Allowed, Allowable, Not-Allowed, Ambiguity, To Thine Own Self Be True

Allowed: Following the letter of a law or regulation. The safest of mistakes for the uneducated and/or timid.

Allowable: Stretching the law or regulations, based on known case law and common practice. Most often a better approach, but requires an extensive knowledge of the subject.

Not-Allowed: Breaking the law or regulation. It matters not your intent, ignorance is no excuse.

I've included not-allowed only because it is so easy for some to pass from "Allowable" to "Not-Allowed" through foolishness, ignorance, stupidly, or larcenous intent.

Ambiguity: A total lack or statutory or moral guidance.

I wish to discuss dealing with the grey areas between strict compliancy with the "Allowed" and using the "Allowable" and beyond both in dealing with "Ambiguity!"

With out going into a long dissortation of my own let me quote an old tormentor, William Shakespeare.

When in doubt: "To Thine Own Self Be True..." In other words, do what you believe is right, so long as you avoid the "Not-Allowed" Whether going from "Allowed" to "Allowable" or in the face of "Ambiguity" always do what you think is right! "And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou can not then be false to any man."

"Boldness be my friend."  But, "Mind your speech a little lest you should mar your fortunes."

"Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them."

"No legacy is so rich as honesty."

If I some time appear harsh please remember: "...oftentimes excusing of a fault doth make the fault the worse by the excuse."

"If it be a sin to covet honor, I am the most offending soul."

 

For certainly: "The golden age is before us, not behind us." "What is past is prologue." "What's done can't be undone."

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute

With a little help from William Shakespeare 

and http://www.brainyquote.com/

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Are Old Words Old Fashion?

I keep telling people that I'm not that old,just delapidate. But, lately I've begun to question my age. It's not a health thing, in fact I've been feeling pretty good, all things considered. My problem is not my age, chronologically or physically, my problem is my vocabulary! Most of our words are old if not ancient, so it's not the words. My problem is that my meanings have become old fashion.

I'm finding that my expectations are exceeding my grasps. I love dealing with people especially when dealing in real estate and mortgages. I lust for the deal! I start each day with great expectations and a firm belief in people! I believe we find what we seek and I seek the best.

I've been actively dealing, long distant with a lot of real estate agents in the last few weeks. While it's easy to find people who loudly profess the same things I so profoundly believe in, it's the same words, but not with the meanings I grew up with!

Words like:

Service,

Common Courtesy,

Knowledge,

Professionalism,

Ethics,

Client,

Customer,

Agent,

Integrity,

Fiduciary!

May be the confusion is to be expected, from people that grew up with leaders that questioned the meaning of "is" and limited the meaning of "sex!" There was a time when no one questioned "is" and while we couldn't mention "sex" with out blushing we certainly knew what it meant.

You may add to the list, or you could define selected words for us.

Do these words still have meanings?

What should we expect when we see them used to promote an individual or company?

Is it fair for some one who grew up in the fifties and sixties to except the meaning to be the same as when he learned them?

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute

 

Is what this kid learned now obsolete?

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HELOC Insecurity

Checking the Drudge Report http://www.drudgereport.com/ this morning I came across an article on Morgan Stanley freezing thousands of Home Equity Lines Of Credit, HELOC's. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=afQ0PVYvOgzI&refer=home

Home owners still owe the outstanding balance, but they will no longer be able to use the open ended feature to draw more useable cash from the loan. For most this is only an expensive inconvenience. For some a major financial setback. For those fools that strictly follow the "money merge" philosophy face financial disaster!

I've been a long time advocate of Lines Of Credit, both secured and unsecured and remain so. When the HELOC's came along opening the LOC's to the average person I became a major advocate of these useful tools for my real estate investment students.

But, the problem with HELOC's or any other loan is depending on it! Until you have the cash in hand even an open LOC of any kind, secured, unsecured, or even your credit cards are subject to many problems beyond your control! Morgan Stanley's freezing draws on HELOC's has nothing to do with the individual credit or collateral! This is just the latest freeze!

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute

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Misidentification / Have Nots / Undeserving

Our on going national disgrace, disgraces (?) Disgraci, what ever, has us turning on each other. After nearly thirty years of hate mongering by politicians perhaps it's to be excepted that we can no longer identify with our fellow man. What bothers me is that other wise good people, good real estate people, good mortgage people are mislabeling other good people for political convenience!

It bothers me that so many have lumped the "have nots" with the "undesiring!" I can't define "undesiring" although I often think I know them when I see them. What I can define are the "have nots." For our purpose "have nots" are those people that don't make as much as we do, which of course means that except for Bill Gates, et. al. we are all "have nots!"

