I had taken a few days from thinking of what to “blog” as I was enjoying the Yankee run through the World Series. As I set back my recliner late Friday night to watch the 11pm news re-cap of the ticker tape parade, I hear how some office workers got carried away during the Yankees victory parade and began tossing files and documents out the window when they could not get their hands on confetti. It has been reported that investigators found all kinds of personal financial documents in the mountains of shredded paper tossed from skyscrapers as the players rode up Broadway through the Canyon of Heroes. Documentation found on the ground included pay stubs, banking data, law firm memos and court files.
I routinely hear people say that they do not need identity theft protection…that it has never been an issue and do not wish to spend the money it takes to subscribe to an ID Theft Service. I have written in this space how ID Theft expands way beyond someone stealing your wallet or credit card. ID Theft is a preventive strike against a worst case scenario…a scenario you never want to endure. Is this worth a few bucks per month? If your name is on one of those documents on the ground in NYC…you bet it is!
I would love the opportunity to help you secure ID Theft Protection for you and the entire family. If you wish to go someplace else, that is fine…just do it today.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
7 of 10 vs 3 of 10? I will take the 3!!!!
Do You Have a Will?
My wife will not even discuss these types of issues. In fact, when we drew up our estate planning documents, she had to get up and left the room all flustered. Who really looks forward to and wants to confront their own mortality and the issues that surround it? Neither one of us did, but knew it was something that we needed to do. If you have not done so…believe it or not you are in the majority.
Did you know that 7 out of 10 people have not created a Will? Think about that…7 out of 10! Those 7 people can and likely will cost their heirs (family members…the ones closest to them) a lot of money in avoidable estate taxes, lawyer/ probate costs and add tremendous stress to what is already a stressful situation. Who really wants a third party, judge or government official deciding who inherits their property, savings and personal belongings? For 7 out of every 10 people, unfortunately, this is precisely what will happen and what they should expect to happen.
Doing nothing and not thinking about it will not solve the problem.
Pre-Paid Legal Plans offer Wills (and Living Wills) as part of their basic membership package. If you do have a Will, you control who inherits your property, portfolio etc…. Further, if you are raising children under 18, you designate who will raise them. If you do not have a Will, you are designating an impersonal, beaurocratic court system to make critical decisions for the long term interests of those closest to you. No one wants to confront their own mortality and deal with these issues. If you choose not to, can you really say that you are doing the responsible thing for your spouse and children?
Suburban Solutions provides employer and membership groups with Pre-Paid Legal Plan programs, along with a menu of over 40 other lifestyle benefits. You can contact us should yo wish to inquire about how to access these types of services.
My wife will not even discuss these types of issues. In fact, when we drew up our estate planning documents, she had to get up and left the room all flustered. Who really looks forward to and wants to confront their own mortality and the issues that surround it? Neither one of us did, but knew it was something that we needed to do. If you have not done so…believe it or not you are in the majority.
Did you know that 7 out of 10 people have not created a Will? Think about that…7 out of 10! Those 7 people can and likely will cost their heirs (family members…the ones closest to them) a lot of money in avoidable estate taxes, lawyer/ probate costs and add tremendous stress to what is already a stressful situation. Who really wants a third party, judge or government official deciding who inherits their property, savings and personal belongings? For 7 out of every 10 people, unfortunately, this is precisely what will happen and what they should expect to happen.
Doing nothing and not thinking about it will not solve the problem.
Pre-Paid Legal Plans offer Wills (and Living Wills) as part of their basic membership package. If you do have a Will, you control who inherits your property, portfolio etc…. Further, if you are raising children under 18, you designate who will raise them. If you do not have a Will, you are designating an impersonal, beaurocratic court system to make critical decisions for the long term interests of those closest to you. No one wants to confront their own mortality and deal with these issues. If you choose not to, can you really say that you are doing the responsible thing for your spouse and children?
Suburban Solutions provides employer and membership groups with Pre-Paid Legal Plan programs, along with a menu of over 40 other lifestyle benefits. You can contact us should yo wish to inquire about how to access these types of services.
Friday, September 25, 2009
A Recent Discussion
I recently participated in a panel discussion where employers were asking "what are some good ideas on how they can provide low/ no cost benefits to employees…how can these benefits help attract / retain employees."
I responded by saying that when I sit down with executives regarding these types of questions, I discuss the value of turn-key, voluntary opt-in plans. My company can create and customize “bundles” that best supplement an organization’s existing benefit plan. Vision & Dental are as good as some others have stated in this discussion, just be careful you are not overpaying for these services. You can get much cheaper pricing in a bundled situation. On the medical side, I strongly recommend a telemedicine product and free pharmacy card. There is also value in providing Identity Theft Protection, Pre-Paid Legal Plans and Roadside Assistance. These programs, properly promoted within, should not only enhance engagement, but reduce associate absence and result in better customer service/ productivity. If you look to do these types of programs, look for multiple payment options too…payroll deduct, employer paid or partial employer paid. I also see employers place a great value on providing employees insurance options they can purchase on their own. One employer mentioned that LTD is voluntary in their organization…I see many employers make all kinds of insurance available via the workplace intranet…Non-Occupational Disability, Term/ Whole Life, Long Term Care, Cancer Insurance, etc…. Does not cost the employer anything to provide and employees can shop right from their desk.
I do not think I could have gotten more of a fastball right down the middle.
I responded by saying that when I sit down with executives regarding these types of questions, I discuss the value of turn-key, voluntary opt-in plans. My company can create and customize “bundles” that best supplement an organization’s existing benefit plan. Vision & Dental are as good as some others have stated in this discussion, just be careful you are not overpaying for these services. You can get much cheaper pricing in a bundled situation. On the medical side, I strongly recommend a telemedicine product and free pharmacy card. There is also value in providing Identity Theft Protection, Pre-Paid Legal Plans and Roadside Assistance. These programs, properly promoted within, should not only enhance engagement, but reduce associate absence and result in better customer service/ productivity. If you look to do these types of programs, look for multiple payment options too…payroll deduct, employer paid or partial employer paid. I also see employers place a great value on providing employees insurance options they can purchase on their own. One employer mentioned that LTD is voluntary in their organization…I see many employers make all kinds of insurance available via the workplace intranet…Non-Occupational Disability, Term/ Whole Life, Long Term Care, Cancer Insurance, etc…. Does not cost the employer anything to provide and employees can shop right from their desk.
I do not think I could have gotten more of a fastball right down the middle.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Medical Identity Theft...I Am Not Kidding
Identity theft is a recurring theme that I like to address in this forum. For whatever reason, many people do not see this as the "needs based product" that it truly is. You would not drive a car without auto insurance. You would not want to start a family without a Will and life insurance plan (hey, I wrote about that under my Legal Plan posting). ID Theft has become (not is becoming, HAS BECOME) the #1 crime in America and believe it or not, extends way beyond someone stealing a credit card or social security number.
Believe it or not, ID Theft is growing at an unprecedented rate when it comes to receiving medical treatment. You cannot turn on the television, listen to a presidential sound byte or read a newspaper without hearing about the rising cost of health care and how difficult it is for many people to afford quality care. What do some people who cannot afford medical insurance turn to? Medical ID Theft.
Medical ID Thieves will use a victims identity and insurance information to receive the care they need. The real threat is not just the financial impact of the doctor/ hospital bills, but the fact that your medical records can be changed to those of the Identity Thief! Your blood type, medications, allergic reactions, etc... can all be changed to somebody else's history.
If there is any lingering doubt why identity theft protection is something everybody in America should have, watch this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NrLryd9o7I
Now fill in the blank: "I, (state your name), do not have Identity Theft Protection because__________________________________________________. (hint: no good answer to this question.)
Obviously I would like to help you with your acquisition of an ID Theft program...but no matter where you go to get it...just get it TODAY!
Believe it or not, ID Theft is growing at an unprecedented rate when it comes to receiving medical treatment. You cannot turn on the television, listen to a presidential sound byte or read a newspaper without hearing about the rising cost of health care and how difficult it is for many people to afford quality care. What do some people who cannot afford medical insurance turn to? Medical ID Theft.
Medical ID Thieves will use a victims identity and insurance information to receive the care they need. The real threat is not just the financial impact of the doctor/ hospital bills, but the fact that your medical records can be changed to those of the Identity Thief! Your blood type, medications, allergic reactions, etc... can all be changed to somebody else's history.
If there is any lingering doubt why identity theft protection is something everybody in America should have, watch this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NrLryd9o7I
Now fill in the blank: "I, (state your name), do not have Identity Theft Protection because__________________________________________________. (hint: no good answer to this question.)
Obviously I would like to help you with your acquisition of an ID Theft program...but no matter where you go to get it...just get it TODAY!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
The Biggest No-Brainer Ever!
I was recently shopping for health insurance for me and my family. I researched small business plans that turned out to not be very attractive at all. I then went to an on-line quoting engine (my own portal is not configured for NJ yet) and within seconds of completing a quick, informational type screen with my basic personal information had various offers to choose from ranging from Plan Type, Price (lowest to highest) and Carrier. Getting to the quoting screen was a pretty easy, seamless process. Once there however, it is very easy to be intimidated and throw your hands up in disgust.
First, in the quoting engine I was using, distinguishing between the different plan types and trying to figure out what type of plan covers what. In my opinion this alone would make the average user give up right there. Second, I have a Health and Life Insurance license and understand what the various types of insurance plans are…but between PPO, EPO, HMO, Blue Cross Blue Shield, No Deductible, High Deductible, (No) Long Term Hospital Care, Co-insurance, no Co-insurance, Prescription coverage or not, Dental but maximum $500 per year…it is very easy for an individual to get confused and purchase a plan that they may think is different than what it actually is.
When I made the decision on what insurance plan I was ready to buy, I was then required to complete a full application on-line. This application took almost 30 minutes to complete and again, this process had me thinking how many people get frustrated and stop, or do not have the time to complete all the information at one sitting and due to the investment of time required never return to complete.
This kind of begs the question: is technology making this process easier and less expensive, or is the price similar to going to an agent in-person and paying a bit more?
Where the technology debate can go on for years and years, there is one debate that cannot: Discount Medical Benefits. Discount Medical Benefits can supplement health insurance policies in so many ways it is unbelievable. I was recently in San Francisco and engaged in a conversation with someone near The Wharf about why I was out there and what type of business I am in. When I explained that I was in the supplemental benefits business and highlighted some of the plans offered, he asked if our packages cost about $200/ mo. When I responded with where our price points typically fall he was totally amazed…asking why everyone in America would not purchase our benefits? I could not agree more.
Getting back to my insurance quoting experience, it amazes me how many people could make better educated decisions if they knew that for < $5 per week they would gain family membership access to Dental, Chiropractic, Vision, Vitamin and Pharmacy discounts, while eliminating co-pays for non-emergency doctor visits by calling a telemedicine service that has script ability. I made my decision on which insurance to buy based on the fact that I have a discount medical plan already in place. I chose a plan $250/ mo less than I would have had I not had a discount plan. Imagine being able to reduce monthly insurance costs, save time and energy from visiting a doctor, eliminate co-pays in many cases and have access to below market pricing for other “health” services…for the whole family?
