Going to take a few days off from this blog to try to enjoy some guilt-free time with family/friends, celebrating the birth of Christ, getting my mind off my troubles and focusing on the positive.
Merry Christmas to all!
(Spreadsheets and updates on properties will have to wait…)
Banned from Google for Click Fraud
Wells Fargo Stole $1000 From Me
178 Comments
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Voice of reason
December 22nd, 2006 at 6:28 pm
Merry Christmas Casey! Hope you can get some quality time in with the fam.
Make a new year’s resolution to follow the ABC list method of organizing your tasks (blogging should probably be a C list item).
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Jeffrey
December 22nd, 2006 at 7:16 pm
Lets hope the FBI gives you a subpoena for Christmas.
Happy Holidays!
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Seinfeld
December 22nd, 2006 at 7:19 pm
Cheer up Casey, i’ll buy you some Jamba Juice gift certificates, that way when you get your SWEET DEAL you can celebrate!
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Dumbfounded
December 22nd, 2006 at 7:28 pm
Hip Hip Hooray! Another chance to procrastinate! Be sure to take off Kwanzaa, New Years, and then MLK day, Groundhogs Day, Valentines Day, All 3 Presidents Days and fly around to some more “schools” in between! Make sure to sleep in as needed and don’t sweat working Mondays either. Pamper yourself a little and cut out by noon on Fridays too so you don’t burn out. You need your rest from all this hard hard work.
By March you’ll have earned another vacation. I hear Tahiti is nice this time of year. Life is great!
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Juli
December 22nd, 2006 at 7:38 pm
I just wanted to let you know that I just saw your youtube clip and I think you are a wonderful young man.
Good luck with all of your future ventures and I have no doubt you will be in a different place five years from now.
That stinks about google taking down your ads. When it rains, it pours.
Hang in there!
Merry Christmas!
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Cornholio Mangus
December 22nd, 2006 at 7:39 pm
You continuously avoid reality. You ran away to Phoenix to avoid reality, and now that it’s almost Christmas (on Monday), you have decided to take another, extended vacation from reality.
You are a child.
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Akubi
December 22nd, 2006 at 7:48 pm
Casey,
I think you definitely have a talent for tapping into the zeitgeist that fascinates people - some odd combination of Andy Warhol and Marilyn Monroe… Why else would you have the number of comments/page hits you have?
As far as the comments that are published, I don’t see this simplistic divide between supporters and “haters”. There are critics (obviously RE is not your forte), but often one can learn more from critics than “supporters.” Be skeptical of super sweeeet positive thinking, etc. Life isn’t always positive – and, if it were, it would get really boring.
Anyway,
Merry Christmas!
P.S. I think you – at least – deserve your November Google dues and should fight for it.
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Lou Minatti
December 22nd, 2006 at 7:48 pm
Merry Christmas to you and your family, Casey.
And hire a criminal defense lawyer.
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Roy
December 22nd, 2006 at 7:51 pm
I knew it. You are incapable of doing what you know is right. How many times have you said you need to get it going? Is it going after 3 months?
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doitcasey
December 22nd, 2006 at 7:53 pm
Does this mean you are going to take a break from your early riser crap?
(Spreadsheets and updates on properties will have to wait…) like that house that got foreclosed on? haven’t they been waiting for four months? Seriously you moron, what makes you think that in the mess that you are in that you are entitled to a BREAK and can just forget about all your responsibilities. I mean what next…everything will have to wait while you enjoy New year’s? Then again, I see how it is with you, by avoiding doing those things like spreadsheets and working or looking at your tax bill or selling your properties for a loss, you can keep this fantasy alive..that you are a real estate investor (hahahahahahahaahhaha) and that you are smarter than 99% of the people that have jobs.
I suspect in about 6 months you will be sitting in your soiled underwear…your 15 minutes of fame up, a handful of people continuing to visit your site, still going to more guru seminars promising you that real estate can work even in the crappy market, your wife gone, her family suing you for abuse and negligence, she suing you for abuse and negligence, and the IRS investigating you. Yeah yeah what do I know right? Well I predicted 3 months ago that you would get some rich dad to bail you out in their own desire for more attention (little did I know that the real rich Dad would do this, though I did state it might be him or TRump) and that you would finally declare bankruptcy despite your protests that that wouldn’t be fair. I’m batting 100% genius…I will continue to do so. Your wife does have a way out of this mess with her credit and reputation in tact, and that is to turn against you…and I think you know it. She can squeal like a pig (kind of like what you will do in jail) to get a lighter sentence, she can say you were some svengali like presence that hypnotized her and brainwashed you…. she can say you abused her and caused her so much fear that she was afraid to speak out..yeeesss…this will work…but now she can’t stand the lie anymore and wants to tell the world the truth..hell, now that book I would buy!
