Are most of the government funds helping the wrong people?

Are the government funds that were given to banks being used on the wrong people? I think that the money should be used to help those individuals that were planning their finances correctly. I believe that the funds are flowing to people who speculated on the real estate market. They purchased more homes then they should have been able to qualify for. These speculators used the system loopholes to leverage marginal funds to acquire multiple homes. All this on the hopes of taking advantage of skyrocketing real estate values before feeling the consequences. When the market took a huge dive and creative loans disappeared from the market, the speculators just walked away form the homes, thus leaving the banks and the investors, and ultimately tax payers to save the companies that made this possible. What about the people who put a down-payment, waited patiently for the dip in the market, reviewed the loan documents for pre-payment penalties, and adjustable rates, what about us? Why do we have to ruin our credit before someone helps us? Why can't people with a loan that is upside down be refinanced at a current rate? Is it because there is no profit in helping us? I have a degree in finance and I can't figure out what benefit a bank has in foreclosing on good people instead of helping them pay the mortgage! Why foreclose and then sell for half the price? Why not adjust the payment and principal so that the current homeowner can afford to stay in their house? I understand present value versus future value but loosing 50% of the loan and then issuing another loan at a rate that could be 30-40% lower is just wrong. What do you think?

Money. Does it make you more of who you are as a person or does it change who you are?

What do you think? I think it magnifies the type of person you already are. Mean people are just meaner, good people are better people, and greedy people are greedier. Am I wrong?

Remember when things were free?

Do you remember parking on the street when the only worry was "am I going to find an empty space"? Now the worry is "do I have the $3 an hour I have to pay the meter". Do you remember when you could find a water fountain in most buildings? You did not have to fork over $3 for a 8oz bottle. I think i heard these questions in a comedy skit and if I didn't you have my permission to use it. Free! It is a funny word. I think people took free for granted. If they saw a sign that said free cups of water, they would ask for two cups. If they saw a free parking space you hogged up two spaces. If they heard of an open bar they didn't tip. I blame cheap, not broke, but cheap people for ruining "Free" things. I bet someone brought a bottle and filled it up everyday before work at the "free" water fountain.

Would've, could've, and should've!

Would’ve, could’ve, and should’ve are words I constantly hear uttered at the most inopportune of times. Right now I am hearing "I should've pulled out of the market", "I could've shorted the market", and "I would've made a killing". I think these words symbolize optimism, but are often confused with anxiety.
The stock market is the prime example of the effects of fear and greed. We fear not making enough money so we invest into overvalued stocks that have had a great run or are part of a bubble. We fear that the market is too risky so we don’t invest. When we are greedy we invest and are apprehensive to sell when our stocks have grown rapidly. We are greedy when we don’t want to invest in the market and stay in cd’s and treasuries. Fear and greed are emotional drivers that have caused investor losses in both bull and bear markets. The only proven strategy to investing effectively is diversification.
If you are truly fearful and greedy I would suggest you educate yourself on diversification. Investors who have been part of a market downturn in the past, see the market at its current market value as a point of opportunity. Those same individuals have seen the benefits of diversifying their investments and taking advantage of other people’s fears. Are they being greedy? Are they the ones that see the light at the end of the tunnel? What if those words are cues to do something today? What if every time you had that thought you did something for benefit? I think you would be better off. I’m just saying!

Communication: Can it be the key to better returns?

I have found that the investors with the best results and better relationship with their brokers are the ones that communicate well. Communication in life is what makes people understand each other, right? We hear sayings such as “the squeaky wheel gets the grease” but what does this mean when it comes to investing? It means that clients and traders have to communicate now more than ever before.

In today’s business climate, what once took weeks and months to play out is now taking days if not hours. A savvy trader has to keep his ear to the street, and that sometimes means you may not have time to reach out to each client about their individual concern. You may be busy doing what you feel is in their best interest or meeting there previously stated concerns. Does this mean that their concerns are not important? No, it means that if you know they have questions and and concerns then you can get answers to your clients in a fast and effective way. You and your clients will fare much better. The market will take less of a toll on both your clients and you.

Remember to ask yourself if it better to wait without knowing how long you have to be in line, or is it better to know your expected time of arrival. This question may not seem relevant until you are in a plane traveling thousands of feet in the air and you just hit turbulence. That is what your clients are experiencing right now! Let them know when the ride will be over!