The Housing Issue

Wow what a last two days. Yesterday you had a rant from Rick Santelli about the housing stimulus. For me, I think Rick or The Great Santelli as I call him, spoke for a large portion of America. I think if you own a house or not, you do not want to help out someone that was irresponsible.

Now, today I heard Joe Biden’s economic advisor, Jared Bernstein, speak in regards to Mr. Santelli’s comments yesterday. Mr. Bernstein said that this bill is there to help out homeowners that are in a bind. He also said that these people they will be helped are not irresponsible. He said these people were caught out by the bursting of the house bubble. These people were caught out because the housing bubble burst and that these people lost equity in their homes and could not refi to a lower rate.

Ok, what? Rick Santelli came back with this point. What is the difference between you and I losing value in our 401k to someone losing value in their home?

As I am an Economics major, I know from economic point of view there’s not one. They are both classified as an investment, an INVESTMENT! People lose and make money in investments everyday.

Now, let me get back to the real estate bubble. I was a Realtor for 5 years. I saw deals where people barely qualified for homes. They look out 3 and 5 year ARM’s to get into these houses. Let me also state, that in my 5 years, not one of my clients ever did a 3 or 5 or 7 year ARM. The loan officers I worked with educated my clients. So for these that took out the ARM’s , I would like to ask them, what did you think was going to change in the next 3-5 years for you to be able to refi and be able to afford this house? I want you to tell me how they were responsible?

Quote from Ronald Reagan: Government does not solve problems; it subsidizes them.

Please feel free to leave a comment

Marketing and the Economy

Today was a day of meetings and networking. First was BNI then Homewood Chamber, and to finish the day was the business to business power team for Birmingham's Best BNI group. No I'm not cocky, that is our name, Birmingham's Best.

Today my theme I guess you can say was not letting your flame burn out. Studies have shown that during a recession companies that continue to market gain market share. You hear people say that no one is spending money so why should I? Reason number one is: People are STILL spending money! The fact of the matter is they might not be spending the amount they used to but they are still spending money. Reason number two you want to market: To get the people spending money with YOU and not you competition down the street or around the corner.

Now when you say market I have to spend a couple thousand dollars, put a ad in the newspaper, put an ad in the local magazine right? No! Get creative. Think about ways to market yourself/company with out spending a ton of money. Talk to other local business owners to find out how their business is and what they are doing in a down economy. If you don't know other local business owners get involved in a local chamber or two to meet these people. Now look what you have just done, you did some marketing for hardly any money what so ever. Also look for small items that you can pass out that will not cost a lot of money. Magnets for example are a great way to market yourself. Look at the ROI of a magnet. Say you bought 1000 business card magnets and each one cost 0.24 cents each. That magnet will go on their fridge or filing cabinet and will be seen no less than 240 times in a year. The cost per impression on that magnets comes out to.........0.001 cents. Pretty amazing and you stay in front of the people.

Market share is gained in a down economy. You will have to spend money, but know where you are spending your money. Don't take the buckshot approach and scatter ads all around. Target your audience.

Feel free to add your thoughts!

Who is Patrick Finley anyways?

Why am I writing a blog? Well first, I like to be creative somewhat, and second I do have thoughts every now and then that I would like to share.

So, who am I? I am the son of a Baptist minister who after 32+ years of marriage is still married to my mother who plays the organ for my father on Sundays. I have wonderful parents and I do not thank them enough for what they have provided me with and the opportunities that they have sacrificed to give me things that have enriched my life. I have one brother that is married and they are in the process of adopting two wonderful kids that are brother and sister.

I have moved about 9 times during my life and all in the state of Alabama. I still have friends from just about everywhere I have lived. I graduated high school in 1998. When I graduated I really had no idea what I wanted to do so I took a few years off. During that time, I started a lawn care company with a close friend of mine. It was a small company but it gave us something to do. I liked lawn care somewhat so I thought about being a golf course superintendent. So I went to Auburn University in 2002 to pursue a degree in turfgrass management. After a year at Auburn I found out that I had thought wrong, and also not applied myself very well.

I came back to Birmingham in 2003 to pursue a career in real estate. Real estate had always interest me so I went to real estate school and became a Realtor. During my first month I sold my first house! During the real estate years there were ups and downs. I played around with many sides of real estate including commercial, residential mostly, and land development. At the end of 2007 I started to have doubts about continuing my real estate career. At the end of February 08' I had made up my mind it was time to get out. People asked me why, and it was not the economy that pushed me to this decision. See, from September 07 to April 08, I had a closing every month except March. I just did not care for real estate sales any more.

Also at the beginning of 2008 I started back to school at Jefferson State to get my feet wet again. I then approached close friend and owner of Art Promotional Services about a job. We talked about and he said sure. I thank him for that and I've learned a lot from him about marketing and advertising with promotional products as well as life. During the past year my sales have sucked to my standards. During the past year I have also held a 4.0 gpa and have transferred to Alabama. Business in the first quarter has picked up giving me more confidence as well. Also during this time Trey launched a website called magnetsfast.com which specializes in custom magnets like save the date, schedule, business card, and calendar magnets.

So what's in the cards for 09'? Keeping my grades up, selling magnets and promotional items, mixed in with a little bit of fun.

What can you expect from my blog? Well I guess my interest for example: fishing, golf, wakeboarding, snowboarding(maybe if I get to go), Major League Baseball(Go Sox!!), business, and random events.

So have I answered who I am?