by Miranda G. McLeod
Staff Writer
Bob Main loves his job.
No really.
While he was growing up in Connecticut, Main saw bankers who could make or break a small town’s holdings — and he viewed them as the prominent businessmen in town. Now, he’s making his own footprint in Northeast Florida as the assistant vice president of the Business Banking Group and 1031 Exchange Group at Jacksonville Bank.
Main came to Jacksonville eight years ago through a job transfer working in the textile industry. In 2004, he began working for Jacksonville Bank, which opened in May 1999. It’s headquartered Downtown, with branch offices in the Mandarin and Queen’s Harbour areas and caters to owners and managers of small- and medium-sized businesses, professionals, individuals and families who live and work in the greater Jacksonville area.
“The customer base is Downtown. And I work for the best bank in Jacksonville,” said Main, adding he doesn’t really work anymore because his job is so much fun. “Banking is a blast.”
Main received his bachelor’s degree from Lafayette College in 1993 where he majored in economics and business. He continues the number crunching at Jacksonville Bank, where he administers the 1031 Like-Kind Exchange program — an IRS Tax Code started in the 1920s that allows an owner of investment property to exchange property and defer paying federal capital gains taxes, and taxes on gains from depreciation if the owner purchases a “like-kind” property. It allows investors to use all of their proceeds from a sale to invest in more valuable real estate, increase cash flow, diversify into other properties, reduce management or consolidate into one property.
“Essentially, if you own property for investment, the government allows you to sell and replace it with similar property and defer the capital gains,” according to Main. “1031 Exchanges are one of the biggest ways families have passed on generational wealth.”
The Bank started the program two years ago and with volatile markets and low interest rates, the program has become a staple of corporate and investment strategies nationwide. Main began working with the program nine months ago and the team at Jacksonville Bank has since completed more than 80 transactions.
“It’s been a successful program thus far and we look forward to it continuing to grow,” he said.
Main and the bank don’t advertise their services, they propagate by word-of-mouth.
The bank has customers all over the country and Main has personally worked with investors and property owners in at least nine states.
To reap the benefits of Section 1031, it’s recommended that customers seek guidance from a professional tax advisor. The exchanger also needs a Qualified Intermediary — an independent third party who is neither a family member nor an agent of the owner, including the owner’s attorney, accountant, broker or employee within the last two years.
That’s where Main makes his mark.
“The exchanger is required to have an intermediary to hold the funds,” said Main, adding the funds are put into escrow while the sale and purchase of land is underway. “The company has to want to accept the risk because not everyone is qualified for the 1031.”
But for those who do qualify, Main said, “It’s a great way to help clients build wealth and keep what the government allows you to keep, and build wealth over many years.”
Jacksonville Bank has also started a new initiative called Business Custom Capital. It’s a three-tiered product that offers businesses custom checking accounts, money market accounts and capital unsecured lines of credit.
“We’ve been doing them since we opened, but now we have a specific product and emphasis on small businesses,” he said. “In the last six months, we have had 75-80 new customers.”
Main said what makes his bank outstanding is experience and team-oriented customer service.
“We really felt there was a specific need for a local bank to provide useful services and products to the small business owner,” he said, noting he doesn’t do it alone. “There is no ‘I’ here. We all work together. That’s just the way it is.”