoid passive
ownership in the partnership and possibly being viewed as an
investment advisory firm and have to meet requirements
imposed by the SEC.
scott



Thank you for the clarification, Ira.

So, what happens to that money? (the $105 fee)
If it doesn't buy units, and if you pay for all of your deductible expenses out of the regular contributions, does the money simply accumulate in an asset account?

Do you use it for some non-deductible expenses?
It strikes me that fund could accumulate to several thousand dollars through the years as the partnership experiences turnover. Or did I miss something and is it returned to partners when they withdraw?

If it is not spent or returned, what will happen to it when the club dissolves?

Linda Glein


Linda

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 11:41 AM, ira smilovitz <ira.smilovitz@gmail.com> wrote:
Our $105 initiation fee is a fee. Typically, a new member contributes $210 at the first meeting - $105 fee and $105 that buys units. As I stated, this is historical policy in this club. We don't have any current justification for the policy.

Ira Smilovitz

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 11:12 AM, Linda Glein <linda.glein@gmail.com> wrote:
Ira,

For clarification: is your club's initial $105 "fee" actually a fee, or simply an extra contribution? (Does it buy units?)

By the way, I appreciate your use of the term contribution rather than "dues" because it is more accurate. Both of the terms "dues" and "fees" have connotations which can be misleading.

I also encourage people to use the term "partnership" instead of "club" but that's an even more difficult habit to change.

Linda Glein


Linda

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 7:45 AM, ira smilovitz <ira.smilovitz@gmail.com> wrote:
My club has a "traditional" contribution rate of $105/month (way back in ancient history we contributed $100 for investment and $5 towards anticipated expenses). However, we have no requirement that contributions be made monthly or that they be made in $105 multiples. Members who contribute more get a bigger share of our successes, those who contribute less get a smaller share. That's how the unit based accounting process works. Of course, the absence of a required contribution means that some months we have more to invest and some months less. That's life.

We still have an initiation fee of $105 (again, an ancient vestige) only because we want some initial commitment from a new member. The only other fee we charge is to cover a bounced check fee or any other fee the club incurs due to the action of a member.

Ira Smilovitz


On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 8:08 AM, Scott Freeman <scottbefreeman@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi:
The discussions about fees and comments about how different
clubs work and charge members was enlightening to see how
differently clubs operate. Without further discussing the
pros or cons of fees I was wondering if other clubs work
WITHOUT DUES or requiring partners to put in money on a
periodic basis?

I was particularly struck by someone commenting that the
goal for their club was educational but at the same time had
a buy in over 10k and a requirement for monthly purchases.
The club I started in 1990 has never required anyone to put
in money except $100 at the start. From that $100 we join
them to AAII for a year and use the remainder to purchase
units in the club. We did amend our partnership agreement to
include that a partner missing all meetings in a calendar
year would be completely withdrawn and that a fine or
special dues would be levied for missing 6 consecutive
meetings. We made these amendments to avoid passive
ownership in the partnership and possibly being viewed as an
investment advisory firm and have to meet requirements
imposed by the SEC.
scott




The money goes into the broker account to be used the same as any other money we collect. Each of the members in the club see their value increase by their fractional ownership of the club times the $105. Note that even the new member paying the fee gets a (very) small part of the $105.

Ira Smilovitz

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 11:03 PM, Linda Glein <linda.glein@gmail.com> wrote:
Thank you for the clarification, Ira.

So, what happens to that money? (the $105 fee)
If it doesn't buy units, and if you pay for all of your deductible expenses out of the regular contributions, does the money simply accumulate in an asset account?

Do you use it for some non-deductible expenses?
It strikes me that fund could accumulate to several thousand dollars through the years as the partnership experiences turnover. Or did I miss something and is it returned to partners when they withdraw?

If it is not spent or returned, what will happen to it when the club dissolves?

Linda Glein


Linda

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 11:41 AM, ira smilovitz <ira.smilovitz@gmail.com> wrote:
Our $105 initiation fee is a fee. Typically, a new member contributes $210 at the first meeting - $105 fee and $105 that buys units. As I stated, this is historical policy in this club. We don't have any current justification for the policy.

Ira Smilovitz

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 11:12 AM, Linda Glein <linda.glein@gmail.com> wrote:
Ira,

For clarification: is your club's initial $105 "fee" actually a fee, or simply an extra contribution? (Does it buy units?)

By the way, I appreciate your use of the term contribution rather than "dues" because it is more accurate. Both of the terms "dues" and "fees" have connotations which can be misleading.

I also encourage people to use the term "partnership" instead of "club" but that's an even more difficult habit to change.