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arizonadude
December 22nd, 2006 at 8:21 pm
Merry xmas casey serin!!!!!!!!!!! Sorry about your google problems. I’m sure you could have really used the money for xmas. I’m pisssed that some of the @ssholes on this blog ruined a good thing for you.Best of wishes for the holiday season.
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frank francis
December 22nd, 2006 at 8:25 pm
Casey,
Since your parents are rich, when are you going to be suckled from your parents’ money? Are they comfortable continuing to support you? How do you feel about that?
FF
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triple T
December 22nd, 2006 at 8:37 pm
i love the google spreadsheet idea and posting it for us to see. this will end up helping you alot as many of us can offer ways to trim your expenses.
you should give us a blog detailing how your family RE conversations turn out. they are bound to ask you what’s going on. this is something we all would have to experience if ever put in your situation.
Merry Christmas to you and your family !!!
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Bedrock92990
December 22nd, 2006 at 10:07 pm
I can only speak for myself when I say I hope this blog continues. I have learned quite a bit from these blogs, such as marketing ideas, who to use for online ads, how to set up an email marketing list, etc. I just wish the haters would tone it down a bit. Look, I’m not saying Casey is a saint, but neither are a TON of people who’re judging him so harshly. Casey, please re-group and keep the blog going. For those of you who don’t like this, just go away.
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john bailey
December 22nd, 2006 at 10:11 pm
get an hourly job.
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Jozsibacsi
December 22nd, 2006 at 10:19 pm
Casey,
You have got to stop wasting time blogging and get down to business. Every hour you spend blogging is taking away from budgets and spreadsheets, and getting your tax returns in order. In your case, gathering and entering receipts and financial statements is probably going to take 2 or 3 times longer than you estimate. More importantly, you should contact a bankruptcy lawyer and explain your situation in detail. Yes, you have visited a few already, but did you lay out the details, or just speak in generalities? You need good legal advice and a plan.
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Jhony
December 22nd, 2006 at 10:35 pm
Did you try to get a PS3 I’m sure he would give you one with your story.
http://www.myebid.com/cgi-bin/.....ingID=3065
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T
December 22nd, 2006 at 11:56 pm
Casey relaxes, accomplishes nothing, and does things to take his mind off his troubles throughout the year and then takes an extra vacation to take his mind off his troubles and accomplish nothing during holiday time! SWEET!!
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Anon
December 23rd, 2006 at 12:27 am
Merry Christmas Casey
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LostCause
December 23rd, 2006 at 12:38 am
These would be the days that prove there is no Santa Claus, and surely there will be a shitstorm when you get back. Burning the midnight oil is not in you vocabulary. Your life is on fire — remember? Jesus Christ, you must love pain.
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Josh
December 23rd, 2006 at 1:03 am
Merry Christmas to you too!
May your 2007 be way better than your 2006. And that goes for everyone around here!
Josh
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Jerry
December 23rd, 2006 at 3:00 am
Merry Christmas Casey!
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Miguel
December 23rd, 2006 at 6:24 am
Why would you want to celebrate someone who preaches the exact opposite of the principles that you stand by?
In all seriousness, Jesus Christ would utterly despise someone like you, given that your sole ambition appears to be to amass as much personal wealth as possible, regardless of who has to suffer along the way.
Or, once you’d made your fortune, were you planning to pull a Bill Gates and Warren Buffett and give it all away? As Christ also preached the virtues of forgiveness, I trust you’ll forgive me my skepticism.
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TK
December 23rd, 2006 at 6:24 am
Casey,
A long time ago I posted that you were one step away from finding Jesus, and this post proves me right.
A man screws up bigtime once - he apologizes. Screws up bigtime twice, rehab. Three times? Finds Jesus.
How do you like your Christmas present? Time with your wife and her family could be more torture than blogging about your hellish existence.
I really do hope your New Year’s resolution is to abandon this crap, get a lawyer and end this mess.
Merry Xmas, God bless.
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Unbelievable
December 23rd, 2006 at 6:58 am
Take some “time off” Ca$ey, why the hell not ?
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Cara
December 23rd, 2006 at 8:11 am
Sure. Why not? Several months’ worth of screwing around and avoiding your problems hasn’t made a difference in your life. You only have one foreclosure, and you still find suckers willing to “lend” you money to get Jamba Juice.
You’ve just taken a week’s vacation to avoid your problems. What’s another week or two? Christmas won’t be enough to make it all go away. You might as well goof off straight through the New Year, too.
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Holiday Vacation
December 23rd, 2006 at 8:26 am
Casey:
You took last week off to attend “real estate” college.
Then you took two days this week for “hiding out.”
Your time off for the holidays will not be “guilt free.” It is just more time with your head-in-the-sand. Until you get a handle on your situation and stop “planning” but “executing” You need to be working EVERYDAY until your plan is executed, a job has been secured, and you no longer need loans or the kindness of others to pay for basic expenses.
