How is the economy affecting you?

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TECHNICAL Contributor
Oct 3, 2006
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Wisconsin - Winnebago Pool chain of lakes
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280 Sundancer, Westerbeke MPV generator
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How is the economy affecting you?


I was trying to post a poll with options but it would not let me.


Pick the one that is the best fit then reply with more detail if you like.

#1) Business as usual, my outlook is positive. My wife even hired 4 home interior advisors to help us pick out soft fabrics to redecorate our estate.

#2) I’m concerned but employed or own a business thats doing ok and time is on my side.

#3) I’m employed or own a business but I’m being squeezed, income, savings, home value is down and worried how much worse it will get.

#4) I’m greatly affected now, lost job or retired with declining investments, own a business that is not doing very good, we are cutting every expense we can.

#5) That’s it. We are selling what we can, moving to the hills with guns and ammunition and preparing for a complete economic collapse.

#6) I’m looking for a tall building with windows that open.
 
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#3. Have greatly economized since May. Sold the boat (no $670/month payment any longer), got an electric motor for my bicycle and rode to work everyday during the warm months (8 miles). Saved about $50-$75/week that way.

Also, eating food from home most days, sitting at my desk. Generally eating out less often. Vastly curtailed purchases.

Won't have a vacation this winter. Won't be looking at 370DA like we want to.

Have made changes to our home that drastically reduce the heating bill.

If it gets really bad, come spring we'll have a big garden, and eat all the fish in the pond.
 
#2 (I had started while you were trying to get the pole working.)

Now that the price of gas has come back down I am better. I work for a GMC, FORD, VOLVO truck dealer, so am I worried, yes I do have some concerns. The man I work for got his start in the truck service business, so if the manufacturers go down and the parts manufacturers stay in business I think I can keep my job and survive this. We started as a truck repair facility and I feel sure we could go back to that, trucks will still haul freight, they will still need repairs. Where the economy will go before it gets better who knows for sure. I don't spend any money I do not have to spend, no toy money until things change for the better. If we all are careful we should be able to get through this, I know many are losing their jobs and that is going to hurt, there are many that may lose their home because they can not pay for it without a job.
 
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I was looking at retiring in Jan 2009, downsizing the home and getting rid of some man toys and other accumulated junk... but now it will be more like Jan 2014 unless things change or look better sooner.:huh:
 
Ummm, nobody's buying boats. Not even calling on them. That hurts :smt009 I'm glad I have other stuff going on because I would hate it if all we did was sell boats right now.
 
#1, but no interior designers of any kind, nor an estate.

Our business is pretty recession-proof, when some industries are down, others pop up, we have great diversity for when certain marketing areas are slow, and theoretically when the economy is down people tend to spend a bit more advertising, or start ups need new branding, entrepreneurs seek new marketing venues etc..

My wife is a pharmacist and just got a raise. Her's is a very recession proof entity. People will need their meds to deal with the economy :grin:
 
#2) I’m concerned but employed or own a business thats doing ok and time is on my side.


My wife and I are both employeed by a large health care facility. We both have good jobs as pharmacists. House is almost paid for. Retirement may have to be postponed if this keeps up.
I do feel for those that are less fortunate that do not have the time to recover from this.
 
Somewhere between 2-3 for me.

I resigned from what quite a few folks thought was a great job and called me a fool for leaving back in May. I was 2nd in line to ownership of the company. I could not deal with the crap anymore. Promises made were not kept and the owners were sitting on their hands.

I took 2 months off to find the next thing for me. I thought I found it, and things still may work out, but I am not sure at this point. If they do not, the market is not as good for me as it was in June and July..yeah, only 3-4 months ago.

I am 'only' 42 so I have time on my side and our finance guy is telling us to not do anything. We always plan ahead so we have enough funds to last us for a while if I lose work.

I am thinking about things more than I ever have though so that puts me more into #3.
 
I'm some where between #1 and #2. I make a good living.
I sell and engineer Factory Automation PLC's Systems and Diamond cutting tools.
In the Southeast most of my customers (and employers) are Asian transplanted Auto and Industrial Mfg.
Most businesses are off 10-20% but nothing like Detroit.
What has happened is Mfg that were dependent on GM,Chrysler and Ford and calling me to penetrate my customer base. In the last 3 months I have picked up 2 companies and income looks good.
I do believe we are in for a change in the US industry mindset. Mitt Romney's article states it best
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/19/opinion/19romney.html?_r=1&hp

As I have said before "Capitalism without Bankruptcy is like Religion without Hell"!
The Government should force GM and Chrysler into a government backed Chapter 11 and Draft someone like a "Steve Jobs" to design a car that is Revolutionary (I-car) and save the US auto industry from its current march to Automotive Hell. 25 billion will just put of the funeral and cost all of us our children's future.

Just my 2 Cents.
 
I am also in the 2 1/2 range. Job still OK, no debt but house and boat and I can live in either one. I got out of the market 10 months ago so I am OK there. Smartest thing I have ever done in my 57 years. The part that keeps me up at night is all of the talk that we have not seen the worst. So I remain very conserned and very conservative now. If an interior decorator shows at my house he will be shot.

I remain optimistist but careful.
 
I'm some where between #1 and #2. I make a good living.
I sell and engineer Factory Automation PLC's Systems and Diamond cutting tools.
In the Southeast most of my customers (and employers) are Asian transplanted Auto and Industrial Mfg.
Most businesses are off 10-20% but nothing like Detroit.
What has happened is Mfg that were dependent on GM,Chrysler and Ford and calling me to penetrate my customer base. In the last 3 months I have picked up 2 companies and income looks good.
I do believe we are in for a change in the US industry mindset. Mitt Romney's article states it best
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/19/opinion/19romney.html?_r=1&hp

As I have said before "Capitalism without Bankruptcy is like Religion without Hell"!
The Government should force GM and Chrysler into a government backed Chapter 11 and Draft someone like a "Steve Jobs" to design a car that is Revolutionary (I-car) and save the US auto industry from its current march to Automotive Hell. 25 billion will just put of the funeral and cost all of us our children's future.