Discount Medical Plans are perhaps the biggest no-brainer ever. I just saved a minimum of $3,500 per year when I factor in my monthly savings and the ways my discount plan will save me money throughout the year. With all the talk of Obama health care reform, the rising costs of health insurance, increased employee contributions, decreased coverage, etc….I think the guy in San Francisco said it best: “Why wouldn’t everyone in America have our Discount Medical Benefits?”
If you want additional information on how YOU can acquire, please contact me via email at bob.germano@suburbansolutionscorp.com or 866-528-6208, ext 122.
I was recently shopping for health insurance for me and my family. I researched small business plans that turned out to not be very attractive at all. I then went to an on-line quoting engine (my own portal is not configured for NJ yet) and within seconds of completing a quick, informational type screen with my basic personal information had various offers to choose from ranging from Plan Type, Price (lowest to highest) and Carrier. Getting to the quoting screen was a pretty easy, seamless process. Once there however, it is very easy to be intimidated and throw your hands up in disgust.
First, in the quoting engine I was using, distinguishing between the different plan types and trying to figure out what type of plan covers what. In my opinion this alone would make the average user give up right there. Second, I have a Health and Life Insurance license and understand what the various types of insurance plans are…but between PPO, EPO, HMO, Blue Cross Blue Shield, No Deductible, High Deductible, (No) Long Term Hospital Care, Co-insurance, no Co-insurance, Prescription coverage or not, Dental but maximum $500 per year…it is very easy for an individual to get confused and purchase a plan that they may think is different than what it actually is.
When I made the decision on what insurance plan I was ready to buy, I was then required to complete a full application on-line. This application took almost 30 minutes to complete and again, this process had me thinking how many people get frustrated and stop, or do not have the time to complete all the information at one sitting and due to the investment of time required never return to complete.
This kind of begs the question: is technology making this process easier and less expensive, or is the price similar to going to an agent in-person and paying a bit more?
Where the technology debate can go on for years and years, there is one debate that cannot: Discount Medical Benefits. Discount Medical Benefits can supplement health insurance policies in so many ways it is unbelievable. I was recently in San Francisco and engaged in a conversation with someone near The Wharf about why I was out there and what type of business I am in. When I explained that I was in the supplemental benefits business and highlighted some of the plans offered, he asked if our packages cost about $200/ mo. When I responded with where our price points typically fall he was totally amazed…asking why everyone in America would not purchase our benefits? I could not agree more.
Getting back to my insurance quoting experience, it amazes me how many people could make better educated decisions if they knew that for < $5 per week they would gain family membership access to Dental, Chiropractic, Vision, Vitamin and Pharmacy discounts, while eliminating co-pays for non-emergency doctor visits by calling a telemedicine service that has script ability. I made my decision on which insurance to buy based on the fact that I have a discount medical plan already in place. I chose a plan $250/ mo less than I would have had I not had a discount plan. Imagine being able to reduce monthly insurance costs, save time and energy from visiting a doctor, eliminate co-pays in many cases and have access to below market pricing for other “health” services…for the whole family?
Discount Medical Plans are perhaps the biggest no-brainer ever. I just saved a minimum of $3,500 per year when I factor in my monthly savings and the ways my discount plan will save me money throughout the year. With all the talk of Obama health care reform, the rising costs of health insurance, increased employee contributions, decreased coverage, etc….I think the guy in San Francisco said it best: “Why wouldn’t everyone in America have our Discount Medical Benefits?”
If you want additional information on how YOU can acquire, please contact me via email at bob.germano@suburbansolutionscorp.com or 866-528-6208, ext 122.
Friday, July 10, 2009
The New Normal Continues to Evolve
The “New Normal” continues to take new twists and turns, and are not as easy to read as the hanging curveball I saw last night in my return to Baseball after a 21 year absence (yes, I officially made my “over 40” debut).
I was speaking with a colleague of mine today about trends we are seeing in and around the financial industry and a name of someone we used to work with came up. I was told this person wanted to reach out to say hello to me, and looks forward to having a conversation that does not involve business. The ironic thing is, I cannot recall many, if any conversations with this person that did not circle back to business. My point being that we hear about the importance of networking and to seek out opportunity everywhere, yet here is someone, who reported through me for over ten years, who wants to speak about things other than business (I presume the Yankees winning streak). I think this exemplifies that the “New Normal” is totally unpredictable.
My hopes are that the “New Normal” expands the way people think in the following ways:
- How can this help my customers?
- How can this help my business?
- How can this help me?
- How can I make money?
- Is there anything I am doing that this person/ entity can do well with (the thought being a favor/ referral is returned many times over)?
- What if we explored ways to share customers/ ideas, can this work to our mutual advantage?
- I need to say what I will do and do what I say I will do.
The best business I do is through relationship building and referrals. I hope the “New Normal” allows me to dwarf my past success!
Bob Germano
July 10th, 2009
The “New Normal” continues to take new twists and turns, and are not as easy to read as the hanging curveball I saw last night in my return to Baseball after a 21 year absence (yes, I officially made my “over 40” debut).
I was speaking with a colleague of mine today about trends we are seeing in and around the financial industry and a name of someone we used to work with came up. I was told this person wanted to reach out to say hello to me, and looks forward to having a conversation that does not involve business. The ironic thing is, I cannot recall many, if any conversations with this person that did not circle back to business. My point being that we hear about the importance of networking and to seek out opportunity everywhere, yet here is someone, who reported through me for over ten years, who wants to speak about things other than business (I presume the Yankees winning streak). I think this exemplifies that the “New Normal” is totally unpredictable.
My hopes are that the “New Normal” expands the way people think in the following ways:
- How can this help my customers?
- How can this help my business?
- How can this help me?
- How can I make money?
- Is there anything I am doing that this person/ entity can do well with (the thought being a favor/ referral is returned many times over)?
- What if we explored ways to share customers/ ideas, can this work to our mutual advantage?
- I need to say what I will do and do what I say I will do.
The best business I do is through relationship building and referrals. I hope the “New Normal” allows me to dwarf my past success!
Bob Germano
July 10th, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Discount Lifestyle Benefits: A No Brainer!
As I approach my 40th birthday this week I find myself being very retrospective. In addition to going through all the mid-life type thoughts, I find myself wondering how I would have approached the current economic conditions 10 or 20 years ago.
1989: I was still in college, had my housing and meal plans paid for, did not have a cell phone or e-mail address, drove a 1986 Toyota 4Runner, had a cassette walkman and a fake ID. I think I still had a cassette carrying case. Most of my year revolved around lunch at 11am, rec center for basketball or stickball in the quad, and collecting $5 from people on the 1st floor of West Residence for beer. I worked in the mortgage business during the summer and winter breaks for money, and the two highlights of my year: 1) Seton Hall made the Final Four, and 2) I saw The Who 5 times during their first reunion tour.
1999: I got married that January and do not think I had a cell phone or personal e-mail address. I would rarely be on the internet and although life had its stress points, all things considered, life was still pretty simple. My mortgage payment was a fraction of what it is today and started a new job with a California company named Option One to open up the New York market. The Yankees got Roger Clemens, repeated as World Champions and life was good.
2009: I have two daughters, still reside in North Jersey and have a whole new perspective. I shuffle from work to children activities to little league games. In many ways I am my father’s son. What is different from 1989 and 1999 is that I constantly hear how we are in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Ironically, 1989 and 1999 were terrible years for the mortgage industry, but the issues were more industry specific, not global like today. Now, we hear how the ensuing recession has forced Americans to change their lives in ways large and small. The phrase I recently heard: “this is the new normal”. This normal will have more belt-tightening, less income and, in many cases, a newfound gratitude for the most basic human comforts: family, home and health.
I see people approaching this new normal in many different ways. Some say they are cutting spending. Some say they ask the question “is this item critical” prior to purchasing. Some are scaling back on future plans. Some people say they are “toughing it out” yet in the next sentence say how they left work early for a social activity and will not be around next week because they will be on vacation. I heard a story this week how someone was in bankruptcy yet will be leaving for a 10 day trip to Cancun. From my view, this new normal still has some damage to do.
I believe Discount Benefits are a great way to fight back in today’s economy. Discount Benefits provide membership privileges and offer discounts on just about everything…from medical services to financial protection to recreational activities…Discount Lifestyle Benefits provide a financial advantage that is not just a nice to have, but a “need to have”.
Would you spend $15 to save hundreds? Of course you would.
Is there ever a reason to pay asking price anymore? We have all become more frugal and have to think outside the box. Here are some ways I have found that Discount benefits save people money:
TelaDocTM: Why take time off of work and spend money on babysitters and co-pays when you do not have to? TelaDocTM is a new alternative to traditional healthcare that prevents further sickness while saving money.
Dental & Vision Discounts: Whether you have insurance for these or not, why not take advantage of discounts that are available? Discount Vision Plan Benefits and Dental Discount Plans Why not pay $30 up to several hundred dollars less than retail pricing? Even if you have insurance…take the discount and submit the claim for re-imbursement. Cut down on co-pays and maximize your dollars. Is there a reason not to?
Movie Discounts: I recently went to see the new Star Trek movie and the ticket price was $11.50. $11.50!!! I looked at my movie discount plan today and see that I could have purchased tickets for $3.50 for children and $5.50 for adults. That means by utilizing discount movie tickets, my wife and I can go to a movie for less than I paid to see Star Trek by myself. I can take my wife and two kids to a movie for $18. That is probably about what it cost my parents to take our entire family to a movie in 1989.
Dining Discounts: My family was out to dinner with friends last week…4 adults, 5 kids. When the bill came, our friends broke out a coupon for 15% off. I looked on with amazement as this happened…I was so happy to see our friends take advantage of restaurant savings and dining discounts. Ask yourself this question: Why not save $20 off the bill and receive dining discounts if you can? It is a true no brainer. I looked at some of the dining discount coupons I have available through my discount dining deals…just by going to restaurants I normally go to anyway, I save about $50 over the course of the month. This $50 savings pays for my Discount Benefit membership several times over….and that is just the dining piece.
I will share more saving experiences and ideas in the future. I hope this has helped you consider ways to bust out of the gloom and doom and start to fight back. When I use one of my discount options, I feel like I am getting one back for the good guys.
In closing, as I watch the Yankees hit (actually not hit) this week, age 40 or not, there is not a doubt in my mind I can make that line-up and do some damage…I am not kidding.
Bob Germano
June 24, 2009
1989: I was still in college, had my housing and meal plans paid for, did not have a cell phone or e-mail address, drove a 1986 Toyota 4Runner, had a cassette walkman and a fake ID. I think I still had a cassette carrying case. Most of my year revolved around lunch at 11am, rec center for basketball or stickball in the quad, and collecting $5 from people on the 1st floor of West Residence for beer. I worked in the mortgage business during the summer and winter breaks for money, and the two highlights of my year: 1) Seton Hall made the Final Four, and 2) I saw The Who 5 times during their first reunion tour.
