“Cut corners somewhere or try to pick up a part-time job”
Have you ever noticed that “rules for thee, but not for me” also extends to crappy business advice?
During my first iteration of self-employment that failed, I saw plenty of that. I’d listen to just about any so-called coach, advisor, or guru I could find in the hopes that someone, somewhere could produce a magical solution to my problems. None of them did, to be honest, but they were more than happy to give me a plethora of advice. And I noticed something funny. There seemed to be a common theme of: “Well, ha ha, I mean, I wouldn’t do XYZ, but you could.” The same bull 💩 has played out in the real estate market as greedy opportunists saw the chance to foment the FOMO and YOLO.
BuzzFeed recently published an article about buyers’ remorse and the main interviewee discusses what she was told:
“In May, Riggins’s $202,000 offer on a three-bedroom home with a yard was accepted — but interest rates were rising. ‘I started to back out so many times, especially when I was going through those bidding wars, and even with this, I didn’t feel good about bidding that much,’ she said. ‘I’ll never forget when [my agent] did the paperwork and turned it in. I didn’t get any sleep at night. … I remember calling her the next morning and was like, I’m thinking about backing out; maybe I should just find a place to rent.’ Riggins said that the agent reminded her that a home is an investment, that when rates were lower she could refinance, and suggested she ‘cut corners somewhere’ or ‘try to pick up a part-time job.’”
-https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/venessawong/housing-market-buyers-remorse-homeowner-regret
That reminded me of a broker who told me, “I’d never take out an ARM, but, I mean, you could if you want to.”
It’s easy for someone else to tell you things like:
· Your home is an investment. Probably the biggest investment you’ll ever have.
· Don’t you want this? Don’t you love this place?!?
· Prices/Interest rates will only get higher. You better do this rightdamnnow if you want to get in.
· We have 5 other offers in hand. You better be prepared to go way above and beyond.
· Have you considered an ARM? I wouldn’t use one, but you could.
· Can’t you cut corners? What about not getting a $5 coffee every morning as though that is what’s keeping you from affording a grossly overpriced doo-doo house?
· What about working 10 different jobs and never sleeping?
😣
Aside from the fundamental lack of practicality a lot of these suggestions possess — like one business advisor who told me I should work on my business during the day and then work a night shift at a hotel and just forego sleep for a while — some of them aren’t even real, true, or possible.
Here’s the thing: The Fed has not been shy in saying they want to see unemployment rise and wages stagnate. So some realtor or broker telling you to pick up extra work would seem to me to be especially ill-informed of reality.
What if the option of getting an additional job or trying to juggle multiple side hustles simply isn’t an option as we go further into this economic hot mess? What then?
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You can find my blog here: https://causeyconsultingllc.com/the-blog/
And my podcast here: https://causeyconsulting.buzzsprout.com
