Startup Terms Glossary
What is Sweat Equity?
Sweat equity is a financial term used to define a person or entity’s contribution to the early stages of a startup. Sweat equity is not monetary and instead refers to the amount of effort put into the success of a startup during its early stages. The labor that determines sweat equity is unpaid and can also refer to mental efforts and amount of time spent on projects.
Sweat Equity Examples
Examples of sweat equity:
- Example 1. Improvements made to a startup resulting from sheer effort
- Example 2. Owners often accept low salaries in exchange for sweat equity
- Example 3. Often used in startups that don’t have the cash flow to support high wages
Here’s another web page about sweat equity and how it is calculated.
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March 5, 2025
JOANNE B.
I am an Illinois-barred attorney with 20 years of in-house government and affordable housing experience. I have had responsibilities of a member of the Office of a Chief Legal Officer, am an adaptable "Jill of all trades," and have strong operations and business acumen. I'm also well equipped to work in fast-paced, multi-priority environments, learn new areas of law and deal with unique situations.
March 6, 2025
Alisha K.
Experienced real estate and business transactions attorney, including purchase and sales across the US, tenant leasing, real estate management, and a wide variety of business contracts. I most recently served as the general counsel for an investment company, where I handled the purchase of over 100 properties across the country, managing the projects from start to finish, including the contract, title review, due diligence, entity creation, leasing, investment offering documents and the closing for each property. I have handled a wide array of agreements and negotiations for commercial real estate (including office, retail, industrial, medical, and multifamily), cash investment, and business needs.
March 8, 2025
David W.
David has experience assisting individuals, startups, mid-sized, and publicly traded companies with various business, corporate, and real estate matters including residential and commercial real estate sales, acquisitions, financing and leasing; contract drafting and negotiation; regulatory compliance; and business acquisition, sale, formation, and dissolution.
March 9, 2025
Christopher R.
Over the course of the past 30 years, in both General Counsel roles (3 times) and in private practice, I have built a successful national real estate transaction, construction, and environmental law practice
March 11, 2025
Stefan R.
I'm an experienced attorney with a vast experience in legal fields.
March 20, 2025
Samantha O.
After a successful career in property management and commerical lending, I became a transactional Corporate and Real Estate attorney at an AM 200 law firm, drafting and negotiating purchase agreements and closing documents, interpreting laws, rulings, and regulations for real estate and corporate transactions, conducting due diligence, as well as rendering advice on real estate financing, development, management, leasing, zoning, and land use. I also served as in-house counsel for a multi-million dollar real estate data company, where I advised executive leadership on contracts, corporate governance, compliance, and risk management, giving me a strong understanding of both the legal and business aspects of a variety of industries.
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