1999: I got married that January and do not think I had a cell phone or personal e-mail address. I would rarely be on the internet and although life had its stress points, all things considered, life was still pretty simple. My mortgage payment was a fraction of what it is today and started a new job with a California company named Option One to open up the New York market. The Yankees got Roger Clemens, repeated as World Champions and life was good.
2009: I have two daughters, still reside in North Jersey and have a whole new perspective. I shuffle from work to children activities to little league games. In many ways I am my father’s son. What is different from 1989 and 1999 is that I constantly hear how we are in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Ironically, 1989 and 1999 were terrible years for the mortgage industry, but the issues were more industry specific, not global like today. Now, we hear how the ensuing recession has forced Americans to change their lives in ways large and small. The phrase I recently heard: “this is the new normal”. This normal will have more belt-tightening, less income and, in many cases, a newfound gratitude for the most basic human comforts: family, home and health.
I see people approaching this new normal in many different ways. Some say they are cutting spending. Some say they ask the question “is this item critical” prior to purchasing. Some are scaling back on future plans. Some people say they are “toughing it out” yet in the next sentence say how they left work early for a social activity and will not be around next week because they will be on vacation. I heard a story this week how someone was in bankruptcy yet will be leaving for a 10 day trip to Cancun. From my view, this new normal still has some damage to do.
I believe Discount Benefits are a great way to fight back in today’s economy. Discount Benefits provide membership privileges and offer discounts on just about everything…from medical services to financial protection to recreational activities…Discount Lifestyle Benefits provide a financial advantage that is not just a nice to have, but a “need to have”.
Would you spend $15 to save hundreds? Of course you would.
Is there ever a reason to pay asking price anymore? We have all become more frugal and have to think outside the box. Here are some ways I have found that Discount benefits save people money:
TelaDocTM: Why take time off of work and spend money on babysitters and co-pays when you do not have to? TelaDocTM is a new alternative to traditional healthcare that prevents further sickness while saving money.
Dental & Vision Discounts: Whether you have insurance for these or not, why not take advantage of discounts that are available? Discount Vision Plan Benefits and Dental Discount Plans Why not pay $30 up to several hundred dollars less than retail pricing? Even if you have insurance…take the discount and submit the claim for re-imbursement. Cut down on co-pays and maximize your dollars. Is there a reason not to?
Movie Discounts: I recently went to see the new Star Trek movie and the ticket price was $11.50. $11.50!!! I looked at my movie discount plan today and see that I could have purchased tickets for $3.50 for children and $5.50 for adults. That means by utilizing discount movie tickets, my wife and I can go to a movie for less than I paid to see Star Trek by myself. I can take my wife and two kids to a movie for $18. That is probably about what it cost my parents to take our entire family to a movie in 1989.
Dining Discounts: My family was out to dinner with friends last week…4 adults, 5 kids. When the bill came, our friends broke out a coupon for 15% off. I looked on with amazement as this happened…I was so happy to see our friends take advantage of restaurant savings and dining discounts. Ask yourself this question: Why not save $20 off the bill and receive dining discounts if you can? It is a true no brainer. I looked at some of the dining discount coupons I have available through my discount dining deals…just by going to restaurants I normally go to anyway, I save about $50 over the course of the month. This $50 savings pays for my Discount Benefit membership several times over….and that is just the dining piece.
I will share more saving experiences and ideas in the future. I hope this has helped you consider ways to bust out of the gloom and doom and start to fight back. When I use one of my discount options, I feel like I am getting one back for the good guys.
In closing, as I watch the Yankees hit (actually not hit) this week, age 40 or not, there is not a doubt in my mind I can make that line-up and do some damage…I am not kidding.
Bob Germano
June 24, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Suburban's Press Release
As I forge ahead and get my message out through Suburban Solutions Corp, businesses continue to struggle in the current economic crisis...they are continuously looking for ways to cut their operating budgets to reach or stay at desired profitability levels. I am proud to announce that Suburban Solutions Corp is expanding its message and has issued an on-line press release today.
This is truly exciting stuff for us.
As you search the web today, please check out:
http://www.businesswire.com/news/google/20090616006017/en
Our heading/ title is:
Suburban Solutions Corp. Launches Voluntary/Non-Voluntary Benefits and Supplemental Insurance Offerings That Save Employees Money and Cost Employers Nothing To Offer.
Readers of this space have let me know that they reference the information contained herein as informational and as good reference material. I do not intend to use this space for self promotion, but am very excited about today's release. I just want to ensure it is shared properly and communicated in a few different forums.
I will be posting a more traditional, informational post in this space later this week.
Bob Germano
6/16/09
This is truly exciting stuff for us.
As you search the web today, please check out:
http://www.businesswire.com/news/google/20090616006017/en
Our heading/ title is:
Suburban Solutions Corp. Launches Voluntary/Non-Voluntary Benefits and Supplemental Insurance Offerings That Save Employees Money and Cost Employers Nothing To Offer.
Readers of this space have let me know that they reference the information contained herein as informational and as good reference material. I do not intend to use this space for self promotion, but am very excited about today's release. I just want to ensure it is shared properly and communicated in a few different forums.
I will be posting a more traditional, informational post in this space later this week.
Bob Germano
6/16/09
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Identity Theft Prevention Benefits: Do We Really Need More Proof?
On May 1st I posted in this space that I believe Identity Theft Prevention benefits are something EVERY AMERICAN SHOULD HAVE. I mentioned how Identity theft is not isolated to credit card fraud. I shared my own experiences as well as citing statistics of how overwhelming this problem is.
The fact is, I can probably write a book that ties together the statistics, stories and experiences I have seen with ID Theft, and how vital credit monitoring services are to our lives. I am still baffled when I hear people I know, especially in the credit industry, say they do not have ID Theft Protection, nor do they feel it is necessary to offer it to their clients/ employees.
Here are THREE experiences I had TODAY!
1) How many times do we receive these types of emails? These e-mails are mostly considered "noise" and we only pay attention "if it effects me." Consider this email I received and then ask yourself "why don't I need ID Theft?"
To: Bob.Germano@ suburban solutions corp.
Date: Tue, 03 Jun 2009
Subject: Jury Duty Scam
Jury Duty Scam DO NOT DELETE WITHOUT READING ! Pass this on to your grown children. This has been verified by the FBI (their link is also included below). Please pass this on to everyone in your email address book. It is spreading fast so be prepared should you get this call. Most of us take those summonses for jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty, that a new and ominous kind of fraud has surfaced. The caller claims to be a jury coordinator. If you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty, the scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so he or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out any of this information and bingo; your identity was just stolen. The fraud has been reported so far in 11 states, including Oklahoma , Illinois , and Colorado . This (swindle) is particularly insidious because they use intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information by pretending they are with the court system. The FBI and the federal court system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.
Check it out here: http://www.fbi.gov/page2/june06/jury_scams060206.htm
And here: http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/juryduty.asp
2) I was speaking to a service provider that I do business with. We were discussing executing a document and submitting payment and my contact says to me "Bob, if you are going to pay via credit card, please do not submit the information on our website. Although our website is secure and has the security controls built in, please do not forward that information over the internet because we do not want to risk the information going into hyperspace."
3) I received another email communication from another service provider today, as a follow up to a message they sent on 5/29/09. I give them a lot of credit for diligently following up on something this important. Here is the message they sent out and think about how this can happen to all of us:
It has come to our attention that some of our customers have received an email that appears to be from SERVICE PROVIDER, claiming that your account has expired and you must renew.
These emails are 100% fraudulent, are not from (US) and may include the subject line “SERVICES EXPIRED.”
Please do not click on the links in this email or supply your login information. If you have, please change your password immediately.
If you ever have any questions as to the authenticity of a particular communication from us, please forward the correspondence in question to ....
Thank you for your understanding and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
After reading the above experiences I had TODAY, is there any reason why someone would delay in getting Identity Theft Protection Services immediately? I hope not.
The fact is, I can probably write a book that ties together the statistics, stories and experiences I have seen with ID Theft, and how vital credit monitoring services are to our lives. I am still baffled when I hear people I know, especially in the credit industry, say they do not have ID Theft Protection, nor do they feel it is necessary to offer it to their clients/ employees.
Here are THREE experiences I had TODAY!
1) How many times do we receive these types of emails? These e-mails are mostly considered "noise" and we only pay attention "if it effects me." Consider this email I received and then ask yourself "why don't I need ID Theft?"
To: Bob.Germano@ suburban solutions corp.
Date: Tue, 03 Jun 2009
Subject: Jury Duty Scam
Jury Duty Scam DO NOT DELETE WITHOUT READING ! Pass this on to your grown children. This has been verified by the FBI (their link is also included below). Please pass this on to everyone in your email address book. It is spreading fast so be prepared should you get this call. Most of us take those summonses for jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty, that a new and ominous kind of fraud has surfaced. The caller claims to be a jury coordinator. If you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty, the scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so he or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out any of this information and bingo; your identity was just stolen. The fraud has been reported so far in 11 states, including Oklahoma , Illinois , and Colorado . This (swindle) is particularly insidious because they use intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information by pretending they are with the court system. The FBI and the federal court system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.
Check it out here: http://www.fbi.gov/page2/june06/jury_scams060206.htm
And here: http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/juryduty.asp
2) I was speaking to a service provider that I do business with. We were discussing executing a document and submitting payment and my contact says to me "Bob, if you are going to pay via credit card, please do not submit the information on our website. Although our website is secure and has the security controls built in, please do not forward that information over the internet because we do not want to risk the information going into hyperspace."
3) I received another email communication from another service provider today, as a follow up to a message they sent on 5/29/09. I give them a lot of credit for diligently following up on something this important. Here is the message they sent out and think about how this can happen to all of us:
It has come to our attention that some of our customers have received an email that appears to be from SERVICE PROVIDER, claiming that your account has expired and you must renew.
These emails are 100% fraudulent, are not from (US) and may include the subject line “SERVICES EXPIRED.”
Please do not click on the links in this email or supply your login information. If you have, please change your password immediately.
If you ever have any questions as to the authenticity of a particular communication from us, please forward the correspondence in question to ....
Thank you for your understanding and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
After reading the above experiences I had TODAY, is there any reason why someone would delay in getting Identity Theft Protection Services immediately? I hope not.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Reduce Your Health Plan Costs, Give Back and Increase Productivity
I was asked to attend a membership meeting last week for an organization we are working with and give a brief introduction to the “Discount Benefits” program we are launching over the summer. I thought the timing of the presentation was interesting because prior to my slot in the agenda, the organization had their medical benefits insurance broker on hand to discuss the recent changes and increased costs in their medical plan. Predictably, attendees voiced their frustrations in how their “co-pays” increased by $20, had to use “in-network” providers, and if they travelled outside the NYC tri-state area, a whole new set of rules applied. Further, the acronyms of “PPO”, POS”, “HMO”, “PCP” and a few other I do not even recall made for very interesting theatre and added to the confusion. This meeting very educational and validating for me in many ways because I again witnessed first-hand what I share with (prospective) partners…that although current economic conditions are requiring companies to change their employee benefits, the perceived savings result may be very different than what a company is expecting.