A few hours each day over this weekend need to be spent working on the spreadsheet and getting ALL of your financial information in order. Additional time needs to be spent working on and polishing your resumet. This way you can “hit the ground running” Tuesday morning.
Stay engaged on your efforts. And have your wife help you with that spreadsheet - she can (and should) organize those receipts… she can (and should) be tracking many of your joint costs and expenses.
Keep working. It’ll make you feel better when Tuesday morning rolls around.
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Santa
December 23rd, 2006 at 8:29 am
None of us at the North Pole are taking time off this weekend. Neither should you. Enjoy your family and friends this holiday weekend, but spend two to four hours of each day working on the solutions to your problem.
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Daniel
December 23rd, 2006 at 8:37 am
Casey,
You are a marketing machine. .you have 5,000 people signing on a day. .that is 1,500,000 visitors per year!! That is worth money. Don’t give up. Find other click per advertising or talk with a company about having the exsluvie advertising rights to reach 1,5000,000 visitors per month!!!
Don’t let us all down.
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Shadooby
December 23rd, 2006 at 9:06 am
Guilt free? For someone who is so often accused of being ‘media-savy’ it seems to me you could only be putting it this way to infuriate readers.
Oh well, have a Happy Holidays Casey. Here’s to a better 07.
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Anon4
December 23rd, 2006 at 9:12 am
Alright I have a christmas gift for you casey:
http://www.adlogger.org/
It’s a program you install on your server that automatically notifies you when someone is clicking on multiple links. Then you just enter their IP address and those people are no longer served ads. Very simple to install (I just installed it on my blog).
This means you can still sign up for the yahoo ad network or whatever else there is.
You’re welcome!
Sincerely,
A hater and a fan.
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Absolutely Amazing Attitude
December 23rd, 2006 at 10:39 am
I doubt that what you feel is guilt at all. Anxiety, depression, embarassment, etc - yes. But guilt? - No.
And PLEASE quit playing the religion card. Your actions betray you…
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Tim, from Monterey Bay area
December 23rd, 2006 at 11:14 am
This may not appear for several days, until Casey returns to the blog, but here goes anyway….
“Hey, I agree that Tim from Monteray may be pendantic and perhaps overly devoted to this blog, but you know what? I think his is the one voice that seems to be getting through to Casey. I think Casey would be in a better place if he had listened to Tim and followed through much earlier.”
A couple of folks have said my posts are too long and “state the obvious.”
Well, the “short hand” version of some of this advice about “running the numbers” or “number crunching” or “do a balance sheet on the properties” doesn’t seem to get through. Sometimes people think they know what a short-hand version means, and just say, “Yeah, of course.” Or say nothing.
I figured it might take actually laying out what such a balance sheet, such a spreadsheet, might actually LOOK like for Casey to see the value and the need for such a thing. Some of us have been recommending that he convert the “text only” confusion of the property listings section into a simple spreadsheet….I know I have for at least a month.
Now to someone used to using Excel or some other spreadsheet, this is the basic tool used in managing accounting information….not the “micro” accounting of an accounting program like “Money,” which is great for generating bills, forms, etc., but it is NOT what planners, analysts, investors, etc. use to do basic “number crunching.”
Not necessarily speaking about Casey, showing someone an actual instance or example of something, even roughly done, opens their eyes if they have not seen such a tool before. I get the impression, which Casey can correct me on, that he had not used a spreadsheet program.
In my day, in the chip business, we used them for all sorts of things. Not just financials.
Again, I’m surprised that Casey’s accounting student wife has never pushed him to generate balance sheets for his holdings, whether manually on standard ledger sheets, or with a spreadsheet program. Or done it herself, of course.
But if she is not doing this, then one thing Casey urgently needs to do is to learn some basic accounting. Not the b.s. about “entering all the receipts into Money,” but the basics of assets, liabilities, ROI, cash flow, spreadsheets, basic tax law, and basic bankruptcy law.
Oh, and I agree with someone’s point that his absolutely most urgent task is to get the Utah situation resolved. If the new purchaser, via the wrap, has done $70K of upgrades plus money down and payments, and this property someone reverts back to Casey’s original lender because of Casey’s carelessness (answering phones, opening mail, keeping tabs on banks), then THERE WILL BE A REAL POSSIBILITY OF MAJOR LAWSUITS.
This is a “stating the obvious” point, a la the point that I tend to do this, but sometimes people need to be whacked upside the head with a clue stick.
(This is also why people hire full-service agents, go through more normal financing plans, etc., so that various professionals are making sure ALL of the paperwork is processed perfectly, with no gotchas or fatal errors.)
–Tim from Monterey
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John Smith
December 23rd, 2006 at 11:52 am
casey - check your email. i created a nice spreadsheet for you.
Good luck!!!
