Welcome

Hi All,

Welcome to my blog.  I have recently become a member of the unemployed community and I therefore have plenty of time to blog.  What is amazing to me is that when I used to listen to the nightly news report the unemployment numbers, it never dawned on me that I might become a statistic among those numbers.  I guess you might say that I was a victim of the housing bubble that dawned the current great recession, as I was previously employed by a mortgage broker.  During my four years of employment in the mortgage business, I saw first-hand the kinds of easy loans that caused the collapse of the housing market.  I was astounded by how lax the lending requirements had become for qualifying clients for loans.   As long as individuals had a pulse and a good credit score, they were almost guaranteed a loan.  In fact, certain lenders would decline loans for individuals who we inadvertently sent supporting documentation for.  They did not want to see any income or asset information, and if it was sent the loan would be turned down!  I saw very little savings  held by individuals, not that it mattered, as we were writing loans that were 95 to 100% financed.   I also found it  very difficult to fathom how debt-laden people had become.  The amount of credit card debt was shocking and it seemed as though we kept refinancing the same people again and again, as they continued to draw equity out of their homes to pay down their credit card debt, in the hopes that their homes would continue   appreciating.

I interpreted these practices as a huge warning sign and in the late summer of 2007, withdrew all of my money from the stock market and put it into CD’s.  Sure, I missed the peak that occurred in the stock market in October 2007, but I was  one of the few fortunate  enough to also miss the huge  decline.  Of course, at the time, my Merrill Lynch broker thought I was crazy and tried to convince me to stay in the market (I’m sure that had nothing to do with her loss of commissions).  So glad I didn’t take that “good piece” of advice. It was also my same intuition that later led me to get back into the market just after it had hit bottom in March of 2009.   I guess you might say  I have a knack  for timing the market, or maybe it’s sheer luck.   Either way, it has been paying off.  I view the current market as a great buying opportunity, one that I will probably never again see in my lifetime.  Now, if i can use that luck to land myself a new job in this economy, that will truly be amazing!  More to come, please stay tuned.