According to Mercer, and I agree with this through my own experience, many companies fail to manage employee engagement and absence rates effectively because of a lack of good data. This should not be a shock because almost every company is busy trying to address health and benefit plans to save money and keep their business profitable. When it comes to managing employee absence, less than 50% of all companies collect data on the cause of absence and about one-third collect data on the exact cause of absence. When you look at today’s volatile, increasingly competitive environment it is imperative that employers identify ASAP the causes of absence so that productivity, customer service and engagement can be maximized.
An employer can take a very simplistic approach in calculating what absence costs amount to over the course of the year. Simply take the number of sick days and multiply what was paid out in compensation over those days and there it is…a numerical cost to absence that many people would agree with. These figures are probably just glossed over at a management meeting and accepted as a cost of doing business. However, there are many other factors that need to be accounted for:
· What did it cost for other employees to “cover the desk”?
· How many phone calls got returned in a timely manner?
· What happens to morale in the area impacted by absence?
· Were standards of service met?
· How many customers go elsewhere or do not buy because of a drop or change in service level?
· Do other areas of your organization “bottleneck” a day or two later, causing overtime or additional shifts to be worked, when other areas return to capacity?
· Were price concessions given to overcome poor service levels?
· And it goes on and on…
Again, per Mercer, in 2008 the average employee calls out sick 5.1 days per year. That does not include “unmarked” instances such as coming in late, leaving early, taking an extended lunch period to attend to health related issues or not being as productive as possible because of not properly addressing a health issue (how many people go to work with head colds, aches, etc and are less productive?). If you happen to be a company where employee engagement/ satisfaction is on the low end, the number of sick days will rise accordingly, up to 10 days per year. Think about it, who wants to be where they are not happy?
What if there were other ways?
TelaDocTM is an option that employers need to consider in today’s marketplace. By offering this benefit, employers can introduce something new, reduce absence, increase productivity and save money all at the same time! This service gives employees (and their family age 10 and above) telephone access 24/7/365 to board certified, state licensed physicians that use telephone medical consults to diagnose a member’s non-urgent medical condition. Did you know that 72% of doctor visits, including ER and Urgent Care visits, are for non-emergency reasons where telemedicine can diagnose and treat? I am a member of this service myself and over the past six months, it has saved my family at least 5 visits to our primary doctor, 2 visits to an “Urgent Care/ ER” type facility and saved my vacation. Additionally, I saved about $300 in co-pays.
I try not to use this space to specifically advertise or promote my website, but in this case I ask you to check it out and read up on the benefits of TelaDocTM. There is also a YouTube video link I invite readers to view that does a great job illustrating what I am talking about here. Check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnDSFQ9SV_E.
Imagine if an owner of a 100 employee company can potentially save $15,000 to $30,000 per year? A larger organization can potentially save hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars per year if associates re-direct doctor visits and ER/ Urgent Care visits to TelaDocTM. I strongly urge leaders of both employment and membership organizations to consider making this type of benefit a part of their offerings. This is one of the biggest win-win opportunities I have ever seen…why not start today?
Introducing a benefit like TelaDocTM can save organizations a lot of money when you consider absence reduction and productivity increases to hit the national average.
Information herein represents opinions and thoughts of the author & is intended for informational purposes only.
I was asked to attend a membership meeting last week for an organization we are working with and give a brief introduction to the “Discount Benefits” program we are launching over the summer. I thought the timing of the presentation was interesting because prior to my slot in the agenda, the organization had their medical benefits insurance broker on hand to discuss the recent changes and increased costs in their medical plan. Predictably, attendees voiced their frustrations in how their “co-pays” increased by $20, had to use “in-network” providers, and if they travelled outside the NYC tri-state area, a whole new set of rules applied. Further, the acronyms of “PPO”, POS”, “HMO”, “PCP” and a few other I do not even recall made for very interesting theatre and added to the confusion. This meeting very educational and validating for me in many ways because I again witnessed first-hand what I share with (prospective) partners…that although current economic conditions are requiring companies to change their employee benefits, the perceived savings result may be very different than what a company is expecting.
According to Mercer, and I agree with this through my own experience, many companies fail to manage employee engagement and absence rates effectively because of a lack of good data. This should not be a shock because almost every company is busy trying to address health and benefit plans to save money and keep their business profitable. When it comes to managing employee absence, less than 50% of all companies collect data on the cause of absence and about one-third collect data on the exact cause of absence. When you look at today’s volatile, increasingly competitive environment it is imperative that employers identify ASAP the causes of absence so that productivity, customer service and engagement can be maximized.
An employer can take a very simplistic approach in calculating what absence costs amount to over the course of the year. Simply take the number of sick days and multiply what was paid out in compensation over those days and there it is…a numerical cost to absence that many people would agree with. These figures are probably just glossed over at a management meeting and accepted as a cost of doing business. However, there are many other factors that need to be accounted for:
· What did it cost for other employees to “cover the desk”?
· How many phone calls got returned in a timely manner?
· What happens to morale in the area impacted by absence?
· Were standards of service met?
· How many customers go elsewhere or do not buy because of a drop or change in service level?
· Do other areas of your organization “bottleneck” a day or two later, causing overtime or additional shifts to be worked, when other areas return to capacity?
· Were price concessions given to overcome poor service levels?
· And it goes on and on…
Again, per Mercer, in 2008 the average employee calls out sick 5.1 days per year. That does not include “unmarked” instances such as coming in late, leaving early, taking an extended lunch period to attend to health related issues or not being as productive as possible because of not properly addressing a health issue (how many people go to work with head colds, aches, etc and are less productive?). If you happen to be a company where employee engagement/ satisfaction is on the low end, the number of sick days will rise accordingly, up to 10 days per year. Think about it, who wants to be where they are not happy?
What if there were other ways?
TelaDocTM is an option that employers need to consider in today’s marketplace. By offering this benefit, employers can introduce something new, reduce absence, increase productivity and save money all at the same time! This service gives employees (and their family age 10 and above) telephone access 24/7/365 to board certified, state licensed physicians that use telephone medical consults to diagnose a member’s non-urgent medical condition. Did you know that 72% of doctor visits, including ER and Urgent Care visits, are for non-emergency reasons where telemedicine can diagnose and treat? I am a member of this service myself and over the past six months, it has saved my family at least 5 visits to our primary doctor, 2 visits to an “Urgent Care/ ER” type facility and saved my vacation. Additionally, I saved about $300 in co-pays.
I try not to use this space to specifically advertise or promote my website, but in this case I ask you to check it out and read up on the benefits of TelaDocTM. There is also a YouTube video link I invite readers to view that does a great job illustrating what I am talking about here. Check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnDSFQ9SV_E.
Imagine if an owner of a 100 employee company can potentially save $15,000 to $30,000 per year? A larger organization can potentially save hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars per year if associates re-direct doctor visits and ER/ Urgent Care visits to TelaDocTM. I strongly urge leaders of both employment and membership organizations to consider making this type of benefit a part of their offerings. This is one of the biggest win-win opportunities I have ever seen…why not start today?
Introducing a benefit like TelaDocTM can save organizations a lot of money when you consider absence reduction and productivity increases to hit the national average.
Information herein represents opinions and thoughts of the author & is intended for informational purposes only.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Know Your Credit History, Know Your Credit Score
I recently heard somebody say that your college transcript and GPA is a record of your academic profile, but today your most widely used and important number is your credit score. Think about it, credit scores are everywhere: job, insurance, loan, tenant applications…it never ends. When I started in the mortgage business back in 1985, credit reports were mostly a mystery to borrowers and certain bureaus were better in certain areas of the country than others. Lenders would use a lot of subjectivity in making a credit decision…banks even had “loan committees”. If a borrower had a negative item on their credit report, it may stay there for up to seven years and could cost them a higher interest rate, higher payment or worse, result in a credit denial.
Over the next 10 years, credit scoring gained more awareness, but by and large, there was still a of discretion and subjectivity in lending decisions. Credit Scores really integrated into most forms of lending as the internet, stock and housing markets went on their incredible runs in the early 2000’s. As the financial news channels and periodicals have reported in their forensic analysis of the economic downturn, credit scoring became an objective, formulated way to extend or deny credit and as various models have shown, the results can vary from good to catastrophic.
This posting will not be used to voice my true thoughts (balancing credit scoring with the “4 C’s” of credit) on how credit should be extended, but to illustrate the result of not controlling your credit profile and credit score to the best of your ability. I get very passionate about this type of product, yet when I see companies charging hundreds of dollars for credit repair, or per item removed I get a bit uncomfortable. Credit restoration is not intended to remove true and accurate items. It is not designed to make a poor credit risk appear like a great credit risk when they really are not. It exists to ensure that your credit profile is true, accurate and reflects accurate information. When I offer this product to clients through my business, it is bundled with other protective type services like ID Theft Protection and Pre-Paid Legal Plans to ensure clients become better educated when it comes to credit and position themselves better should they ever have to deal with credit issues again.
Here are some commonly asked questions about credit scores and what you should do about investigating, addressing and correcting items contained in your report.
Who Needs Credit Score Enhancement? Believe it or not, over 71% of American consumers—no matter how good their credit is—have errors or inaccuracies on their credit reports. If these problems do not get corrected, a person can unwittingly pay thousands—even hundreds of thousands—of dollars more in interest over the life of a home loan, auto or boat, RV or motorcycle loan. Ensuring your credit profile is accurate is an economic no-brainer. If you have ever been embarrassed by being denied credit, you should consider credit-enhancement.
Should I do it myself? Disputing a credit report is easy. Getting results from the credit bureaus can be amazingly difficult, complex, and infuriating. It is not a coincidence that the Federal Trade Commission receives more complaints against credit bureaus than any other type of business. Remember, credit bureaus are in the “for profit” business and investigating your challenge consumes these profits. Restoring your own credit is like repairing your own transmission or representing yourself in court. It is possible, but you must decide if you are willing to take the time and assume the risks of doing it yourself.
Can I save a lot? If you have damaged credit, you are already paying much more for your home mortgage (if you can even qualify), auto, boat, RV, or even a motorcycle or watercraft loan. FNMA and FHA are continuously re-assessing their guidelines and up charging for even the slightest risk. Proactively addressing your credit can provide you with truly amazing savings.
Check out kind of savings a consumer can experience when pro-actively addressing their credit profile:
Home-Mortgage Savings: This is where the really big savings occur. A lower interest rate can often save you $1000 in mortgage payments, every month, year after year. Saving $12,000 a year, over the life of a 30-year mortgage, saves you a whopping total of $360,000. If you refinance your loan at a lower rate after your credit enhancement process is complete, you can start saving whatever money you may have spent in the process the very first month. If you are looking to buy a new home, or are at risk of losing the one you have, credit enhancement can truly change your life by either helping with a refinance or allowing you to afford more home at a lower down payment. Check out this chart that illustrates savings at different credit scores for a $300K loan. http://suburbansolutionscorp.com/Credit_Copilot.php.
Car-Loan Savings: Enhancing your credit can deliver auto-loan cost savings of up to $15,000. Even a consumer with “Good” credit, is likely to overpay by over $7,000. The better your credit, the more money you save.
