Partnering with friends - good or bad?

[Deltaberry]

I've done biz with family and with friends, and never had any dramas.
Quite the opposite. Sure I've seen some interesting "situations" from time to time, but it all comes down to being upfront with a plan which of course includes exit strategies.

Someone who says "you can't trust anybody" is not to be trusted themselves.
Because they will try to screw you before they think your gonna screw them.
Because to them nobody can be trusted.
And it also tell about the crowd they hang out with...

I think it's better to do bizness with people you know.
The better you know them, the more you will know if they are suitable or not for a particular type of biz.

And before you reply think about your own situation...
Are you married? Defacto?
Well you've just done a biz deal with someone you know or maybe was a total stranger. One that is worth 50% of whatever you may ever earn.
So before you give others biz advice, think about your own biz partnerships first.

It's not about paperwork, it's about understanding the arrangement upfront and knowing who your dealing with.
Now if the potential partner is someone who's always scrounging for a dollar, or spends every weekend in the casino, then you need to take that into account in your decision to go ahead or not.
Had it been someone not close or related, you would not know that info.

I have personally done biz worth up to hundreds of K's on a handshake with ppl I know.
Of course you can't do this with anybody, that's why it pays to know people who are close to you as they can be the best biz partners. I posted about one of these a few mths ago.
And I'm the "doom & gloom" cynical #$&+'s round here...

Either way, good luck.

Well said. I don't know why people think all partnerships end up in tears. Most of our businesses and some of our property ventures are done in partnerships.

There'll always be times when partners disagree or fight or question one another's judgment, or even some partners who try to do something dodgey, but that's just part of the risk you take and hopefully it's a calculated risk.

If you're doing a partnership just for the sake of doing one, then maybe that's silly. But if you're doing a partnership because you have no more cash and the partner can bring something to the relationship that you don't have, I don't see why not.

 

[craigb]

in my experience, the last partnership, was discracefull and now we don't even talk , i have lost his friendship now forever, but the partner i have now i could not do without, so far i can see a friend i will never loose.

 

[bene313]

If your a business minded person, partnering with another business minded person in a business relationship, it can work well. If not, forget it.

As for structure I'd go the unit trust.