Linda Glein


Linda

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 7:45 AM, ira smilovitz <ira.smilovitz@gmail.com> wrote:
My club has a "traditional" contribution rate of $105/month (way back in ancient history we contributed $100 for investment and $5 towards anticipated expenses). However, we have no requirement that contributions be made monthly or that they be made in $105 multiples. Members who contribute more get a bigger share of our successes, those who contribute less get a smaller share. That's how the unit based accounting process works. Of course, the absence of a required contribution means that some months we have more to invest and some months less. That's life.

We still have an initiation fee of $105 (again, an ancient vestige) only because we want some initial commitment from a new member. The only other fee we charge is to cover a bounced check fee or any other fee the club incurs due to the action of a member.

Ira Smilovitz


On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 8:08 AM, Scott Freeman <scottbefreeman@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi:
The discussions about fees and comments about how different
clubs work and charge members was enlightening to see how
differently clubs operate. Without further discussing the
pros or cons of fees I was wondering if other clubs work
WITHOUT DUES or requiring partners to put in money on a
periodic basis?

I was particularly struck by someone commenting that the
goal for their club was educational but at the same time had
a buy in over 10k and a requirement for monthly purchases.
The club I started in 1990 has never required anyone to put
in money except $100 at the start. From that $100 we join
them to AAII for a year and use the remainder to purchase
units in the club. We did amend our partnership agreement to
include that a partner missing all meetings in a calendar
year would be completely withdrawn and that a fine or
special dues would be levied for missing 6 consecutive
meetings. We made these amendments to avoid passive
ownership in the partnership and possibly being viewed as an
investment advisory firm and have to meet requirements
imposed by the SEC.
scott





Ah, I see. Thank you.

Linda.

Linda

On Wed, Mar 8, 2017 at 4:46 AM, ira smilovitz <ira.smilovitz@gmail.com> wrote:
The money goes into the broker account to be used the same as any other money we collect. Each of the members in the club see their value increase by their fractional ownership of the club times the $105. Note that even the new member paying the fee gets a (very) small part of the $105.

Ira Smilovitz

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 11:03 PM, Linda Glein <linda.glein@gmail.com> wrote:
Thank you for the clarification, Ira.

So, what happens to that money? (the $105 fee)
If it doesn't buy units, and if you pay for all of your deductible expenses out of the regular contributions, does the money simply accumulate in an asset account?

Do you use it for some non-deductible expenses?
It strikes me that fund could accumulate to several thousand dollars through the years as the partnership experiences turnover. Or did I miss something and is it returned to partners when they withdraw?

If it is not spent or returned, what will happen to it when the club dissolves?

Linda Glein


Linda

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 11:41 AM, ira smilovitz <ira.smilovitz@gmail.com> wrote:
Our $105 initiation fee is a fee. Typically, a new member contributes $210 at the first meeting - $105 fee and $105 that buys units. As I stated, this is historical policy in this club. We don't have any current justification for the policy.

Ira Smilovitz

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 11:12 AM, Linda Glein <linda.glein@gmail.com> wrote:
Ira,

For clarification: is your club's initial $105 "fee" actually a fee, or simply an extra contribution? (Does it buy units?)

By the way, I appreciate your use of the term contribution rather than "dues" because it is more accurate. Both of the terms "dues" and "fees" have connotations which can be misleading.

I also encourage people to use the term "partnership" instead of "club" but that's an even more difficult habit to change.

Linda Glein


Linda

On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 7:45 AM, ira smilovitz <ira.smilovitz@gmail.com> wrote:
My club has a "traditional" contribution rate of $105/month (way back in ancient history we contributed $100 for investment and $5 towards anticipated expenses). However, we have no requirement that contributions be made monthly or that they be made in $105 multiples. Members who contribute more get a bigger share of our successes, those who contribute less get a smaller share. That's how the unit based accounting process works. Of course, the absence of a required contribution means that some months we have more to invest and some months less. That's life.

We still have an initiation fee of $105 (again, an ancient vestige) only because we want some initial commitment from a new member. The only other fee we charge is to cover a bounced check fee or any other fee the club incurs due to the action of a member.

Ira Smilovitz


On Tue, Mar 7, 2017 at 8:08 AM, Scott Freeman <scottbefreeman@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi:
The discussions about fees and comments about how different
clubs work and charge members was enlightening to see how
differently clubs operate. Without further discussing the
pros or cons of fees I was wondering if other clubs work
WITHOUT DUES or requiring partners to put in money on a
periodic basis?

I was particularly struck by someone commenting that the
goal for their club was educational but at the same time had
a buy in over 10k and a requirement for monthly purchases.
The club I started in 1990 has never required anyone to put
in money except $100 at the start. From that $100 we join
them to AAII for a year and use the remainder to purchase
units in the club. We did amend our partnership agreement to
include that a partner missing all meetings in a calendar
year would be completely withdrawn and that a fine or
special dues would be levied for missing 6 consecutive
meetings. We made these amendments to avoid passive
ownership in the partnership and possibly being viewed as an
investment advisory firm and have to meet requirements
imposed by the SEC.
scott