Credit-Card Savings: Apply for a new credit card with enhanced credit, and you’re savings start right away. Suddenly, you’re not asked to pay an Application Fee—up to $350—or a cash deposit. You will probably avoid monthly or annual fees! And of course, with much lower interest rates, you’ll save even more every month on your balances.
Is it legal to address and try to enhance my credit? It is perfectly legal to dispute items on your credit report. The law says that you have the right to fully investigate each and every item—and that the three Credit Bureaus—Equifax, Experian and Trans Union—are required to respond to each of your investigations, or remove the item from your credit report. The Fair Credit Reporting Act gives each American the right to challenge any information on a credit report based on the “completeness and accuracy” of an item.
What does my Credit Report show? Every time you apply for a loan or a credit card, the prospective creditor checks your credit reports to review your credit history. Your credit history is supposed to show promptly and how reliably you have paid other creditors so they can make an informed decision. They are especially interested in late payments or delinquencies, but other factors can have a huge impact. To make creditors’ jobs easier, credit bureaus provide a “credit score” to evaluate your credit risk, ranging from a poor 450 to an excellent 850 FICO (Fair, Isaac and Company) score. Your credit information is sold by one of the three major for-profit credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian or Trans Union, to each creditor. In turn, these same creditors report each month to the bureaus, telling them how much you owe them and how well you pay them. Every loan you apply for is reported—even if you never actually take out the loan.
What about companies that “guarantee” my results? There is always an element of chance in credit enhancement, for the simple reason that everyone’s credit history is unique, and that the credit bureaus do not always react the same way to credit disputes. Many so-called “credit repair” companies promise to “fix” your bad credit and “guarantee” results. The fact is that no legitimate credit-repair company can guarantee specific results. Unfortunately, there are credit repair companies that do prey on those who truly wish nothing more but to restore their good credit through any means possible. To those individuals, be careful. If it sounds "to good to be true" it probably is.
Is there a better way for me to understand FICO scores? Your FICO Score is determined by a complex computer program that weighs 5 separate aspects of your credit history—and which then tries to predict, to prospective creditors, how likely you are to pay them back as promised. According to Fair Isaac Corporation, the company that invented the FICO credit-risk score, FICO Scores are calculated from many pieces of credit data in your credit report. The percentages reflect how important each of the categories is in determining your score. These percentages are based on the importance of the five categories for the general population. For particular groups - for example, people who have not been using credit long - the importance of these categories may be somewhat different.
1. PAYMENT HISTORY (35%)
Account payment history on specific accounts: (credit cards, retail-store accounts, installment loans, auto loans. insurance company accounts, mortgage, etc.)
Adverse public records (bankruptcy, judgments, suits, liens, wage attachments, etc.), collection items, and/or delinquency (past-due items)
Severity of delinquency (how long was an account past due)
Amount past due on delinquent accounts or collection items
Time since past due items, adverse public records, or collection items.
Number of past-due items on file
Number of accounts paid as agreed
2. AMOUNTS OWED (30%)
· Amount owed on accounts
· Amount owed on specific types of accounts
Lack of a specific type of balance, in some cases
Number of accounts with balances
Proportion of credit lines used (proportion of balances to total credit limits on certain types of revolving accounts)
Proportion of installment loan amounts still owing (proportion of balance to original loan amount on certain types of installment loans)
3. LENGTH OF CREDIT HISTORY (15%)
Time since the accounts were opened
Time since accounts opened, by specific type of account
Time passed since account activity
4. NEW CREDIT (10%)
Number of recently opened accounts, and proportion of accounts that are recently opened, by type of account
Number of recent credit inquiries
Time since recent account opening(s), by type of account
Time since credit inquiry(s)
Re-establishment of positive credit history following past payment problems
5. TYPES OF CREDIT USED (10%)
Number of (presence, prevalence, and recent information on) various types of accounts (credit cards, retail accounts, installment loans, mortgage, consumer finance accounts, etc.)
Ensuring your credit profile is a true and accurate reflection of your true name, social security number, credit, address and employment histories is a responsibility we must all take about securing a strong, financial future. I hope you find this information helpful and look forward to hearing from you should you have any questions or comments.
The information provided above is for information purposes only and not intended to be legal advice or consultation.
I recently heard somebody say that your college transcript and GPA is a record of your academic profile, but today your most widely used and important number is your credit score. Think about it, credit scores are everywhere: job, insurance, loan, tenant applications…it never ends. When I started in the mortgage business back in 1985, credit reports were mostly a mystery to borrowers and certain bureaus were better in certain areas of the country than others. Lenders would use a lot of subjectivity in making a credit decision…banks even had “loan committees”. If a borrower had a negative item on their credit report, it may stay there for up to seven years and could cost them a higher interest rate, higher payment or worse, result in a credit denial.
Over the next 10 years, credit scoring gained more awareness, but by and large, there was still a of discretion and subjectivity in lending decisions. Credit Scores really integrated into most forms of lending as the internet, stock and housing markets went on their incredible runs in the early 2000’s. As the financial news channels and periodicals have reported in their forensic analysis of the economic downturn, credit scoring became an objective, formulated way to extend or deny credit and as various models have shown, the results can vary from good to catastrophic.
This posting will not be used to voice my true thoughts (balancing credit scoring with the “4 C’s” of credit) on how credit should be extended, but to illustrate the result of not controlling your credit profile and credit score to the best of your ability. I get very passionate about this type of product, yet when I see companies charging hundreds of dollars for credit repair, or per item removed I get a bit uncomfortable. Credit restoration is not intended to remove true and accurate items. It is not designed to make a poor credit risk appear like a great credit risk when they really are not. It exists to ensure that your credit profile is true, accurate and reflects accurate information. When I offer this product to clients through my business, it is bundled with other protective type services like ID Theft Protection and Pre-Paid Legal Plans to ensure clients become better educated when it comes to credit and position themselves better should they ever have to deal with credit issues again.
Here are some commonly asked questions about credit scores and what you should do about investigating, addressing and correcting items contained in your report.
Who Needs Credit Score Enhancement? Believe it or not, over 71% of American consumers—no matter how good their credit is—have errors or inaccuracies on their credit reports. If these problems do not get corrected, a person can unwittingly pay thousands—even hundreds of thousands—of dollars more in interest over the life of a home loan, auto or boat, RV or motorcycle loan. Ensuring your credit profile is accurate is an economic no-brainer. If you have ever been embarrassed by being denied credit, you should consider credit-enhancement.
Should I do it myself? Disputing a credit report is easy. Getting results from the credit bureaus can be amazingly difficult, complex, and infuriating. It is not a coincidence that the Federal Trade Commission receives more complaints against credit bureaus than any other type of business. Remember, credit bureaus are in the “for profit” business and investigating your challenge consumes these profits. Restoring your own credit is like repairing your own transmission or representing yourself in court. It is possible, but you must decide if you are willing to take the time and assume the risks of doing it yourself.
Can I save a lot? If you have damaged credit, you are already paying much more for your home mortgage (if you can even qualify), auto, boat, RV, or even a motorcycle or watercraft loan. FNMA and FHA are continuously re-assessing their guidelines and up charging for even the slightest risk. Proactively addressing your credit can provide you with truly amazing savings.
Check out kind of savings a consumer can experience when pro-actively addressing their credit profile:
Home-Mortgage Savings: This is where the really big savings occur. A lower interest rate can often save you $1000 in mortgage payments, every month, year after year. Saving $12,000 a year, over the life of a 30-year mortgage, saves you a whopping total of $360,000. If you refinance your loan at a lower rate after your credit enhancement process is complete, you can start saving whatever money you may have spent in the process the very first month. If you are looking to buy a new home, or are at risk of losing the one you have, credit enhancement can truly change your life by either helping with a refinance or allowing you to afford more home at a lower down payment. Check out this chart that illustrates savings at different credit scores for a $300K loan. http://suburbansolutionscorp.com/Credit_Copilot.php.
Car-Loan Savings: Enhancing your credit can deliver auto-loan cost savings of up to $15,000. Even a consumer with “Good” credit, is likely to overpay by over $7,000. The better your credit, the more money you save.
Credit-Card Savings: Apply for a new credit card with enhanced credit, and you’re savings start right away. Suddenly, you’re not asked to pay an Application Fee—up to $350—or a cash deposit. You will probably avoid monthly or annual fees! And of course, with much lower interest rates, you’ll save even more every month on your balances.
Is it legal to address and try to enhance my credit? It is perfectly legal to dispute items on your credit report. The law says that you have the right to fully investigate each and every item—and that the three Credit Bureaus—Equifax, Experian and Trans Union—are required to respond to each of your investigations, or remove the item from your credit report. The Fair Credit Reporting Act gives each American the right to challenge any information on a credit report based on the “completeness and accuracy” of an item.
What does my Credit Report show? Every time you apply for a loan or a credit card, the prospective creditor checks your credit reports to review your credit history. Your credit history is supposed to show promptly and how reliably you have paid other creditors so they can make an informed decision. They are especially interested in late payments or delinquencies, but other factors can have a huge impact. To make creditors’ jobs easier, credit bureaus provide a “credit score” to evaluate your credit risk, ranging from a poor 450 to an excellent 850 FICO (Fair, Isaac and Company) score. Your credit information is sold by one of the three major for-profit credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian or Trans Union, to each creditor. In turn, these same creditors report each month to the bureaus, telling them how much you owe them and how well you pay them. Every loan you apply for is reported—even if you never actually take out the loan.
What about companies that “guarantee” my results? There is always an element of chance in credit enhancement, for the simple reason that everyone’s credit history is unique, and that the credit bureaus do not always react the same way to credit disputes. Many so-called “credit repair” companies promise to “fix” your bad credit and “guarantee” results. The fact is that no legitimate credit-repair company can guarantee specific results. Unfortunately, there are credit repair companies that do prey on those who truly wish nothing more but to restore their good credit through any means possible. To those individuals, be careful. If it sounds "to good to be true" it probably is.
Is there a better way for me to understand FICO scores? Your FICO Score is determined by a complex computer program that weighs 5 separate aspects of your credit history—and which then tries to predict, to prospective creditors, how likely you are to pay them back as promised. According to Fair Isaac Corporation, the company that invented the FICO credit-risk score, FICO Scores are calculated from many pieces of credit data in your credit report. The percentages reflect how important each of the categories is in determining your score. These percentages are based on the importance of the five categories for the general population. For particular groups - for example, people who have not been using credit long - the importance of these categories may be somewhat different.
1. PAYMENT HISTORY (35%)
Account payment history on specific accounts: (credit cards, retail-store accounts, installment loans, auto loans. insurance company accounts, mortgage, etc.)
Adverse public records (bankruptcy, judgments, suits, liens, wage attachments, etc.), collection items, and/or delinquency (past-due items)
Severity of delinquency (how long was an account past due)
Amount past due on delinquent accounts or collection items
Time since past due items, adverse public records, or collection items.