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HungryBear
December 23rd, 2006 at 3:37 pm
Here is a good article for Casey & bo bo and and others who want out of the rat race. I bet these guys got much more fun out of life than the typical McMansion dwelling, McMercedes driving W-2 wage slaves. Merry Chirstmas to all.
RETIREMENT
Extreme Early Retirement
By keeping expenses to a minimum, you, too, might be able to retire early and travel the world.
By Mary Beth Franklin
From Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine, October 2006
Billy and Akaisha Kaderli are old hands at retirement — ask them anything about saving, spending or traveling. But one thing may surprise you: their age. Sixteen years after they retired, they are now both 54 — almost old enough to satisfy the minimum age requirements of the active-adult community in Mesa, Ariz., they call home (when they’re not traveling around the world).
When they were in their late thirties, Billy, a stockbroker, and Akaisha, a restaurant owner-turned-office manager, decided they were working too hard and paying too much in taxes. They vowed to save enough to quit in two years. “Every time I looked at a latte or a new pair of shoes, I decided I didn’t need them,” says Akaisha. “If you are clear about what you want, it becomes easier. You can either buy this or be days closer to your goal.”
MAKE YOUR MONEY LAST
1. Get a Checkup
2. Set Your Budget
3. Do a Dry Run
4. Choose Your Date
5. Consider an Annuity
6. Roll It Over
Investing in Retirement
Extreme Early Retirement
By 1991, they had accumulated about $500,000, including a $100,000 profit from the sale of their home. They put their belongings in storage and set out to see the world. After six months on a Caribbean island, they headed for South America. Returning to California a year and a half later, they bought an RV and wandered around the western states for two years. Then it was off to Mexico. They had planned to visit the Lake Chapala area for a few months and ended up staying four years. Since then, they’ve returned home from time to time to care for their parents, but have spent the rest of their time in Asia and the South Pacific.
What’s their secret? This might sound like an extravagant lifestyle, but Billy and Akaisha limit their expenses to about $24,000 a year. They eat well and enjoy themselves but don’t buy much “stuff.” Their few big expenses include Akaisha’s extensive dental care in Thailand and a laptop computer they use to update their Web site (www.retireearlylifestyle.com), which attracts 12,000 visitors daily.
The couple invest mainly in low-cost index funds, withdrawing about 3% of the balance each year. They pay little in taxes because most of their income is from capital gains and dividends, which are taxed at a maximum of 15%. They haven’t had to touch their IRAs, which would still cost them early-withdrawal penalties. “At this point in our lives, we are less worried about running out of money and more concerned about not having enough time to enjoy it,” says Billy.
How to do it
Simplify. A complicated lifestyle costs more.
Look beyond the border. An attractive lifestyle can cost much less in many countries outside the U.S.
Track your spending. And figure out where to cut. This is your life now, not a vacation.
Pursue low-cost entertainment, such as hiking, bicycling and reading.
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Absolutely Amazing Attitude
December 23rd, 2006 at 4:16 pm
I suspect that the lack of ad income will mean that we’ve about seen the end of Casey and blogging.
The level of discourse has really deteriorated here because:
(1) Casey mentions problem
(2) people post helpful comments
(3) Casey ignores helpful comments
(4) Casey mentions new problem - repeat (2) and (3)
(5) Casey posts “woe is me - problem (1) still exists!”
(6) People respond with anger and frustration because of (3).
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WTF????
December 23rd, 2006 at 4:49 pm
You are some piece of work. I work for the govt and can name a half dozen people who will be working Sat, Sun, AND Mon. And no, we are not open on the weekend. They are working because the work needs to be done AND they won’t be getting any overtime for it. I know you won’t post this but I HAVE to say it.You are a lazy egotistical self centered worthless little shit with some sort of vague sense of entitlement. But man do I love the slow trainwreck that is your life.
And for all these people who say you won’t get in any trouble. The cogs of the govt do work slowly, but they do work. It could be years before your ass is busted, but it will get busted. FYI the IRS works 3 years behind generally.
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Chris
December 23rd, 2006 at 6:29 pm
Take a few days off? From what? What have you done about your situation?
Any progress on those December goals?
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Steven
December 23rd, 2006 at 6:58 pm
Nice to see you’ve gotten away from this snake pit of a blog lately… When you file bankruptcy just remember there are some things that can not be taken away. And you can always work hard and make good money after bankruptcy (obviously not as a flipper).. You seem to have the aptitute for marketing or sales- big money if you put in the hours..
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jt
December 23rd, 2006 at 9:47 pm
Casey,
the only reason why GOOG banned you is because they need to horde all your revenue to pay for the exorbitant bandwidth youtube is costing them.
I would appeal.
You deserve to make a living as a pinata. Merry Xmas. I’m thinking about you and praying for you.
