JohnsBlog (articles, news, thoughts, advice)

Great season Flyers...shame you went out with a 6-0 thumping, but all in all I'm happy with such a great turnaround...that being said, here are a few things to ponder over the offseason?

-What happened to Vaclav Prospal after Washington's series?  He disappeared...I thought he got traded mid-playoffs I heard his name said so sparingly...I foresee him once again being a former flyer.

-Jeff Carter had a pretty good season, just missed 30 goals by a broken stick, however I thought he could have scored 50 if he'd get that wrist shot under control...it's so fast, so good, so inaccurate

-RJ Umberger had an OK season, however he turned into an NHL all-star come playoff time...does this merit him obtaining a sky-high salary...I say he's still got to prove himself throughout an entire season, but I bet his agent has other ideas...it'll be an adventure trying to sign RJ and Carter

-What happened to the second best NHL powerplay?  It, like Prospal, disappeared.

Lots of work to be done to get further than we did this year, but it's doable...Biron has set himself up as one of the better NHL goalies, the defense looked good when healthy, and the offense overall was one of the best in the league.

Rates are up as mortgage bonds are down this week, folks.  We've broker below the 25-, 50-, and now today the 200-day moving averages, all of which act as a floor of support for mortgage bonds...what this means is that bonds have a potential to freefall and for rates to get nasty short-term.

That being said, I think we'll see a rebound late this week which should ride into next week and produce some good results on the rate sheets.

The reason for the recent turmoil?  Inflation, and better than expected (note:better than expected does not mean good) economic news.  Gas prices don't seem to be even slowing down, and this is causing a great lack of consumer confidence...with a weak dollar and high gas prices, inflation is becoming a real threat, and inflation is public enemy #1 of mortgage bonds. 

Today a treasury note auction took place, and to say the results were lackluster would be a strong understatement...they tanked, and mortgage bonds went right along with them.

Anyone considering looking for a mortgage or refinance should probably hold off til mid- or late-week next week to get a better rate quote and the opportunity to lock into better pricing.  The bond page over the past month has looked like a roller coaster, riding up slopes to favorable rates, only to crash down the next week to break floors of support, and then back up...I expect this to continue, so everytime rates get worse, its likely they'll be back to respectable levels within a week or so.

It's finally happened (or will within the next week).  I saw $3.96 attached to REGULAR gas on the way in to the office today...I've been clinging to $3.79 for the past 2 weeks at the local BP station, but alas, no longer. Not premium, not even "medium"....just regular.  Then, surprise surprise!  I get into the office, and see that consumer confidence is at a 16 year low due to inflationary concerns...caused primarily by the impact gas prices are having on the everyday person.  With the summer travel season coming, I'm curious as to how many people are altering their plans due to the high costs of commuting.

I, for one, was planning a quick weekend trip to North Carolina for a quick visit with some old friends, but it looks more and more like that's going to be out of the question...I'm not incredibly frugal by any means, but it seems a bit out of the ordinary that it would end up costing me more to drive there than it would to stay for a week...I figure about $200 would be the round-trip gas bill....I have friends to stay with for free, and $200 would be quite a bit of eating and going out, so for a weekend trip it doesn't seem cost-effective.  BOOO on gas prices...this is the first time I've been inconvenienced and actually changed plans due to gas prices...anyone else cutting back on their commuting due to the enormous price increases?

I've considered buying a mountain bike (when I move into my new home, closer to work), putting together a home office to save the commute, and when I buy a new car, I went from looking at some of the more gas guzzling BMW's to looking at some vehicles with better fuel efficiency, no matter how much they may resemble space shuttles.  My one hope...a new Toyota .

What has everyone else been doing with pump-prices going so high?  Anyone else cutting back or changing plans?

To everyone out there experiencing troubles w/the mortgage payments or to those who have a looming foreclosure, please note:

There are companies out there (and a lot of them) who are taking advantage of others misfortunes, and trying to get rich by doing so.  Just one example should suffice...a friend of mine is buying a home through a short sale...the seller paid a foreclosure assistance co. out of Ohio (I won't mention names, as the transaction is not yet complete) $2000 to help arrange settlements with the mortgage holders (it was a first and 2nd mortgage)...they told her the first mortgage holder agreed to the sales contract, but the 2nd mortgage company wouldn't budge and that there was nothing else they could do...

I have since stepped in, and with a lot of time and effort, managed to arrage settlement for the 2nd lien holder, only to find out the 1st lien holder never officially agreed to a settlement...the foreclosure assistance company in essence did nothing but take this poor woman's $2000, and I have since worked for free to resolve the whole thing, which wasn't really all that difficult, just very time consuming due to hold times.

Please people, I know times are tough when you're heading towards foreclosure, but if you get mail from companies claiming they can help you, be wary...they've gotten your contact info by purchasing it, and their goal is to make money...they make money by trying to help you, but more often than not these companies don't know what they're doing, and won't put in the effort to wrap it up in a timely manner.  

Just a word of caution, that's all for today.

Seems there's been a lot of media/publicity concerning morals/ethics and betrayal of trust in nearly every aspect of day to day living recently (especially in my business), and I think it's necessary to  initiate a change in the way things have been done...there are far too many people, in my opinion, that are out to make a living by ripping others off.  At the same time, there are a lot of individuals that take advantage of hard-working, honest people, harming them financially, and I think this needs to stop.

I have a pretty large-scale solution to this problem, and will be gameplanning and putting together an organizational idea for a fix...I'm hoping that others can help me with this project.  Please send me an e-mail or leave a comment concerning one of the following:

1)Anyone you work w/regulary, or have worked w/in the past that you absolutely trust, their profession, and the area they serve.

2)List some important reasons that someone has your trust, and what they've done on a regular basis to obtain and retain your business.

3)Provide some information about why you normally choose one business over another....price, service, advertisting, accessibility...any of the above or list some others.

4)Any ideas for solutions to a business environment where dishonesty and lack of ethics have become commonplace. 

All information will be kept confidential and anonymous.  Thanks for the assistance.