Number of past-due items on file
Number of accounts paid as agreed
2. AMOUNTS OWED (30%)
· Amount owed on accounts
· Amount owed on specific types of accounts
Lack of a specific type of balance, in some cases
Number of accounts with balances
Proportion of credit lines used (proportion of balances to total credit limits on certain types of revolving accounts)
Proportion of installment loan amounts still owing (proportion of balance to original loan amount on certain types of installment loans)
3. LENGTH OF CREDIT HISTORY (15%)
Time since the accounts were opened
Time since accounts opened, by specific type of account
Time passed since account activity
4. NEW CREDIT (10%)
Number of recently opened accounts, and proportion of accounts that are recently opened, by type of account
Number of recent credit inquiries
Time since recent account opening(s), by type of account
Time since credit inquiry(s)
Re-establishment of positive credit history following past payment problems
5. TYPES OF CREDIT USED (10%)
Number of (presence, prevalence, and recent information on) various types of accounts (credit cards, retail accounts, installment loans, mortgage, consumer finance accounts, etc.)
Ensuring your credit profile is a true and accurate reflection of your true name, social security number, credit, address and employment histories is a responsibility we must all take about securing a strong, financial future. I hope you find this information helpful and look forward to hearing from you should you have any questions or comments.
The information provided above is for information purposes only and not intended to be legal advice or consultation.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
How Pre-Paid Legal Plans Can Save Your Employees Time & Money
The economy has turned everyday things into life’s luxuries. Dining out, vacations, magazine subscriptions and even medical and dental visits are being cut from personal budgets due to their costs. In addition to these types of tangible examples, there are other services consumers are either shying away from or eliminating all together based on time, energy and budgetary constraints. I spend most to all of my time working on ways to help employers and organizations get “luxuries” and critical services back into their employee’s/ member’s lives and come across many that people do not realize how easy they are to get or how valuable they truly are.
I am very impressed with how a Pre-Paid Legal Plan gives employment groups and membership organizations the opportunity to provide access to a full menu of legal care that will save individuals in their groups time and money. According to the American Bar Association (“ABA”), the average law abiding citizen will have a need for an attorney every 12 months. Keeping that concept in mind, pre-paid legal plans were created for the purpose of making comprehensive, affordable legal care available to millions of people who cannot afford the expense ( or want to invest the time and energy) to access the simplest legal care. I have become closely associated with one pre-paid legal plan that provides tremendous protection to those who subscribe to it and provides instant access to a nationwide network of attorneys with no limitations.
Think about the times when we may want to solicit legal advice and either put it off or forget about it all together:
· Disputes with service providers.
· Landlord/ Tenant issues
· Loan modification/ foreclosure inquiries
· Wills/ Estates: We never really want to think about what will happen to our assets upon death. Will those who we care about the most and have worked so hard for be properly supported? Statistics point to the fact that over 70% of adults die without a will. This does not need to be the case.
· Traffic tickets: how many times do we just pay the summons because it is cheaper than hiring an attorney?
When you consider all the reasons we would likely consult or retain an attorney, think about the time and energy it takes the individual it would impact? Not only will employees likely miss work as a result, they will be less productive while at work and spend company time and resources pursuing personal matters. It is hard to put an exact dollar figure on this…not only can employers help reduce absences that can be avoided, but they can improve productivity because other employees are not covering two jobs during an absence and also maintain optimal customer service levels. For membership organizations, we all realize how revenues are down and expenses always seem to go up. Often times, members are declining memberships because they themselves are trying to cut expenses. What if your membership organization offered membership privileges that would make members think long and hard about cancelling?
The pre-paid legal plans that we provide to companies and organizations have the following features:
· Access to over 20,000 attorneys, charges of $125.00 per hour, or when appropriate, gives members a 40% discount off their usual and customary hourly rate.
· Nine (9) free services* which include:
· Unlimited initial phone consultations for new legal matters
· Initial one-on-One consultations for new legal matters
· Attorney review of independent legal documents (6 page max.) per new matter
· When appropriate, network attorneys will write letters on member's behalf
· When appropriate, network attorneys will make phone calls on member's behalf
· Assistance in solving problems with government programs such as welfare and INS
· Assistance with small claims court representation
· Free simple will with annual updates
· Members have online access through the plan website to prepare a free living will (advance healthcare directive). Membership access is expanded to spouse and dependents up to 23 years of age.
If you hold a leadership position at a company or membership organization, or own your own business…you should consider offering a Pre-Paid Legal Plan. The cost and value propositions are just tremendous. As we hear everyday how important it is to save money on everything we do, why would you not consider this type of protection?
*Costs and filing fees additional, specific definitions apply.
I am very impressed with how a Pre-Paid Legal Plan gives employment groups and membership organizations the opportunity to provide access to a full menu of legal care that will save individuals in their groups time and money. According to the American Bar Association (“ABA”), the average law abiding citizen will have a need for an attorney every 12 months. Keeping that concept in mind, pre-paid legal plans were created for the purpose of making comprehensive, affordable legal care available to millions of people who cannot afford the expense ( or want to invest the time and energy) to access the simplest legal care. I have become closely associated with one pre-paid legal plan that provides tremendous protection to those who subscribe to it and provides instant access to a nationwide network of attorneys with no limitations.
Think about the times when we may want to solicit legal advice and either put it off or forget about it all together:
· Disputes with service providers.
· Landlord/ Tenant issues
· Loan modification/ foreclosure inquiries
· Wills/ Estates: We never really want to think about what will happen to our assets upon death. Will those who we care about the most and have worked so hard for be properly supported? Statistics point to the fact that over 70% of adults die without a will. This does not need to be the case.
· Traffic tickets: how many times do we just pay the summons because it is cheaper than hiring an attorney?
When you consider all the reasons we would likely consult or retain an attorney, think about the time and energy it takes the individual it would impact? Not only will employees likely miss work as a result, they will be less productive while at work and spend company time and resources pursuing personal matters. It is hard to put an exact dollar figure on this…not only can employers help reduce absences that can be avoided, but they can improve productivity because other employees are not covering two jobs during an absence and also maintain optimal customer service levels. For membership organizations, we all realize how revenues are down and expenses always seem to go up. Often times, members are declining memberships because they themselves are trying to cut expenses. What if your membership organization offered membership privileges that would make members think long and hard about cancelling?
The pre-paid legal plans that we provide to companies and organizations have the following features:
· Access to over 20,000 attorneys, charges of $125.00 per hour, or when appropriate, gives members a 40% discount off their usual and customary hourly rate.
· Nine (9) free services* which include:
· Unlimited initial phone consultations for new legal matters
· Initial one-on-One consultations for new legal matters
· Attorney review of independent legal documents (6 page max.) per new matter
· When appropriate, network attorneys will write letters on member's behalf
· When appropriate, network attorneys will make phone calls on member's behalf
· Assistance in solving problems with government programs such as welfare and INS
· Assistance with small claims court representation
· Free simple will with annual updates
· Members have online access through the plan website to prepare a free living will (advance healthcare directive). Membership access is expanded to spouse and dependents up to 23 years of age.
If you hold a leadership position at a company or membership organization, or own your own business…you should consider offering a Pre-Paid Legal Plan. The cost and value propositions are just tremendous. As we hear everyday how important it is to save money on everything we do, why would you not consider this type of protection?
*Costs and filing fees additional, specific definitions apply.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Got Identity Theft Protection?
One of the services I work closely with and offer through our menu of services is Lifelock Identity Theft Protection. I have been a member of LifeLock for the past year or so and cannot overstate the peace of mind I have knowing that I do not have to worry about Identity theft. I have personally encountered two experiences over the past few months that really make you realize how vulnerable we all are to having our identity stolen:
Story #1: My wife called in a panic that our identity had been stolen. She had received a collection call for a home service we had in our former residence that we had not lived in for 6 years. She then called the utilities department and found the same thing…that the people who purchased our old house changed two bills back to our names. Knowing that I had LifeLock and a $1M Service Guarantee I was not worried whatsoever. I was in receipt of my credit bureau reports provided through LifeLock and knew they were accurate so that the two instances my wife uncovered were the extent of the concern.
Story #2: Former managers of a company I know of vacated two office spaces over the past 3-4 years and in both cases left behind numerous boxes of customer files containing personal data such as name, address, date of birth, social security number, assets, account numbers, employer, etc…. As a result of this company’s lack of responsibility and negligence, thousands of people were exposed to identity theft through no fault of their own. It made me think how many times this can happen to people when business owners or employees do not comply with safeguarding identities as required by law.
Check out this link and think about how at risk we all are! http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/090127_Payroll_Records_Tossed_in_Trash
Some random facts on Identity Theft that many people do not know that I feel is important to share:
· ID Theft tops the FTC’s list of complaints the past 8 years and has surpassed drug trafficking as the #1 crime in the US
· In 2008, 9.9 million Americans were victims of ID theft…up 22% from 2007
· There are 27,000 ID thefts per day and a stolen ID will be used up to 30 times
· ID Theft is not isolated to individuals…costs to companies who were breached had a per incident cost up to $6.65M. Providing ID Theft as a service to employees and clients could eliminate unnecessary exposure and protect a company from losing clients, dealing with lawsuits and facing potential criminal charges.
· LifeLock’s $1M Service Guarantee begins immediately upon enrollment.
· Minors are an attractive target for ID Theft as detection can take years to discover
· If you are an ID Theft victim, would you even know where to start or what to do? Cancel credit cards? Call Police? Call Credit Bureaus? Inquire with your doctors and insurance companies to explore if identity was used for medical treatment? What if an identity thief purchased a home and defaulted on a mortgage in your name? How many creditors are going to call to try and collect debt incurred by an identity thief? What if a house was sold without the owner’s knowledge?
What I am saying is, ID Theft is a serious, serious issue and consumers trying to resolve it by themselves can spend 300+ hours of their own personal time. They will have to miss work, miss personal and social events and worst of all, never know where it is going to pop up next. What if they become financially responsible for the charges incurred by an identity thief? In my opinion, LifeLock protects their clients from everything I mentioned above and is a something EVERY PERSON IN AMERICA SHOULD HAVE.
Story #1: My wife called in a panic that our identity had been stolen. She had received a collection call for a home service we had in our former residence that we had not lived in for 6 years. She then called the utilities department and found the same thing…that the people who purchased our old house changed two bills back to our names. Knowing that I had LifeLock and a $1M Service Guarantee I was not worried whatsoever. I was in receipt of my credit bureau reports provided through LifeLock and knew they were accurate so that the two instances my wife uncovered were the extent of the concern.
Story #2: Former managers of a company I know of vacated two office spaces over the past 3-4 years and in both cases left behind numerous boxes of customer files containing personal data such as name, address, date of birth, social security number, assets, account numbers, employer, etc…. As a result of this company’s lack of responsibility and negligence, thousands of people were exposed to identity theft through no fault of their own. It made me think how many times this can happen to people when business owners or employees do not comply with safeguarding identities as required by law.