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Unbelievable
December 24th, 2006 at 6:55 am
Ca$ey sez
“Going to take a few days off from this blog ”
It’s fascinating that you can succeed so well at “taking a few days off” but you suck at everything else in life, hahahahaha
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Mr. Whipple
December 24th, 2006 at 7:00 am
Merry Christmas, Casey.
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Monterey Attorney
December 24th, 2006 at 11:07 am
Casey,
Thanks for posting you would not be posting for a few days, so we don’t continue logging in looking for new posts. Why are you concerned that people think you are making money off this site? You have a right to make money off it; you created it. Many people have created things with the original intent not to make money, and later found out the product had financial value, thus made money off the product. To say you are not going to make money off something because that was not the original intent is stupid.
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Anonymous
December 24th, 2006 at 11:19 am
Happy New Year!
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Horatio
December 24th, 2006 at 11:36 am
Hey Casey,
Will Santa bring you a “Lump of Coal?” How about those goals for January? Might as well start early since you didn’t accomplish any of December’s goals.
Don’t pout, don’t shout, don’t cry or Santa may poke you in the eye.
Have a happy Festivus!
H
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darko
December 24th, 2006 at 12:25 pm
What are you getting your wife for X-mas? Hope her family takes care of her gift wise.
merry x-mas.
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MLS
December 24th, 2006 at 1:32 pm
Why did you put 30% down on Angleridge? Seems really odd that you put 30% down but still had to get a hard money loan.
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Josh
December 24th, 2006 at 1:42 pm
Don’t confuse guilt free with responsibility free.
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Suckz T.B.A Rockefella
December 24th, 2006 at 4:37 pm
Casey,
Have you ever considered the possibility that maybe you’re right, and everybody else in the world is wrong?
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DrifterBee
December 24th, 2006 at 10:12 pm
Casey,
I do hope you focus on the positives, like not being in jail or divorced yet. The trouble is every day you let pass without filing BK — you’re getting closer to both.
Start over.. It won’t be easy, but your days of attempting get rich quick are over. Try working to survive for a while.
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Casey Serin
December 24th, 2006 at 10:56 pm
Had a few minutes to approve some comments…
Merry Christmas everyone!!
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Tim, from Monterey Bay area
December 24th, 2006 at 11:45 pm
Wow, an item from more than 30 years ago!
“Make a new year’s resolution to follow the ABC list method of organizing your tasks (blogging should probably be a C list item).”
Voice of Reason, I learned this
“A B C” list method back around 1975. It helped me a lot in my early years as an engineer at a rising chip company (now the largest in the world, hint hint).
I am accused of “stating the obvious,” so let me again state the obvious, which perhaps folks here (including Our Founder, Casey) may not have seen fully explicated”
Divide all tasks into three main categories:”
A — Urgent, Important. Action needed in a matter of days.
B — less important, but action is still needed. Probably in a matter of weeks. But may become more urgent, as events dictate.
C — less important, less urgent. Something to do if time permits.
(I recollect these were described in a nice lecture video by Louis Lakein…I’m fairly certain about the name. Other variants developed, including one I liked, where a two-dimensional grid of “urgency vs. importance” was developed. Some tasks are “urgent and important,” others are “important but not urgent,” and so on. This helps to prioritize activities.)
In Casey’s world, there are many things which can be analyzed with the Lakein “A B C” method, and also many which can be analyzed with the “Urgency vs. Importance” classification.
And with plain old spreadsheets, for the ROI, burn rate, etc. numbers, which several of us have emphasized.
–Tim from Monterey (recently in LA, now back in the Monterey Bay region)
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Phillip
December 24th, 2006 at 11:49 pm
Merry Christmas Casey!
Remember what my mama always told me: this too shall pass.
Phillip
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doitcasey
December 25th, 2006 at 12:04 am
Gee, I knew that Casey wouldn’t be able to stay away from the blog over Christmas…it’s obviously an addiction to him. Exactly what on earth do you follow thru on casey? Your early rizer crap..nope, marketing your properties this December..nope, fasting for 12 hrs (wooooeeeee take it easy!) nope you jumped in twice during your alleged fast to restart moderation and make some other stupid comment, and now this..taking time off from the blog. You are like a gambler that goes to the tables on his honeymoon..you just can’t stay away and nothing, not your real estate empire, your wife or your family will keep you away.
Sadly, I guess that’s all you have left in your life. I finally watched your youtube segment with RK, and man you were really kind of pathetic. He WAS laughing at you man! Then giving you those two books on real estate, lol, geez why don’t you give an alcoholic some liquor as a present. You have one unit of credit for college? Yeah and us college grads with steady jobs are the losers right? lol, oh wait..you did go to that real estate college. You could almost see the REAL question that you had for RK in your face… “Ummm..Rich Dad? Can you bail my ass out of this mess? C’mon you are Rich! Help me out here and I will plug your books ad nauseum on my site!” I noticed that after your meeting with him..you haven’t been praising him as much as you used to, what’s the matter…did you find out your false idol really wasn’t all that?