When mortgage and real estate people start talking about people with out large down payments being undeserving a home of their own, I have to wonder, did they pay cash for their home? Where do they draw the line? If people with little or no down payment are undeserving, what about those that put 20% down? What about those who put up a big down payment, but who's home has deprecated to the point they have no remaining equity? What is the difference between no original equity and no current equity?

What does a big down payment do? Does it protect the home owner? Truthfully, big down payments protect no one except the bank! Little or no down payment may even protect the home buyer, by marinating his liquidity and putting the bank mutually at risk with the home buyer.

How dare these bigots lump the "have nots" with the "undesiring!" These bigots are most often blaming low down payments for the mortgage crisis, but other than being PC to do so what proof do they offer? How do they explain the over welling masses that used these loans to successfully join the "haves!"

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute

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Where Have All The People Gone?

Where have all the home owners gone?

Long time passing.

Where have all the people gone?

Long time passing.

Defaulted and disappeared every one.

When will they ever learn?

When will they ever learn?

Where have all the home owners gone?

Where have all the people gone?

Where? Where? Where? Where?

I sit in Las Vegas and look at the vacant foreclosures and have to ask where have all the people gone? We have one zip code, North Las Vegas that is said to have more foreclosures than any other zip code in the country and yet the population continues to grow!

Every one claims to know the cause of the problem, it's every one else! Every one has a solution, more government control for every one else! The government has solutions, more law, more taxes, more subsidies, more dependancies!

But no one has studied the problem. No one wants to know what happened or why! No one can tell us where have all the people gone?

May be in the East and Midwest some have returned to live in their parents basements, but we have few basements in the South and West. What happens when elderly parents have more than one deadbeat? Where have all the home owners gone?

I've yet to encounter or read about REALTORS or lenders dealing with new former home owners. So, please, tell me where have all the people gone?

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The real Estate Investment Institute

My apologies to Pete Seeger.

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Platitudes

"I Know What You Think You Heard, But That's Not What I said"  

"People remember what they heard last"

"Never answer an objection until the buyer has repeated it three times."

"People remember best what they hear the most"

"Ask a leading question then SHUT-UP! ... The person that speaks next losses"

"People hear what they want to hear!"

"Platitude >noun a remark or statement that has been used too often to be interesting or thoughtful."*

Tripe: informal nonsense; rubbish.*

*So says my Corel WordPerfect 12's dictionary.

Personally, I might say: Ancient wisdom!

In this age of finger pointing so many of us are trying to blame anyone one and everyone other than our selves, that were denying this ancient wisdom and claiming some mythical higher profession than sales!

I'm not sure there is a higher calling than sales! No great idea has ever helped mankind until some salesman sold it. No greater good and no greater harm was ever done than the extremes or religion, but what is a Pastor, Rabbi, or Ayatollah, and what are they if not salesmen for Good?

I suggest that we stand proud, we are salesmen. That we demand the truth about which loans failed, who created the programs, what percentage failed, and who originated the loans.

I have my opinions, they are probably right, but no one seems interested in discovering the truth. For if we keep pointing fingers senselessly we'll soon be reminded of other ancient wisdom.

"A lie told often enough becomes the truth."

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute 

 

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Passing the Buck / It's the LO's Fault / A Convenient Misunderstanding

So many people want to pass the buck,to blame anyone but themself for the mortgage crisis. The most maligned being the individual Loan Originator, LO. The LO's are an easy target because some of them are guilty with regard to their clients, but the same can be said about any and every identifiable group.

The LO's job is rarely understood.

Worst of all, LO's are vulnerable because in most states they are not even required the 90 to 180 clock hours of pass the exam class that the real estate agents call education! When the finger pointers want to it's easy to find Bubba, LO to represent all LO's.

No less than the esteemed Lenn Hardly said in IT'S A MORTGAGE MESS, NOT A REAL ESTATE MESS. A DEFENSE OF REAL ESTATE AGENTS

 "All the mortgage loan officer has to do is "SAY NO"!... in all the years I've been selling real estate, I've never known a loan officer who couldn't say "NO"."

 Please consider following is from:The Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and the Fair Housing Act (FHA) protect you against discrimination when you apply for a mortgage to purchase, refinance, or make home improvements.

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/homes/rea08.shtm

"Mortgage Discrimination

Your Rights Under ECOA

The ECOA prohibits discrimination in any aspect of a credit transaction based on:

race or color;

religion;

national origin;

sex;

marital status;

age (provided the applicant has the capacity to contract);

the applicant's receipt of income derived from any public assistance program; and

the applicant's exercise, in good faith, of any right under the Consumer Credit Protection Act, the umbrella statute that includes ECOA." 

With the possible exception of non-Hispanic white men no one can be turned down for loans they are qualified for! Even this group is protected! They could be married to a woman, a protected group. They could be gay, a protected group. An their economic power alone assures them equality. So as a practical matter LO's can't say no to anyone.