Check out this link and think about how at risk we all are! http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/090127_Payroll_Records_Tossed_in_Trash
Some random facts on Identity Theft that many people do not know that I feel is important to share:
· ID Theft tops the FTC’s list of complaints the past 8 years and has surpassed drug trafficking as the #1 crime in the US
· In 2008, 9.9 million Americans were victims of ID theft…up 22% from 2007
· There are 27,000 ID thefts per day and a stolen ID will be used up to 30 times
· ID Theft is not isolated to individuals…costs to companies who were breached had a per incident cost up to $6.65M. Providing ID Theft as a service to employees and clients could eliminate unnecessary exposure and protect a company from losing clients, dealing with lawsuits and facing potential criminal charges.
· LifeLock’s $1M Service Guarantee begins immediately upon enrollment.
· Minors are an attractive target for ID Theft as detection can take years to discover
· If you are an ID Theft victim, would you even know where to start or what to do? Cancel credit cards? Call Police? Call Credit Bureaus? Inquire with your doctors and insurance companies to explore if identity was used for medical treatment? What if an identity thief purchased a home and defaulted on a mortgage in your name? How many creditors are going to call to try and collect debt incurred by an identity thief? What if a house was sold without the owner’s knowledge?
What I am saying is, ID Theft is a serious, serious issue and consumers trying to resolve it by themselves can spend 300+ hours of their own personal time. They will have to miss work, miss personal and social events and worst of all, never know where it is going to pop up next. What if they become financially responsible for the charges incurred by an identity thief? In my opinion, LifeLock protects their clients from everything I mentioned above and is a something EVERY PERSON IN AMERICA SHOULD HAVE.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
I am proud to announce the launch of my new website at www.suburbansolutionscorp.com. We (Suburban) are an organization that provides savings opportunities via discount and lifestyle benefit platforms to employers, organizations and membership groups FOR FREE.
Suburban provides personalized, turnkey voluntary and non-voluntary benefit portals that supports and supplements your existing offerings! We design our platforms to enhance your employees/members’ daily lives while increasing productivity and engagement by improving health coverage options, providing LifeLock ID Theft protection, , legal services, and a whole menu of other services at substantial savings for them and no cost to the company or organization!
I see and speak with a lot of companies and organizations comparing the cost of health benefits with their profitability and are inadvertently spending more time administrating and evaluating their benefit plans and not focusing on growing their core business. We have shown companies how they can reduce absenteeism, increase productivity and save hundreds of thousands of dollars in health plan expenses per year by adding TelaDoc to their employee benefits packages. Who would not want to reduce absence and increase productivity at no acquisition cost? Further, our packages that include LifeLock helps protect people from falling victim to identity theft that without it, might take hundreds of hours to resolve. Who wants to spend countless hours filing police reports, speaking with creditors and investigating where and how their lives are impacted when LifeLock does it all for you? If an individual wanted to do that, where do you think they would spend the bulk of their time doing it...either at work, or calling out from work and spending the day on the phone. Given today’s economic challenges, we find our value propositions to be better than ever.
Suburban offers a way for: 1) employers to help offset increased contributions by providing additional benefits; 2) membership organizations to offer additional services and added membership features; and 3) for companies to differentiate themselves and provide value added services for their clients and business partners. Through our buffet menu of 30+ voluntary benefits including TelaDoc, LifeLock Identity Theft Protection, Aetna Dental Discounts, Roadside Assistance, Legal Services and many others, we bundle services together so that our end users can sign up take full advantage of our buying power and be on their way to save hundreds to thousands of dollars per year.
Customization, understanding an organization’s need to properly balance and allocate its resources, and providing members the most attractive options possible, Suburban will meet with your organization, lay out a customized solution that is right for you and provide all the material necessary to ensure a successful launch and implementation. Start-up time usually takes between 30-45 days.
For additional information regarding Suburban Solutions Corp, please visit www.suburbansolutionscorp.com. You can call me at email me at 866-528-6208, or e-mail me at bob.germano@suburbansolutionscorp.com.
Suburban provides personalized, turnkey voluntary and non-voluntary benefit portals that supports and supplements your existing offerings! We design our platforms to enhance your employees/members’ daily lives while increasing productivity and engagement by improving health coverage options, providing LifeLock ID Theft protection, , legal services, and a whole menu of other services at substantial savings for them and no cost to the company or organization!
I see and speak with a lot of companies and organizations comparing the cost of health benefits with their profitability and are inadvertently spending more time administrating and evaluating their benefit plans and not focusing on growing their core business. We have shown companies how they can reduce absenteeism, increase productivity and save hundreds of thousands of dollars in health plan expenses per year by adding TelaDoc to their employee benefits packages. Who would not want to reduce absence and increase productivity at no acquisition cost? Further, our packages that include LifeLock helps protect people from falling victim to identity theft that without it, might take hundreds of hours to resolve. Who wants to spend countless hours filing police reports, speaking with creditors and investigating where and how their lives are impacted when LifeLock does it all for you? If an individual wanted to do that, where do you think they would spend the bulk of their time doing it...either at work, or calling out from work and spending the day on the phone. Given today’s economic challenges, we find our value propositions to be better than ever.
Suburban offers a way for: 1) employers to help offset increased contributions by providing additional benefits; 2) membership organizations to offer additional services and added membership features; and 3) for companies to differentiate themselves and provide value added services for their clients and business partners. Through our buffet menu of 30+ voluntary benefits including TelaDoc, LifeLock Identity Theft Protection, Aetna Dental Discounts, Roadside Assistance, Legal Services and many others, we bundle services together so that our end users can sign up take full advantage of our buying power and be on their way to save hundreds to thousands of dollars per year.
Customization, understanding an organization’s need to properly balance and allocate its resources, and providing members the most attractive options possible, Suburban will meet with your organization, lay out a customized solution that is right for you and provide all the material necessary to ensure a successful launch and implementation. Start-up time usually takes between 30-45 days.
For additional information regarding Suburban Solutions Corp, please visit www.suburbansolutionscorp.com. You can call me at email me at 866-528-6208, or e-mail me at bob.germano@suburbansolutionscorp.com.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Unbelievable Savings Opportunities!!!
As I read the newspapers, watch financial newscasts (isn't every newscast a de-facto financial newscast nowadays?) and see what is happening to people all around me, I am very proud of the fact that when I go to work every morning what I do actually helps people save money, improve their lifestyle and help them meet their financial needs.
It is obvious that the economy is not turning around anytime soon. Any economic or recovery prediction today is as good or bad as any other. My perspective on all this is different than many of the "experts" and "talking heads" because I believe, starting in August, 2005 that I had a ringside seat at the front end of this downturn. In my opinion, that was the "first shot across the bow". I was a SVP for a non-prime mortgage company at the time, arguably the #1 company in the space (without question the most reputable), and that month we set a new all time high for monthly production: in about 21 working days, we originated over $4 billion in mortgages. That is over $190M in new mortgages, per day for just our company (I think at the time we were 5th in market share, so there were 4 companies producing more). We anticipated booking that business and selling it off through our investment banking partners for about $112M. What did we sell it for? About $40M. What was our cost to produce it? About $80-90M. A pretty big swing and a lot of work to lose $40-$50M. From that point on my life has never been the same. Soon after, it was obvious that the market was forever changing, and that lending would drastically change. Quite simply, rates could not be increased enough to cover the losses that were starting to surface. Like everyone else, our company started raising rates, managing delinquency trends, ending unprofitable relationships, cutting certain programs, performing extra due-diligence, cutting costs, etc...and for a while it seemed to work. We actually turned a profit 2 quarters later and in July, 2006...if you think the $40-$50M loss was big, how about $100M less than a year later...wiping out an entire quarters worth of profit? So what happened if we were being so careful? The rules of the game were changing as we were still playing (sound familiar?) as banks, bond holders and investment bankers started holding companies accountable for "reps and warrants", and anything they could do to minimize losses. Although rates needed to increase and lending needed to slow down...nobody, and I mean nobody, expected loan buybacks and sale kick outs to increase the way they did. The $100M loss in 7/06...all due to buybacks and kick outs for appraisal values, early delinquency, borrower benefit and a few other items. This was almost 3 years ago!!
So, long before anybody would concede that the "R" word was happening, a recession was in full force in my world.
Why am I giving a history lesson of my mortgage business experience? As I look around me and see what is happening...as I watch CNBC, Bloomberg, House of Cards, listen to talk radio, etc..., it is those two experiences from 8/05 and 7/06 that I think about the most. Nobody knew the extent the mortgage market impacted the domestic and world economy. Nobody realized how short sighted the economic models on Wall Street were, although there were many lessons that could have been learned from the mortgage market crash in October, 1998 but that centered mostly on the mortgage industry...but there are many comparisons. Nobody had the foresight to see that what was happening in the mortgage business was a pre-cursor for what America would experience over the next several years.
The troubles and challenges companies are experiencing today have not been seen in decades. I am not stating anything new. However, I feel I am in a much better position today to be a productive member of society versus 2-3 years ago when I was forced into a defensive, protection mode, cutting programs and raising prices. I am proud of the fact that I offer "free" solutions that, if a company, banking institution or organization dedicate about 15 minutes to learn about, will save them and their employees/ members/ clients a lot of money, while getting tremendous products & services at the same time.
If you visit my website at http://www.suburbansolutionscorp.com/ you will see that we offer 4 main products: Discount Benefits, Supplemental Insurance, Affinity Credit Card Solutions and Mortgage Services. The website does a great job at detailing the value proposition and how they seamlessly integrate into any size organization, but I want to give a brief overview here.
1) Discount and Lifestyle Benefits: In my opinion, EVERY company in America, let me say that again, EVERY COMPANY IN AMERICA, should offer our Discount and Lifestyle Benefits platform. We "bundle" our programs together to offer low cost, high value products that save consumers on average anywhere from 15-60% from retail pricing. We offer this turn-key, web based, private labeled platform FOR FREE! The two battleship/ foundation products we offer are LifeLock Identity Theft Protection (how can you not have that...our information is everywhere and there are over 27000 ID thefts every day!) and TelaDoc. TelaDoc is a 24/7/365 phone access program to board certified doctors who will diagnose and prescribe medication over the phone! Think about it...no more waiting in a Dr. office for 45 minutes to get an antibiotic for something you already know what it is. One of the most amazing products I have ever seen and is probably up there with he wheel, fire and the contact lens as the best inventions of all time. Check out this video link on TelaDoc at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnDSFQ9SV_E ...the best thing...we offer this product with no per usage fee!!!
Why wouldn't every employer offer these products? It will reduce absence, increase productivity. Not only should every company in America offer these programs, EVERY CONSUMER IN AMERICA SHOULD OWN THEM!
2) Supplemental Insurance Products: Imagine having access to 16 insurance companies that are A-, A or A+ rated that effectively compete for business? Our portal offers the lowest affinity rates available anywhere in the country from 16 of the top insurance companies. If the quote seems unattractive there is no obligation to purchase, although that is very unlikely. From Health, Life, Disability and a host of others...provide 24/7/365 access to any insurance program one would want right at your employee/ member/ customer finger tips.
