I thought I’d share an interesting little primer I received from Michelle Swanson @ Canyon Park Mortgage in my inbox today. My friend james Lupori over at Kenmore Undressed has posted a 60 minutes excerp with some similiar information. Mostly, I think we are all just trying to understand things a little more. Thanks for the help guys.

Michelle Swanson Shared…

The Chinese have a proverb: “May you live in interesting times.” And we are living through interesting times indeed.Whatever the political posturing regarding the rescue plan, a plan needed to be passed. Credit markets are frozen and banks are going bust every day. This is not totally because of “toxic” mortgages. This has a lot to do with FASB 157, also known as “mark to market”.

I’m no expert but it sure looks to me from the body language being exhibited by Fed chief Ben Bernanke that he isn’t exactly on board with this whole bailout thing. I know he is considered a soft spoken and perhaps even shy fella, but quite frankly I think there’s something up that he wants no part of. Hmmm.

Thank You Uncle Sam, originally uploaded by Jim Warner, Realtor.

Look, there is an upside to all this bail out hoopla! You can go out and buy a house because the banks have money again.

I’d say that if you have been thinking about doing something, now is the time while the money is still cheap and home prices are still low.

Chances are that neither will be the case in about six months. If you buy now, when prices go back up you’ll have the equity to pay for the tax bill you’re going to get for bailing out the banks and freeing up the money. Let’s just call it your little middle class piece of the pie. So let’s get busy doing the happy dance!

Pennies from heaven, originally uploaded by Jim Warner, Realtor.

$4,000 - that’s the first tally of the bill each and every American is going to receive for the ten year long brain fart that we now lovingly refer to as the Sub Prime Meltdown. It will go higher, it always does and the so called leadership that brought you this mess is extemely adept at metering bad news in such a way as to make even really bad news seem more palatable. You will have a chance to vote your future in November. Do your duty and pay attention to what is being said and who you think you can depend on to make some changes. Then get out and vote. We have once again passed along the expense of our mistakes to our children. I’m not sure they have a future that I would look forward to if we keep passing on the bill.
We can do better as a nation and we should expect more of ourselves. Take responsibility for what comes next.  Get out, get informed and Vote.

My Friend Nathan Vorwerk stopped by to see me the other day. I was really glad to see him. Nate is a bright young fellow, a graduate of Seattle Pacific University with a degree in finance and a guy who, like many other SPU Alumni, is exploring his options and choosing his own way. Nate took a break from his latest gig and spent a good part of the summer working on cruise ships in Alaska; Everyone should get to do that once in their life.

I met Nathan a couple of years ago by way of an acquaintance who told me Nathan wanted to get into land development and real estate so we chatted some at the time about his options and have kept in touch since. Nathan had some good success in land development before the market turned and we all had to go find something else to do.

Nathan is now working for Northwest Processing Solution a little south of Lynnwood, in Seattle. As a matter of fact, I am pretty sure he is working his way into an equity position with the company, which is how it should be for a young man with a lot of talent and drive. NWPSolution as they are called handles Merchant Card Services also known as merchant services or credit card processing services for Businesses, e-commerce sites and Non Profits in Seattle, Bellevue, Washington State and Nationwide.

They can put together online stores for internet sites that sell goods and they can cost effectively perform merchant services by processing batches of credit card receipts for small businesses. Of course they also provide the little slide machines that every store has to have these days.

When a small business starts up, most new owners don’t realize the expense and hassle a credit card processing or merchant services arrangement with a bank can bring on. For most they just assume the bank is where this gets done or they go to COSTCO. Truth is the bank is often just a middle man and an extra expense piled on and Costco is… well, Costco. A company like NWP Solution is a direct source for merchant services that often is the provider to the bank. The difference is that if there is a problem or customer service issue, the bank usually has to call a credit card processing or merchant services company like Northwest Processing Solution or Pinnacle Processing Group for answers which can lead to delays and miscommunication and extra expense. You are usually better off just going direct although your bank would rather you didn’t know that.  So if you need credit card processing or merchant services solutions or if you want to see if NWP Solution can save you some money, give Nathan a call. Here’s the contact info;