LO's don't have the right to say "NO!"

If an applicant qualifies for a program the LO's company offers the applicant can not be turned down!

When an LO turns down an applicant he has to provide a form called "Statement of Credit Denial" no where is there a check box for "Stupid idea!"

If an applicant ask what do you recommend the LO can show only those programs he recommends. If an applicant ask "what do I qualify for" or worse "I want" the LO has no choice!

There is enough quilt to go around, but lets not add to the problem with baseless finger pointing!

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute 

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To Blog or not to blog? Two Years Later

(This is an edited version of my article from 10-2006)

 To Blog or not to blog?

 To respond to blogs or not respond?

That is the question.

Whether it is better to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous... Exposure (?)

Over the last two years I have become an active participant it this site. Some strange and unexcepted things have been happening.

For health reasons I pretty much work from home, writing, consulting, working on my publishing business with occasional trips out to teach or speak. Two years ago I said: "To promote my books I syndicate articles, and it's done quite well." I don't syndicate much any more. Each article/blog carries the same key words that lead people to my web sites. Every article/blog carries my name, William J Archambault Jr, The Real Estate Investment Institute, and REII in the key words to lead people to me and the web sites. This has worked well for me, my articles are normally republished in seven countries on three continents, in three languishes (Why is beyond me, I have yet to sell a book outside of the USA.). My "A Consumers Guide To Mortgage Brokers and The Evil Yield Spread Premium" has to be one of the most republished internet real estate articles ever. (It has now, also been republished twice on Active Rain.) Every republishing carries my key words.

Now a long came bloging. I blog, but it's hard for me because I have to have something to say. I'm to set in my ways and too conservative to talk in sound bytes. Incomplete sentences drive me crazy. I'm a story teller for God's sake! But, blogs can be just a few words long, that's a lot easier than an essay or article, most importantly each blog carries my three key words along with the blog reverent ones!

I was very fortunate to spend more than a decade as an active member of Chapter # 1, of the Farm and Land Institute,wonderful people that helped each other. I believe a person finds what they're looking for. I've always look for good people and I found them in FLI, and now here. Good people help each other! I know, now Active Rain and the participants are good people!

Bloging isn't quite as up close and personal as FLI was, but it's helping others knowing that good things come around. Besides long nights, shrimp cocktails, and vodka gimlets are no longer part of my diet! Beer can't even be considered! Damn!

I respond to interesting blogs, sharing information and sharpening both our arguments. It's easy to participate the Blogger has already picked the subject, and hopefully develop the idea enough that all you need are a few words to enlarge it, redirect it, or pat the blogger on the back.

It's fun, I've bantered back and forth with some great people that I now would call friend' I hope someday to make that Friend with a capital "F"! .

Now the payoff, remember "what goes around comes around," My search engine hits have at least tripled because I come up not only on my key words, but also all those of the blogers, I comment on.

(Two years later, AR has gone from 10,000 members to nearly 100,000 and I still feel the same!)

As always,

Bill

William J Archambault Jr 

The Real Estate Investment Institute

 

We have also, evolved!

Visit our Pod-cast.

Refer clients to my Outside blog.

http://www.realestatesage.info

http://www.billarchambault.com

 

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Creditably / Vulgarity / Facttoids / Exaggerations / Hate

Creditably, Vulgarity, Facttoids, Exaggerations, and Hate are incomparable! At a time when hate has replaced common sense, so many respond in kind, with vulgar, made-up lies, exaggerations, and pure unadulterate hate. We except this from many, but we must refrain from answering in kind!

Even when addressing a receptive audience you lose all creditably. A comment on one of my blogs refereed me to another site, off AR that started:

"What a load of crap ...   just one piece of BS after another."

Mild by current standards, but never the less it under cut the writer's creditably, nothing else mattered, even though much of it was well though out and well presented.

"Sticks and stones, can break your bones, but names will never hurt you"  is wrong! That old adage assumed that the people hearing those names applied common sense and reason, we can no longer depend on it! Name calling, hurts! The injured party depends on the audience!

Bill

William J archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute

Please visit my Pod-cast: http://www.realestatesage.info

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IndyMac / Money Merge / Broke Fools

IndyMac was taken over by the FDIC! Accounts frozen, advances stopped(?), HELOCs frozen?

It's happened before, but not on such a scale. Just how are the gullible schemers and dreamers going to feel about their "money merge" accounts, now?

If ever there was proof that "figures don't lie, but liars figurer" it's the "money merge" accounts!

If you've followed the program. You have liquidated your savings and retirement accounts to reduce your mortgage. You direct deposit your pay checks to reduce your HELOC balance then draw against the HELOC for your monthly cash needs. If your HELOC was just frozen you're up a creek with no paddle!!!!!

