Alright today I’m going to get right into finishing the story of our 2 Realtors, Shawn and Dee. This is where the real meat to the issue is, I hope you appreciate the point I’m making as I think there is something we can all learn in this one!

 

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   It would seem that around this time Shawn and Dee were rapidly approaching their 60th birthdays and other life changing surprises. It was in this time period that it was discovered that Dee had Parkinson’s Disease. This new development would require that she cut back on those long hours and get a lot more rest. “No Problem”, Shawn would pick up the slack and they could handle this issue together!

 

   This fight went on for 4-5 years and actually is still going on currently but it’s the details of that 4-5 year period that can’t be glossed over. Shawn working as much as possible proved to be insufficient to keep it all together. The dream house was strangling them, a 30 year house note with almost all 30 still to go, they had to refinance and pull out every last drop of equity adding that swimming pool a few years back!

 

   Shawn, now a man in his sixties with a sick wife and a staggering amount of debt had to come up with a plan to avoid being swept over the edge with the trappings of his success. Starting with the custom built mini-mansion, Shawn would begin selling the STUFF. Slowly over the courseof a year and a half he got the house ready and sold, moving them into a more manageable home. This new home also a brand new construction 4 bedroom place, remember there are just the two of them, financed again with a 30 year mortgage. He was able to get their fancy cars sold too and put them each into something more reasonable… You guessed it, the cars were financed over 48 months…

 

   Unfortunately, Shawn and Dee’s story or situation don’t get better just yet. Dee’s heathcondition continues to decline, she is functional most days but is unable to work at all. In addition to what Dee is dealing with, Shawns health is beginning to show signs of impending issues and he would require bothknees to be replaced. It would be difficult to do both team members part in selling houses while he is stuck at home while his body healed.

 

   It wasn’t long after moving into that last home that it became quite clear all thoseballs weren’t going to stay in the air much longer. Our couple played the game and tried to keep up appearances while they lived in the house and didn’t have the ability to make the mortgage payments. We received that call, you know the one – the call any man that owns a pickup truck gets, could we help them move to their new place? Of course we will, when are you moving? Ahh, this weekend… Alright, where ya moving to? Ahh, a mobile home park not to far from where they lived way back at the beginning of their saga…

 

  We did help them move into their new home. They were able to find a motivated seller that was willing to carry a private contract. This allowed them to move in with very little out of pocket costs. The place is older but still in pretty good condition. This particular park is also one that they have done a lot of business in and so they know many of their neighbors.

 

   Shawn and Dee ‘s story is sad, at least it is to me! They end up just about back where they started, at least that is what we would think at first glance. The reality is a bit different though… They are actually in an entirely new place, a scary place! Let me explain what I mean…

 

   When I first introduced you to Shawn and Dee, they were in their 40′s and their children were raised. They had a new lease on life and could chase adventure or just about anything else they decided to. They sold everything and moved to Hawaii, learned a new skill set, returned to a new job – complete with a free and clear home. Their salary was sufficient to live comfortably on… Not a grand life but doesn’t sound to bad does it?

 

   Where are Shawn and Dee now? They are back living in mobile home park… This is were the similarities stop. They are living in home that comes with a monthly payment but no built in job. They have lost a home to foreclosure and went bankrupt. They are both suffering with health issues and continuing to decline. Shawn has to work, selling real estate but in one of the worst real estate markets most have ever seen. These are all bad things, certainly bad enough all by themselves but not the worst thing.

 

   The worst thing is that Shawn and Dee have lost roughly 20 years of their lives. These could have been the dream years that many of us look forward to, the reward for many years of hard work. Instead they were years of working long hours and building a pile of debt that eventually over took them. Working until they were both in poor health and unable to work much, if at all.

 

   Is this Shawn and Dee’s fault – you bet your sweet biby it is! However, are they out of the ordinary? Nope, I watch people do similar things to themselves everyday… Literally, everyday I go to work, I se people sign up for a new 30 year mortgage. Now, if these folks are in their 20′s and just starting out this might not be so bad… More often than not this isn’t the case. It’s people that are never going to see the end of that mortgage!

 

   I heard someone in the back of the room whisper – “who cares about paying off that mortgage if you’re going to die, let someone else worry about it?”… At first this sounds like a plan but then you realise this someone else would be your children… Don’t have kids or care if they have to pick up after your mess? How about what those mortgage payments are going to do to your quality of life? Shawn wishes he could quit working, he told me so just last week, nearly 70 years old and he CAN”T quit working. He had the chance to work very little shortly after he turned 5o but 20 years later, nothing to show for it and now he HAS TO work as much as possible to keep a roof over their heads.

 

   I guess this story is another food for thought or thought exercise article. I know a lot of people and wish I could bring you more articles about people that have made great choices! I’m going to keep watching for them but if all I can find are bad examples, maybe we can do what Dad always said and -

 

“Learn from other peoples mistakes!”

 

 

Prepper