So umm..Mr. Casey I see that you wrote down that you have a college degree?
Yes sir, though I think you and your job are losers, I need the extra cash for my next sweet real estate deal. Here’s my diploma..see here, I graduated magna cum stupid from this 1 week real estate course..a bachelor of bullshit or something like that..yep, cost me 30 K and a week outta my life..but then again, I’m a winner.
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Tim, from Monterey Bay area
December 25th, 2006 at 12:34 am
jt may have a point:
“the only reason why GOOG banned you is because they need to horde all your revenue to pay for the exorbitant bandwidth youtube is costing them.”
He or she or it may have a point: Google is now oriented toward attracting eyeballs through maximally outrageous behaviour. Mere text blogs are uninteresting for their business model.
Casey may need to start generating eyeball traffic by doing outrageous things. Of course, what passed for outrageous 20 years ago==biting the heads off chickens–is now passe.
Google is the Whore of Babylon, so ask Google what will satisfy it.
Casey, if they ask you to set up a Youtube camera in front of the Countrywide Loans, Roseville office and immolate yourself, tell them “No way, Jose!”
(By the way, on my recent drive from Monterey down to LA, I passed a whole bunch of newly-build 3-4-story steel office buildings along I-101, mostly from Ventura to the San Fernando Valley. All marked “Countrywide.” It was eerie, seeing a new building in Thousand Oaks or Westlake or Moorpark and saying to myself, “I’ll bet that’s another Countrywide building!” And being right. They must be hiring half the high school graduates of Ventura County to man their offices. Frightening. No wonder China knows it will win out in the long run.)
–Tim from Monterey
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Turn Your Self In
December 25th, 2006 at 3:30 am
Stop bloggin and GET A JOB to pay all the money you owe.
You committed FRAUD and you say you want to do good, have you taken Jerome suggestion and turn your self into the FBI?
You are costing us TAX payer money the longer you wait.
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triple T
December 25th, 2006 at 4:15 am
i’m new here and keep seeing the “jamba juice” reference posted daily. what happened at jamba juice that is so worthy of it’s daily mentioning???
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triple T
December 25th, 2006 at 4:23 am
i’m still amazed that Casey bought 8 fixer-uppers in less than a year without a construction background. it took me a year to fix up my last home and i actually know how to do this kind of stuff (drywall, framing, plumbing, etc.) even a career contractor wouldn’t have bit off that many homes let alone in different states where you can’t drive to the site daily. datz crazzzy maaann !!!
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Voice of Reason
December 25th, 2006 at 7:01 am
* MLS: He put 0% down on Angleridge.
“Hard money lender’s more conservative appraisal came in at 275K. I don’t have a copy though. Hard money loan of 70% LTV is based on lender’s lower appraisal.”
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Robert Kiyosaki
December 25th, 2006 at 7:48 am
Casey,
You did good the other day at my seminar. I am proud of you to have the guts to admit you made mistakes.
Hang in there!
Bob
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Les
December 25th, 2006 at 8:51 am
Triple T:
Being new to this blog, you’ve missed some classic postings. On November 21 Casey posted his Wells Fargo checking account statement. What everyone saw was that he was overdrawn on his account. Using his ATM card, he was going to Starbucks and Jamba Juice and getting a “treat” - paying a little over $4 for the Jamba Juice, then getting charged $32 from Wells Fargo for the “over draft” against his account. In total, Casey’s “treat” was costing in excess of $36 p/juice.
The first day of his “early riser” attempt, he did meet his goal of getting up at 5:55 a.m. - went for a three mile jog, and then “treated” himself with a wheatgrass shot and a fruit juice. His statement, after many comments, was that the $$ was a small gift from his parents…. and that it had been a while (about two weeks) and he’d earned the “reward” for being an early riser.
Many of the posters (supporters and “haters” both) were dumbfounded why, someone so deeply in debt who is so cash poor is going and having $4 juice drinks when he clearly can not afford it.
This blog is great entertainment.
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Smarten' Up
December 25th, 2006 at 10:02 am
Symptoms of chronic marijuana use:
Lack of motivation
Delusional
Difficulty problem solving
Inability to perform at work
Impaired learning
Withdrawal from/avoidance of reality
Depression
Sound like anyone we know?
Casey, put down the bong.
