Are the lenders and banks continuing the downward spiral of our credit collapse?

First, I can’t tell you how many phone calls I am getting about credit companies reducing people’s limits to where their balance is at. Second, trust deed lenders reducing or cancelling people’s lines of credit. There are the non-stop commercials on loan modifications, CNN running daily emergency town halls about the mounting recession, interviewing people at food banks telling their stories and companies constantly laying people off. The stock market continues to go down when everything our parents taught us about investing is going out the window.

We voted for a leader who has come out with a few big ideas and no real substance. We are having our Treasury Secretary go before the knuckleheads who created this mess to get confirmed. The Treasury Secretary, who everyone says is brilliant, can’t put a team together because nobody wants to go in front of our Congress to get confirmed. It is like, why would you want to get grilled by the same person who started this whole mess to begin with. We keep hoping for answers, we keep looking for the silver lining. My comment is, quit looking and start creating your own linings. We are in this mess but we cannot allow it to over power us. Remember everything that goes down always comes back up. It just may not be as quick as we all want or need. How long did it take you to gain that weight? Every year you say you are going to take off and when you try it takes forever to lose it.

Why can’t the economy take a little time to readjust? This does not mean be paralyzed in purchasing a home or be paralyzed in refinancing your home. This means, take the bull by the horns and take advantage of the market. Ask your grandparents, how many millionaires came out of the great depression. Ask any realtor, how much did it cost to buy a home in 1980 in the neighborhood you want to purchase in? Are values there? No. Of course not, because Homes and real estate goes up. It may never be like it was, but then, how many people made money trading in one day. Remember when you could buy Google on the IPO and get rich? Guess what, real estate has been a way to build wealth, not a get rich quick scam.

My buddy, back in Philly has a system on what he buys a property for and how much he should get in rent for it to make sense. Maybe, now is the time to start thinking like that. I can’t tell you how many of my wealthy clients see this as a buying opportunity, why aren’t you? I can tell you why, because you are used to buy it three months later you have made 30 percent. Smart money knows it does not work like that. So stop thinking it does. You buy, hold, pay off the debt and then buy some more. Think about this for a minute. You have a job, you get paid for your job if you are still employed everyday, you go to work, get a paycheck, maybe a year goes by and you get a raise. Buying real estate is the same way.  Years go by, you pay down the note and either you move up and buy another home or you sell it and buy more rental property. Remember, your house is not like a credit card. You should not keep pulling money out of it to pay bills. It is a means to an end. Quit watching late night infomercials, those guys got you into that way of thinking and now those same guys are telling you how to get rich in a down market. If those guys are so smart, why are the selling you something and not getting rich on their own idea?

Next problem, those of you who think you are still going to get something for nothing. You know who you are. You want a 0 point 0 fee refinance. Guess what, those days are long gone. That’s why were in this mess. Don you remember when your grandparents would say,” if is to too good to be true, it probably is.” So ask yourselves, why are we in this mess? It’s okay to pay points and fees. Do you think that people were not making money on you doing that type of program? Of course they were. But now they’re on TV selling you loan modifications or working at one of the big banks that us tax payers own. So when you call your big bank and get a quote from a person who is selling you what they are told to sell and they offer you a no point no fee deal, remember, this is why we will continue to stay in this mess.

This is not what we do at Samuel Scott Financial Group. No Tarp money, completely independent. Mark and I want to be your lender for life. We guarantee the person you called at your big bank, you will never talk to again. They will probably be working for another branch of the government next time you need a loan. The question is real simple, am I putting out. 

So the challenge I’m putting out to you is the next time you or a friend needs a loan, how about referring Mark and I. We are both available 7 days a week until 11 o’clock every night. I bet your big bank guy isn’t. Call us or have your family member of a friend refer us. 858-259-6070.