Will reality ever phase Cobra owners? (economic crisis)

[GTA]

I guess you can say I'm one of the few who's effected by all this.June I lost my job of 24 years. Here in Michigan jobs are hard to come by.I'm still one of the lucky ones. I had the feeling it would start turnning bad, so I payed my house off,built my car over a three period and payed cash for everything I bought. So I owe no one anything, and I have some savings.I will be leaving Michigan soon for a job out of state.If I'm lucky next summer I will be cruiseing the deep south with my cobra.Maybe it will turn out for the good.Roger

[bdeutsch]

First, sorry to hear about your job. We have offices in Michigan; work with most of the auto vertical and understand what you are saying about the economy.

I think at the end of the discussion, whether it is by virtue of house values, retirement accounts or other, there will be few of us who will not be touched in one way or another.

Suspect it is just going to be a question of how bad the damage for each of us as individuals.

Bob

[Bobcat]

I can`t say I say this coming .... but I felt something was going to happen , just not this drastic .... and I`m afraid this is just the beginning . I just heard on the news that the Italian Prime Minister suggested that all world financial markets be closed until a World plan can be implemented as this can`t be handled on a Country by Country basis .... really unsettling . If anyone has the time , read Ayn Rand`s Atlas Shrugged .... 1100 pages .
Having said this , my Cobra was paid for when I got it ... as is my Galaxie , and I still drive it on weekends ( when I can get 93 octane gas ) as it relaxes me ... and I`m continuing my Cobra build . I own my house and other vehicles and have zero debt .... other than what I spend on a day by day basis . It really pi$$e$ me off that I did everything "right" , put two children through College , saved for retirement ( retired now ) and now have to bale out those who didn`t .
Yes , this is starting to affect me , but only marginally at this time . I can only hope that those of you who are working will be able to continue and not get hurt too badly .

[rbray]

well said BobCat.

My wife and I have always saved. We bought less house than we could afford so we could pay off the mortgage early. No look at what we get to do with our savings ... pay for the irresponsible people that make less money that we do and live in nicer houses!!!!!!
I'm a republican, but for the life of me I can't understand why McCain wants bail out home owners that are in over their heads. The republican party used to stand for less government and individual responsibility.
We will get through this when we find another leader like Ronald Reagan. Pulling ones self up by the boot straps is not a kind or gentle thing, but it is what built this country.

Sorry for the rant

[trularin]

GTA, where were you at?

I was Delphi for years and then...well everyone can read the papers.

Doing it in Farmington now.

Did you retire or are you out looking???

[kayakjack]

My wife and I have no debt. Own our house, cars, everything free and clear. I still have my job. We have always lived below our means. I like that.

I am approaching retirement. My 401ks have taken a good hit, but they are still OK.

I'm angry at all of the parties whose actions caused this problem. My money will now go to bail them out. The people on wall street. The politicians. The people who bought things on credit they can not afford. The banks and Fannie and Freddie.

That said, two years into Superformance ownership - one of the best decisions I ever made. I bought used at a good price so I don't think I would take a hit even if I sold now - which I will not!!

I don't get to drive it much, but it is the best therapy when I do. No radio, no airconditioner, no windows, no power steering. Just Cobra.

I think show offs with their bling consumption is going be looked down upon. I didn't buy the Cobra to show off. I bought it for me.

I hope times get better soon.

Jack

[Clayboy]

Jack, I agree with you, the wife and I are in the same position. We own our house and have no debt and live below our income. I was going to retire at the end of last year, but decided that I still liked my job too much to quit. Now that the economy has taken such a massive hit I'm even happier with my decision. Retirement is now several years away and I hope that my 403b recovers with time. I guess we'll see. But I'll still drive the cobra every chance I get...as someone posted earlier, the up side is that gas is getting cheaper. Ya just gotta' keep smilin'. I hope everyone can ride out the storm.
Bob

[yamazee]

This is a great topic with respect to what is going on today. Its an amazing thing how we all react to the media like sheep and follow along exactly how the media and everyone above us want us to. I own a small mortgage firm in central florida, and yes while lending and qualifying for a loan has changed, what you are hearing and seeing in the media is not all true. To this day, we are still funding loans for people with less than perfect credit, and little to no money down. In fact we have done quite well at in the past 12 months as opposed to our competition. Money is still available in most circumstances, what is not available is lending where there is zero means of ability to repay the loan. While I agree the landscape of the economy is challenging much of it is not going to effect everyone in the same manner. Also regardless of the state of the ecomomy, there will always be opportunities that will surface and allow the people who stay focused and positive to make money. I have found it best to ignore many of the reports on how bad it is, focus on the things that we can see as postives and carry on our day to day business of making money and paying for the things we really want to achieve. There are plenty of good things happening right now that are not getting any attention at all. The major shift now is that homes have become affordable again, we are seeing the first time homebuyers come back into play, with the help of Gov insured financing we are able to get the great interest rates with fixed terms in many cases with no money down. Many of these people are no where near perfect credit, its actually the opposite. Guess what, they are still getting thier loans. Guess what, the fact the media tells you every day that you cant get a loan without lots of money down and great credit is total BS. The problem we have today is that none of our political leaders have any clue of what's really happening. The other problem is that we have all been duped, none of the bailout funds are really being used domesticly, in fact most of who we are bailing out are overseas investors, countries, and foreign entities. If I had it my way, all 435 people running congress would be fired ASAP and replace with new officials. The economy will take some time to recover, so will housing, soooo what!! While its doing all that, stay sharp, sieze the new opportunities and keep plugging away. If I gave into what everyone is saying about the economy and all the doom and gloom going around I would be a broke schitzophrenic maniac. Screw what everyone else is talking about, its still ok at my house and always will be as long as I have something to say and do about it.