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Robert Coté
December 25th, 2006 at 10:10 am
Jamba Juice is a iamfacingforeclosure unit of currency. 1jj equals one rasberry banana with wheat germ shot beverage purchased at full retail on credit including transaction fees. While a prudent investor would save store coupons and wait for “free shots” specialsthat isn’t 1jj. You see inplicit with 1jj are the assumptions that anything below a certain financial threshold aren’t worth expending any intellectual capital upon. Better to consume, indulge, spend, and otherwise pamper oneself rather than sweat the small stuff. The actual convertibilty of 1jj to dollars, even our weakening pesobucks is subject to much debate. In this Casey is like his own country. Subject to GAAP 1jj would be about $80 because of the list price, the overdraft penalties, subsequent carrying charges, paperwork, time lost in the consumption and subsequent time lost dealing with the consequences and most important; opportunity costs. Opportunity costs is often misunderstood and is certainly something Casey never heard of before attending some advanced courses. In those course they teach you that opportunity is knocking and you cannot afford to not answer the door. This even works in a rapidly rising market. But as readers suspect by now in a rapidly declining market worse than the opposite is true. Casey has a burn rate. By investing what will eventually total hours to his 1jj indulgence he has foregone the opportunity to stop or at least slow the bleeding.
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Miguel
December 25th, 2006 at 11:22 am
“i’m new here and keep seeing the “jamba juice” reference posted daily. what happened at jamba juice that is so worthy of it’s daily mentioning???”
A few weeks ago, Casey posted bank statements - since wisely removed - which revealed that he treated himself (and his wife?) to regular trips to Jamba Juice and the Macaroni Grill, despite being $2.2 million plus in the hole.
It got even funnier when he said he used to go to Jamba Juice as a self-administered reward for getting up early - you know, the kind of thing most of us have to do as a matter of routine (or necessity in my case, as I have very young kids) and who wouldn’t even consider that it merited a treat.
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ivan grusni
December 25th, 2006 at 12:24 pm
s’novim godum sashenka!
slushi -ya dumiyu shto ti clever malchik no ni umni malchik.
just file bk and get it over with.
you will nikogda get out of the hole you’ve dug.
esli ya tebya - i would seriously consider leaving the country -
take whatever you’ve squirreled away - apologize to galinochka i yeyo raditali and just go.
There is nichevo yesho to be gained here.
You played the game and lost - fortunately it wasn’t your own money.
sevo harosheva!
vanya
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Anon
December 25th, 2006 at 12:29 pm
Casey have you seen this:
http://foreclosureboy18.blogspot.com/
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Casey Serin
December 25th, 2006 at 1:10 pm
Christmas Gifts
Christmas gifts: A tie and gifts cards for books and juice. Energizer batteries to remind me to “keep going”.
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Casey Serin
December 25th, 2006 at 1:14 pm
Anon, I don’t know anything about “foreclosureboy18″ but I guess its like the guy who is selling “I am Facing Foreclosure” shirt on eBid (which I don’t get any proceeds from)… people have nothing better to do with their time… or maybe trying to capitalize on my story and what not… I give them credit for creativity though
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Casey Serin
December 25th, 2006 at 1:29 pm
Hey Ivan Grusni, I guess I should break it down in the “native” tongue:
Mayo ima ne “Lesha”, eto moi papa.
Vtoroe, Ya ne trus shtobi ubegat’ vdrugou ctranu. Banktrotsva skorei vsevo, no ne ubegat’.
Paslednie, esli ya upal odin raz ne znachit shto ne paluchitsa sovsem. Skoka raz ti padal kakda uchilsya katatsa na velike?
Te kto samie uspeshnie samoe mnogo raz padali - no vstavali kajdi raz i uchilis’ so svoix oshibog.
Uteba est’ finansivai uspex? Ili ti eshe doljin rabotat’ - menat’ tvoe vrema na dengi?
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dot.army
December 25th, 2006 at 1:32 pm
Christmas gifts: A tie and gifts cards for books and juice. Energizer batteries to remind me to “keep going”.
ok, so your family is dumb as you are. the ONLY thing you should have received for christmas is cash. cold cash, that you can add to your recovery fund. A TIE??? Like you should be anywhere near any kind of business deal that would require a tie.
Why do you need these constant ‘reminders’ to ‘keep going’.
gawd you’re an infuriating little piece of fluff. nice hair gel too. :flaming:
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dot.army
December 25th, 2006 at 1:33 pm
you get work as an interpreter. It pays well. go. do it now, start searching online. Now. Not tomorrow, not after breakfast, don’t ‘plan to’ do it.
JUST DO IT NOW. GET HIRED BY THE END OF THE WEEK, OR YOU ARE JUST NOT TRYING.
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Cheburashka
December 25th, 2006 at 2:31 pm
Casey,
Please try to spell better at least in Russian - wasn’t it your first language? Best wishes to you and thanks for publicizing your mistakes. Work is for suckers but there’s nothing wrong with “Exchanging your time for money”. A successful investor better be ready to spend time if one hopes to make money without working for the man.
- Big brown ears.
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Unbelievable
December 25th, 2006 at 2:34 pm
I wish someone had given you an electric shaver and a new shirt
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Unbelievable
December 25th, 2006 at 2:37 pm
вы будете тупоумным идиотом
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Casey Serin
December 25th, 2006 at 2:57 pm
“Unbelievable” is obviously using BabelFish or similar. Not a Russian speaker for sure.
