If you've been following "My Story and I'm sticking to it" then you'll now its been 8 or 9 months since I last posted here. Its been a very frustrating period since November 2008. My financial situation hasn't changed much and in fact it's grown worse. Even though my situation is bad, I am thankful for being broke.
I make a distinction between being poor and being broke. Being poor is a lifetime avocation. Being broke is a temporary setback. I am broke today but not poor. Even though my net worth is negative (I owe much more than any assets I have) I do not consider myself poor. Poor to me is a state of being. Poor is someone who gets up in the morning expecting to work for money day in an day out for a lifetime of having just enough to buy life's essential. Never making any alterations to their life to improve their station in life. Poor people accept their station and wave as the train pulls away from the station. Broke is a state of mind. Being broke is only a date, just like the date on a balance sheet. You can only measure broke by the day. You may be broke many consecutive days but you can never be broke forever. A person who is broke is usually broke for a reason, a business failure, a bad investment, a tragedy, a health problem, etc. A broke person possesses a state of mind that will prevent them from ever being poor.
On the income front I've not had much income coming into the household these last 9 months. My industry has gone from a hiatus state in to a free fall. The acceleration of business going from bad to worse in a couple of quarters is frightening. Although business is slow I have had some positive signs appear in several business opportunities but these opportunities have not resulted in any income and may not come to fruition. It is clear that the capital markets are not recovering and this has put a strain on business who need capital to expand their business which indirectly has an impact on what I do in business. I do have a couple of smaller things going which add some light to my tunnel but they are small pieces of business and would only provide a couple of months sustenance, but I'll take whatever I can get right now.
For several months now I have aggressively sought employment in other industries where my skills could be productively used but these industries also have been debilitated by the shut down in the capital markets or affected greatly by the fear in the financial sector. I've even moved my search for employment down stream into less desirable positions, positions I would however accept, but there doesn't seem to be a great deal of hiring for over qualified professionals. I have been told by employers they would love to have a person with my experience and skill set brought on with their company but that I am to over qualified for the positions they have available. Even with assurances that if hired I would not be planning to move on when times get better they still have not been able to offer me employment.
My bills still need to be paid and without much income it has been difficult to pay these bills. Every month its a struggle to make it. Up until April I was able to pay both my 1st mortgage and my HELOC but since April I have not been able to pay these mortgages and I'm in default on one mortgage and my lenders has filed a foreclosure notice on the other. I'm negotiating with both lenders right now to have my mortgages modified but they are so overwhelmed by modification requests I haven't been able to get an answer back from either one. I've been waiting for at least sixty days. My only hope to save my home at this moment in time is to receive a mortgage modification from my 1st mortgage (reducing the payment) and to get my HELOC lender to roll up my back owed mortgage payments and restructure the loan by adding it to the principal and putting me back in an active status with only future payments due. Of course the other hope is to bring in enough income from my business activities so I can cure the default and make payment arrangements with the HELOC should either one or both not be willing to modify their mortgages.
My other financial obligations have been placed on hold. I have credit card debt which I'm still unable to pay and business debt that still remains outstanding. I have made the decision to try and save my home before tackling these obligations. However, I will pay these obligations at the first opportunity I can. The lenders do not like this, and I don't blame them, but I can only tell then I will pay, I just can't tell them when, yet.
As bad as things have been and continue to be I am optimistic their is a bright future just ahead. I am a fairly religious man, and in my current time of crises, I have experienced God's great grace. When things seem so dark I can't see a hand in front of me, God has brought light in and exposed the true majesty of his love. He has brought me what I need when I needed it. No more yet no less than needed. I can only marvel at why my wallet is empty yet my lights remain on, why my phone is cut off but then miraculously turned back on without payment. Yes, I do believe God is touching me in mysterious ways.
Experience has taught me that there is true religion in believing in God, and in yourself. I have been led to see new horizons. In the deepest darkest moments of crises I am being led to create new business opportunities which will allow me to create new wealth.
As I sit here writing this post, in my home which is in foreclosure, I am writing new offers to purchase buildings. These purchases will be just short of miraculous. With very little of my own money, money obtained by actually purchasing the buildings (commissions) I will use partners to buy these buildings during the biggest sale the real estate market has ever put on. No this isn't some form of a nothing down huckster program. This is how I made much of my former millions but instead of using my own money I am using the money of others.
In these purchases I am not taking advantage of anyone. I'm not buying foreclosures (God certainly knows I know how that situation feels) and I'm not seeking pre-foreclosure sales. I'm simply going to buy buildings from sellers who are no longer wanting to own their buildings because of the fear they are experiencing due to a calamitous real estate market. The sellers are motivated to NOT own real estate and will do almost anything to sell their property. I have people who put up the money, people who take out the loan (I can't get a loan right now due to newly developed negative credit history) and I get to participate in the deal. The way these deals are structured I will own 50% of the asset once it closes escrow.
I count my blessings. If I were not in this horrible financial state, I would probably not have had to think long and hard on how to create wealth from nothing. My new partnerships are a new spin on an old strategy made possible by the very thing preventing me from earning income, the frozen credit markets. If I did not have a NEED to create new wealth I would not have been able to creatively structure a purchase vehicle attractive to sellers in this market. My past experience in buying real estate assets as investments certainly adds value to these transactions but on those occasions I used my own money. So yes, I feel blessed to be in this financial mess, and thankful for the light that shines in my life daily.
To your health, wealth, and happiness.
The information contained in this site consist of a series of articles which comprise "My Story and I'm Sticking to it". The information contained herein is sole opinion of the Baron Von Savings. The Baron is not a professional money manager, tax expert, accountant, attorney, or stock broker. You should consult with an appropriate professional before making decisions concerning your personal finances.
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