3) Affinity Credit Card Programs: Turn on the TV and look at how precious cash/ capital is today to any financial institution. Look at how every bank is being forced to look at their costs and properly manage risk. As with my mortgage example above, when delinquencies rise and approvals tighten, prices always increase...especially for non-collateralized lending like credit cards. How many credit card offers do you see at 20%? Our programs are turn-key, private labeled programs that requires no capital investment or credit card management infrastructure. We offer about a 12% rate, 1% cash back (with no restrictions) and a full points reward program that can be customized. Want more? How about a marketing portal where the issuing bank customizes their marketing that appears on the monthly statements...FOR FREE? Simply offer the card and get paid every time someone activates and uses it. No delinquency reserves or capital requirements. Want even more? How about Free marketing and promotional material? I am not kidding!
4) Mortgage Services: I have been in the mortgage business since I was a sophomore in high school and am coming up on my 24th year in the business. I have aligned with an organization that allows me to offer retail mortgages at unbelievable pricing...I purposely manage to a low overhead and pass those savings onto customers in the forms of low rates and fees. All of my business is through referral and what better way to get referrals...offer the best service at low prices. I believe I accomplish that.
So what does all this mean? It means that I have a tremendous platform to help you and your organization save money, and enhance your lifestyle and those of your employees/ members/ customers in these troubled times. Why spend $35 co-pays and an hours upon hours getting to/ from and waiting at a doctor's office when you can have TelaDoc? Why risk wasting 300 hours to fight it and taking on 3,000 pounds of frustration and get your identity stolen...we offer LifeLock at 50%+ discounts. As a banker, why sit through delinquency meetings and figure out reserve and loss ratios for a credit card program...take our affinity program for free! Why deal with loan officers at these large banks who have been in the business for five minutes, or have a car trunk full of business cards for the companies they used to work for? Tap into my 24 years of experience and history of best in class customer satisfaction results (per Gallup) and cost model to save tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars on your mortgage.
I said in my first post that I am not sure how to maximize this venue...I guess today is just a way of sharing experiences past, present and hopefully future. I look forward to hearing from and working with you.
Bob Germano
3/4/09
4:22pm
It is obvious that the economy is not turning around anytime soon. Any economic or recovery prediction today is as good or bad as any other. My perspective on all this is different than many of the "experts" and "talking heads" because I believe, starting in August, 2005 that I had a ringside seat at the front end of this downturn. In my opinion, that was the "first shot across the bow". I was a SVP for a non-prime mortgage company at the time, arguably the #1 company in the space (without question the most reputable), and that month we set a new all time high for monthly production: in about 21 working days, we originated over $4 billion in mortgages. That is over $190M in new mortgages, per day for just our company (I think at the time we were 5th in market share, so there were 4 companies producing more). We anticipated booking that business and selling it off through our investment banking partners for about $112M. What did we sell it for? About $40M. What was our cost to produce it? About $80-90M. A pretty big swing and a lot of work to lose $40-$50M. From that point on my life has never been the same. Soon after, it was obvious that the market was forever changing, and that lending would drastically change. Quite simply, rates could not be increased enough to cover the losses that were starting to surface. Like everyone else, our company started raising rates, managing delinquency trends, ending unprofitable relationships, cutting certain programs, performing extra due-diligence, cutting costs, etc...and for a while it seemed to work. We actually turned a profit 2 quarters later and in July, 2006...if you think the $40-$50M loss was big, how about $100M less than a year later...wiping out an entire quarters worth of profit? So what happened if we were being so careful? The rules of the game were changing as we were still playing (sound familiar?) as banks, bond holders and investment bankers started holding companies accountable for "reps and warrants", and anything they could do to minimize losses. Although rates needed to increase and lending needed to slow down...nobody, and I mean nobody, expected loan buybacks and sale kick outs to increase the way they did. The $100M loss in 7/06...all due to buybacks and kick outs for appraisal values, early delinquency, borrower benefit and a few other items. This was almost 3 years ago!!
So, long before anybody would concede that the "R" word was happening, a recession was in full force in my world.
Why am I giving a history lesson of my mortgage business experience? As I look around me and see what is happening...as I watch CNBC, Bloomberg, House of Cards, listen to talk radio, etc..., it is those two experiences from 8/05 and 7/06 that I think about the most. Nobody knew the extent the mortgage market impacted the domestic and world economy. Nobody realized how short sighted the economic models on Wall Street were, although there were many lessons that could have been learned from the mortgage market crash in October, 1998 but that centered mostly on the mortgage industry...but there are many comparisons. Nobody had the foresight to see that what was happening in the mortgage business was a pre-cursor for what America would experience over the next several years.
The troubles and challenges companies are experiencing today have not been seen in decades. I am not stating anything new. However, I feel I am in a much better position today to be a productive member of society versus 2-3 years ago when I was forced into a defensive, protection mode, cutting programs and raising prices. I am proud of the fact that I offer "free" solutions that, if a company, banking institution or organization dedicate about 15 minutes to learn about, will save them and their employees/ members/ clients a lot of money, while getting tremendous products & services at the same time.
If you visit my website at http://www.suburbansolutionscorp.com/ you will see that we offer 4 main products: Discount Benefits, Supplemental Insurance, Affinity Credit Card Solutions and Mortgage Services. The website does a great job at detailing the value proposition and how they seamlessly integrate into any size organization, but I want to give a brief overview here.
1) Discount and Lifestyle Benefits: In my opinion, EVERY company in America, let me say that again, EVERY COMPANY IN AMERICA, should offer our Discount and Lifestyle Benefits platform. We "bundle" our programs together to offer low cost, high value products that save consumers on average anywhere from 15-60% from retail pricing. We offer this turn-key, web based, private labeled platform FOR FREE! The two battleship/ foundation products we offer are LifeLock Identity Theft Protection (how can you not have that...our information is everywhere and there are over 27000 ID thefts every day!) and TelaDoc. TelaDoc is a 24/7/365 phone access program to board certified doctors who will diagnose and prescribe medication over the phone! Think about it...no more waiting in a Dr. office for 45 minutes to get an antibiotic for something you already know what it is. One of the most amazing products I have ever seen and is probably up there with he wheel, fire and the contact lens as the best inventions of all time. Check out this video link on TelaDoc at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnDSFQ9SV_E ...the best thing...we offer this product with no per usage fee!!!
Why wouldn't every employer offer these products? It will reduce absence, increase productivity. Not only should every company in America offer these programs, EVERY CONSUMER IN AMERICA SHOULD OWN THEM!
2) Supplemental Insurance Products: Imagine having access to 16 insurance companies that are A-, A or A+ rated that effectively compete for business? Our portal offers the lowest affinity rates available anywhere in the country from 16 of the top insurance companies. If the quote seems unattractive there is no obligation to purchase, although that is very unlikely. From Health, Life, Disability and a host of others...provide 24/7/365 access to any insurance program one would want right at your employee/ member/ customer finger tips.
3) Affinity Credit Card Programs: Turn on the TV and look at how precious cash/ capital is today to any financial institution. Look at how every bank is being forced to look at their costs and properly manage risk. As with my mortgage example above, when delinquencies rise and approvals tighten, prices always increase...especially for non-collateralized lending like credit cards. How many credit card offers do you see at 20%? Our programs are turn-key, private labeled programs that requires no capital investment or credit card management infrastructure. We offer about a 12% rate, 1% cash back (with no restrictions) and a full points reward program that can be customized. Want more? How about a marketing portal where the issuing bank customizes their marketing that appears on the monthly statements...FOR FREE? Simply offer the card and get paid every time someone activates and uses it. No delinquency reserves or capital requirements. Want even more? How about Free marketing and promotional material? I am not kidding!
4) Mortgage Services: I have been in the mortgage business since I was a sophomore in high school and am coming up on my 24th year in the business. I have aligned with an organization that allows me to offer retail mortgages at unbelievable pricing...I purposely manage to a low overhead and pass those savings onto customers in the forms of low rates and fees. All of my business is through referral and what better way to get referrals...offer the best service at low prices. I believe I accomplish that.
So what does all this mean? It means that I have a tremendous platform to help you and your organization save money, and enhance your lifestyle and those of your employees/ members/ customers in these troubled times. Why spend $35 co-pays and an hours upon hours getting to/ from and waiting at a doctor's office when you can have TelaDoc? Why risk wasting 300 hours to fight it and taking on 3,000 pounds of frustration and get your identity stolen...we offer LifeLock at 50%+ discounts. As a banker, why sit through delinquency meetings and figure out reserve and loss ratios for a credit card program...take our affinity program for free! Why deal with loan officers at these large banks who have been in the business for five minutes, or have a car trunk full of business cards for the companies they used to work for? Tap into my 24 years of experience and history of best in class customer satisfaction results (per Gallup) and cost model to save tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars on your mortgage.
I said in my first post that I am not sure how to maximize this venue...I guess today is just a way of sharing experiences past, present and hopefully future. I look forward to hearing from and working with you.
Bob Germano
3/4/09
4:22pm
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
My First Test
This is intended to be a test "blog" so I can review how this site will look once I start filling it with content from my sales platform. My platform offers B2B programs for Discount & Lifestyle Benefits, Multiple types of Insurance Products (via an online quoting engine), Affinity Credit Cards and last but not least, retail residential mortgage products (these are available direct to the consumer). Definately not a conventional mix of programs and products...in fact we are probably one of, if not the only entity that combines these types of products through one menu.
I will use this site to share my individual experiences, talk about my business platform, our products, why they are valuable, how tro contact me, etc.... I hope to expand my outreach into new markets, relationships and opportunities that are mutially beneficial for me, my partners and customers.
As of this point I do not have a plan to complete these "blog posts" at a regular frequency. I am very much at the beginning of the learning curve and do not fully understand the highest and best use for this type of forum. I was speaking to a valued business partner today and commented how I am excited to author this "blog" site...and how I need to learn everything I can about it. Her response? It was that only 11 years ago I refused to even turn on a computer, would not carry a cell phone and did everything by hand. Amazing how everything around me changed...I am lucky that I realized early on that if I did not get out in front of change as best I can that I would be a true cautionary tale...that I would have many regrets. I am very thankful for the decisions I have made to this point...hopefully I continue to make the right, or at least the best decisions I can.
Much more to follow as I get the hang of this.
Bob Germano
2/11/09
5:37pm
I will use this site to share my individual experiences, talk about my business platform, our products, why they are valuable, how tro contact me, etc.... I hope to expand my outreach into new markets, relationships and opportunities that are mutially beneficial for me, my partners and customers.
As of this point I do not have a plan to complete these "blog posts" at a regular frequency. I am very much at the beginning of the learning curve and do not fully understand the highest and best use for this type of forum. I was speaking to a valued business partner today and commented how I am excited to author this "blog" site...and how I need to learn everything I can about it. Her response? It was that only 11 years ago I refused to even turn on a computer, would not carry a cell phone and did everything by hand. Amazing how everything around me changed...I am lucky that I realized early on that if I did not get out in front of change as best I can that I would be a true cautionary tale...that I would have many regrets. I am very thankful for the decisions I have made to this point...hopefully I continue to make the right, or at least the best decisions I can.
Much more to follow as I get the hang of this.
Bob Germano
2/11/09
5:37pm
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