There is another reason I am writing this post, which is to prove to Nathan that I can garner some exposure for him and his company within my community of readers, friends and clients and on Google through the power of blogging within a network; Specifically the undressed network of community blogs. I did this last week when writing about Pilates Mill Creek in Mill Creek Town Center a couple miles north of Lynnwood.  You see, as much as I love blogging about people I know or meet, I also sell the blogs to micro businesses as a way for them to communicate regularly with their customers and stakeholders, just like I am communicating with you right now. What’s cool about it is that by blogging about things I come to know about, I am creating an association that makes me relevant in circles on Google I have yet to explore in person.  In other words, by sharing my experiences within my blog, which is within a network, I can climb to the top of the google charts when a search is performed regarding the topic I am writing about. As you look for the topic, you will also find me. So thanks for bearing with me as I run this little experiment. If you’d like to find out more about how it could work for you, call me at the ROCS alliance or find me at www.jimwarner.com and I’ll fill you in on PNW Solution and other Micro Businesses I am working with to create communities of relevance for marketing purposes.

Bailout, originally uploaded by Jim Warner, Realtor.

And now for today’s good news… All those shareholders who were afraid they might lose their investment in the banking stocks that have paid them so handsomely over the past ten years of irresponsible lending, can rest easy knowing that the leadership that was supposed to be overseeing the banking industry just decided that the people who just lost their home and their job will now be obliged to cover the loss through higher taxes needed to cover a government bailout. Just a little parting gift from the same leadership that got you into this mess as they and their friends get ready to administer the money being used to float this boat. There’s a reason why the candidates for the Presidency spend a billion dollars trying to get control of the White House and it is not because it’s a dream job. The real prize continues to be the keys to the Treasury and who gets to hold them.

As Barry Goldwater once said… “A government big enough to give you all you want is big enough to take it all away.”

Ronald Reagan later said… “government exists to protect us from each other, where government has gone beyond it’s limits is when it moves to protect us from ourselves.”

And of course… the ten most feared words in the english language are ‘I am from the government and I’m here to help.’ RR

The only way I see being able to pay for this fiasco is to eliminate the Home Mortgage Interest Deduction… You heard it here first!

Thoughts and cartoon courtesy of Steve Manning at rendezvouswithdestiny.blogspot.com

Here’s a little secret for your eyes only… Nestled in the heart of Mill Creek Town Center, just north of Lynnwood, is a place of tranqility and calm. It is a place of personal development and growth. Pilates Mill Creek offers you a respite from all that piles up in the day and allows you to focus on yourself, your inner strength and the limitless potential of your mind. From Core strength development to the calming effects of meditation, there is much to enjoy about being here. Come by and see for yourself. Stop by our website to sign up for a complimentary Session with one of our personal trainers or visit our Pilates Undressed blog to find out more. We can help you reach your full potential. Click here for an example of just one sport (of many) where Pilates Mill Creek can improve your skills.

There is a special place just north of Seattle in the little burg of Lynnwood, Washington, a small non descript drive thru with a colorful exterior and even more colorful crew serving up the goods. When you visit Dave’s Burgers in Lynnwood you are more likely as not going to run into owner Valerie Ralston and her great big smile serving up one of her signature bacon double cheeseburgers. There are dozens of Burger Joints around but there is just something about Dave’s that can actually evoke a craving at times. Toss in a ‘Frosty Beverage’ as Valerie likes to say and some piping hot, hand cut fries and life seems pretty darn good and complete. Valerie has been a big Edmonds School District Booster for many years. Dave’s is an advertiser on all the high school Gold Cards - Many people buy the cards just to get the Dave’s Burgers special offer - and she’s always quick to respond if there’s a special need in the community. When she’s not serving up the burgers, Valerie runs a full service catering business and tries to keep up with her two sons.  Be sure and go by Dave’s when you get a chance and say hi to Valerie and the Gang. Tell her you saw her on Jim Warner’s Blog.

Pickett Street, originally uploaded by Jim Warner, Realtor.

I have spent a lot of time out and about reading real estate blogs lately. One in particular that I like is the Pickett Street website and blog. Pickett Street Properties is made up of three excellent Realtors with Keller Williams Realty in Bothell - Dennis Pearce, Jesse Moore and Lisa Bender - together they manage to put out a solid piece of work and some quality posts. They recently announced their new map based property search through Diverse Solutions - it is an awesome tool, easy to use and you can save your preferences for automatic updates. There was a particularly timely post by Dennis Pearce regarding his thoughts on where the market is and where it might be headed. I appreciate professionals that take pride in their work and as a Buyer or Seller these days it should be one of the things you look for in selecting your next agent, go see for yourself at Pickett Street. If you get a chance to leave a comment or message be sure and tell ‘em you heard about them from fellow Realtor, Jim Warner over at Lynnwood Undressed.