Just my 2 Cents.

"As I have said before "Capitalism without Bankruptcy is like Religion without Hell"!
The Government should force GM and Chrysler into a government backed Chapter 11 and Draft someone like a "Steve Jobs" to design a car that is Revolutionary (I-car) and save the US auto industry from its current march to Automotive Hell. 25 billion will just put of the funeral and cost all of us our children's future."

+1, Add in my 2 cents, we now have 4 cents.
 
I will say #2a) I’m concerned but employed


... there are many that may lose their home because they can not pay for it without a job.

This is not meant to be cute or humorous, but does anyone see the irony here?







$700 billion bailout which?supposedly started over sub-prime mortgage's and stopping foreclosures :huh:

So if I have a ARM loan and I am facing foreclosure and lose my job, do I still get to keep my home? :huh:
 
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I'm in the 1.5 range - things are going well and my main employer appears to be solid at the moment (at least....). We own or are part of a couple of other stable businesses so I'm really not too worried about the short term. Real estate and market investments are in the toilet but I wasn't in either for the short term. It is really depressing to see about a 35% reduction in my 401k so far this year. We normally go to Mexico every February and we didn't reserve the house this year. This is probably the most depressing thing at the moment - no warm break in the middle of the winter!
 
I'm at ground zero of this thing, and it's not pretty. Thankfully for my personal business, we are well diversified and I am at 200% of my EOY goal. Business is good.
All around me, it's scary. I live in Grosse Pointe, a supposedly "wealthy" community, and my neighbor across the street was thrown out of the house he owned for 15 yrs and it was foreclosed.

What's really upsetting are all the suppliers that can't make payroll because the big 3 can't pay them. The big negotiation right now with the big 3 is over payment terms. Net 90 and net 120 are being thrown around, and its a take it or leave it scenario. Many business owners are trying to cover payroll with bank factoring loans that have completely dried up.

I agree, a restructuring is in order. I watched with sincere interest the "hearings" and it was nothing but political grand-standing. The jets they flew in on are not the issue. What $1b company doesn't have a jet these days. The issues are legacy costs, alternative energy, fair trade etc, but all the politicians focus on are the freakin planes... talk about a waste of taxpayer dollars!
 
At the start of the year I would have answered about 1 to 1.5 Started the year with a new vehicle. Added a generator to the boat. We did remodel our house this summer, new 40 year arc. shingles, interior painting, most of the house got new flooring & fixtures, living room furniture, out with the tube TV’s, in with flat screens.

As recent as the start of October I would have answered 2. Final payment was needed for our next vacation, a Disney cruise with the kids in January. We went ahead and are now in the time window of cancellation fees.

Today I would answer 3. Our combined investments in various accounts has dropped by more then the value of our house. Several big local companies have announce layoffs. No local auto companies, the closest auto company would be about 3 hours drive away in Janesville where the GM plant that made the suburban and tahoe is closing. Locally, several paper mills have had layoffs. A few have closed. We have a fair amount of marine related manufacturing in Wisconsin. Companies like Mercury Marine in Fond du Lac make outboards, Carver and Cruiser in the Green bay area (bigger boats / small yachts) Burger & Palmer Johnson (full size yachts) Marinette Marine (mostly military coast guard / navy vessels) Bay Ship (mostly commercial / cargo vessels) All have had layoffs and their business continues to worsen.

Today, if I did not already own a boat I would not buy one.

If it goes to 4, meaning job / income loss.....we have no debt and about 5 months living expenses in savings so if the income / job take a hit we could sell the boat for a distressed amount, stop any further expense bleeding there, cancel any vacations, dinners out, eliminate all non-critical spending, and go from there. I hope it does not come to that.
 
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I'm at ground zero of this thing, and it's not pretty. Thankfully for my personal business, we are well diversified and I am at 200% of my EOY goal. Business is good.
All around me, it's scary. I live in Grosse Pointe, a supposedly "wealthy" community, and my neighbor across the street was thrown out of the house he owned for 15 yrs and it was foreclosed.

What's really upsetting are all the suppliers that can't make payroll because the big 3 can't pay them. The big negotiation right now with the big 3 is over payment terms. Net 90 and net 120 are being thrown around, and its a take it or leave it scenario. Many business owners are trying to cover payroll with bank factoring loans that have completely dried up.

I agree, a restructuring is in order. I watched with sincere interest the "hearings" and it was nothing but political grand-standing. The jets they flew in on are not the issue. What $1b company doesn't have a jet these days. The issues are legacy costs, alternative energy, fair trade etc, but all the politicians focus on are the freakin planes... talk about a waste of taxpayer dollars!

Yeah, I heard the jet thing this morning on the news and saw some of the questioning on same. Some fine folks we have in Gov't.
 
Definately #3. Wish like hell I'd sold all my stocks what seems like an eternity ago but was really only 18 months. (Way to go Hart to Hart! You are my hero!) I did sell a nice block of bank stock back then though, and after paying capital gains taxes used half to pay down debt and half to buy a 290DA. Today that 290DA is up for sale, and if I sell it for the low end of today's depressed market, I'll take a 36-40% hit. Then I could take that cash, and buy back 1.6x the stock I used to purchase the boat -- my boat has been a better investment than my bank stock!

Ain't it a wonderful Country!
 
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