Loan Originators, have your title company search for IndyMac seconds for a list of desperate home owners. But, you and the home owners better hurry their credit is only 48 days from being trashed.

I don't have a solution or conclusion, this is only an observation.

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute

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REALTORS Excoriated In Atlanta

Ignoring property rights.

Ignoring property owners.

Ignoring contract law.

Ignoring REALTORS Civil rights.

Ignoring common sense.

"City inspectors have begun ticketing Atlanta real estate agents, holding them liable for code violations on run-down, often foreclosed properties..." says the Atlanta Journal-Constitution!

What next? Are REALTORS to be held libel for sellers bad decisions?

If this were applied to law, defense attorneys would have to serve time with their clients! Hummmmm

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute

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Competence Is Not An Unfair Advantage / Incompetence Is A Sin

I've been looking long distance for a house, for the last few weeks. The overwhelming incompetence of the listing agents I spoken with has reached an unbelievable low. I've talked to at lease five listing agents that have never seen their listing! Agents that have no idea of the neighborhood, or condition of their listing. Even worst, they don't care!

Admittedly most of the listings were REO's, most but not all.

Where in the code of ethics http://www.realtor.org/MemPolWeb.nsf/pages/COde is incompetence even tolerated?

The advent of agency has allowed the home buyer some of superior services, investment and commercial investors have enjoyed for decades, by employing their own agent. When we were all sub-agents of the listing broker paid by the seller our obligation to buyers was only to be fair. Buyer's brokers have only that same oblations to the sellers!

Only a fool would go naked into real estate, if the other party is professionally represented. In it's simplest terms if they've got a REALTOR, you need a REALTOR!

So it is that I've hired a REALTOR. A superior REALTOR! One I found here on AR.

Make no mistake, we will treat the sellers fairly, but we will not educate them, or more likely their agents, to our determent. Knowing more than the other side is only un-ethical if detrimental to the property, and most states require sellers to disclosure of such current or potential problems. Buyers and their agents have no reciprocal obligation.

I don't feel sorry for the banks that hire such shams, but I do for individual sellers! Just how much pain can the consumers tolarate?

I'm looking forward to sharing a name with you, again and again, and again!

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate investment Institute 

 

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Carrion Investing

I haven't seen the traditional TV Real Estate Gurus on the air, lately. I haven't had my mail box flooded with their offers to make me rich in the next 30 days. These carrion Vultures and their minions of Crows all hoping for a free meal are undoubtably afraid of changing law and public perception.

I don't miss the Vultures or the Crows that sweep down and attack vulnerable home owners by deception and deceit. These vile caricatures should indeed be very, very careful and be prepared for prosecution/persecution regardless of guilt!

Before you condemn/curse the carrion among us remember both the Wise Old Owl and the Noble Eagles are carrion! Like in nature, society needs it's carrion members!

Opportunity investors are indeed carrion! Weather you're seen as a bloody Vulture, ignoble Crow, Wise Old Owl, or Noble Eagle depends entirely on the honesty of your actions and useful nature of your solutions!

Perhaps the Vultures and the Crows are having trouble finding suitable proprieties. It use to be that any property in foreclosure was an opportunity. That's no longer assumable, many if not most of today's foreclosures lack any salvageable equity. That doesn't mean there is less opportunity, quite the contrary! There is more opportunity than ever, it's just hard to see the trees in the forest! There are no free meals!

I have a nine word starting point for those who would be "wise and noble" investors: truth, truth, truth, disclose, disclose, disclose, document, document, document! There is a lot more to doing it right, but this is a free lesson.

The new TV Gurus are offering to teach you how to buy foreclosures, well "DA" they're listed! Get yourself a good REALTOR! Then there are the infomercials for the big real auctions, like tent revivals, leave your money and check books at home!

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

The Real Estate Investment Institute

PS: You might want reread: Creating Equity From Nothing / Revisited

Beat The Sharks

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Political Eloquence

At a time when hate has usurped logic. When collected 30 second sound bytes have replaced speeches. At a time when leaders and would be leaders speak in incomplete sentences, so that no matter what you though you heard they didn't say it. At a time when "Honor" is a demand not an earned accolade, At a time when the surest way to become a nearly instance multi millionaire is not hard work, real estate, or ingenuity, but rather to run for political office. At a time like this it's hard to believe that Thomas Jefferson could write and 56 politicians could agree on our Declaration of Independence! These people didn't sell books, that no one would ever read for millions, but rather they "mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor."

The following document is 232 years old, it's unique in history. To encourage you to read it I added five words, 28 little letters, can you find them? When you do, please just comment that "I found them." Please don't tell others.

Bill

William J Archambault Jr

American

              

The Declaration of Independence 

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:<