I am just taking a little time during the family (in-laws) Christmas lunch right now to process comments on the PDA. I said I was going to take a break from blogging (and told my wife I will) but I am not sure if moderating comments qualifies as that. I have kept it to a minimum though.
Either way it is nice to take a break from it all for a few days. Guilt free. I am not thinking about the email, voicemail, papermail and responsibilities waiting to be processed and attended to. I am usually not too big on holidays, but this is a good thing….
oh crap… wife caught me checking comments… taking my cell phone PDA awa..
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bottwain
December 25th, 2006 at 3:39 pm
how can you even afford a cell phone and pda? gawd almighty this country is full of credit addicts and status whores.
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yneone
December 25th, 2006 at 4:03 pm
Happy Holidays Casey & Fellow Bloggers:
Casey hope you are having a good Christmas. Lots of people reading this blog who don’t even post. Recently encountered one of your er uh “fans” at a website that I frequent. Since I use the “Yneone” moniker online quite a bit. Certain person asked if I was indeed, “that” Yneone. My profile just happens to say that, “favorite drink: Jamba Juice”; the guy went into a tiride about me being Casey Serin. Me and this guy went back n forth until he was convinced I wasnt Casey. Suddenly, this website became the talk of the forum with others asking about you, Dear Casey. Get ready for a traffic spike. Happy Holidays everyone.
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Robert Koyosakee
December 25th, 2006 at 4:13 pm
Remember to buy my books with your gift card.
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BlueHippoOven
December 25th, 2006 at 4:34 pm
According to this blog:
http://www.blogger.com/comment.....6041530846
… this other blog:
http://www.whofailedtoday.com/.....?id=175528
… simply claims that Casey Serin was arrested in a RE office, on or about Dec 20th. The source blog claimed the event was reported on the TV news for the Bay Area.
Can anyone confirm that?
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Voice of Reason
December 25th, 2006 at 5:04 pm
“oh crap… wife cought me checking comments… taking my cell phone PDA awa.. ”
LOL - that’s funny!
[it’s ‘caught’, btw]
(you need to shave)
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WTF????
December 25th, 2006 at 5:46 pm
Oh isn’t that just so adorable. Acting like he’s trying to type till the last second. Too bad his work ethic doesn’t follow suit. But I am still somewhat entertained, and as long as the little monkey dances I’ll keep watching.
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Turn Your Self In
December 25th, 2006 at 5:58 pm
Get a REAL JOB you free loader.
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Unbelievable
December 25th, 2006 at 6:10 pm
Ca$ey $erin is obviously a broke loser who is attempting to escape reality.
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The Trailer Park Boys
December 25th, 2006 at 6:38 pm
It looks like all this is starting to wear on you…
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triple T
December 25th, 2006 at 7:29 pm
serious question. Casey please answer:
over Christmas, your relatives were bound to ask you “how are you?” or “how is your business?”. how did you answer these questions. do you tell them the real story? i think some of us on here would like to know your answers because it’s a VERY akward situation to be in. you can’t lie to your friends and family, yet you don’t want to be embarrassed either.
please tell us what happened.
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Andrew
December 25th, 2006 at 7:42 pm
“Uteba est’ finansivai uspex? Ili ti eshe doljin rabotat’ - menat’ tvoe vrema na dengi? ”
That’s a laugh. You are probably the least qualified individual in the world to give lectures on financial success. That depends on how you define financial success. Sure I have a job - even though it doesn’t pay anywhere near $1000hr like your sweet deals do. But, unlike your sorry worthless ass, I’ve earned about %1000000 more than you did in the last few months - and doing something productive, at that. Assuming the economy doesn’t dive in the near future, I’ll actually be able to do something decent with my life in the future. You, on the other hand, face the distinct possibility of not having any legitimate source of income without having nearly every cent of it garnished by creditors or IRS.
Just remember: God forgives (within reasonable limits). IRS doesn’t.
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Aelfscine
December 25th, 2006 at 7:52 pm
So you lied to the wife about the break from blogging, and are ignoring all of the things that are actually important, after taking over a whole week’s vacation from your phony ‘job’ so you could dump money you don’t have down a real estate seminar for absolutely zero return on your investment. Stunning.
What could possibly have happened to you to make you so completely incapable?
And how the heck are you managing to pay for a cell phone plan?
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Bginvestor
December 25th, 2006 at 7:59 pm
Casey,
Bk laws have changed recently, after the Oct of this year, it will be much , much harder to file for a chapter 7, I it will tough for you to finish a chapter 13 IMHO.
This procrastination may have cost you thousands of dollars. What are the lawyers saying??
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Take Some Responsibilty
December 25th, 2006 at 9:09 pm
Well, at least we know that Casey is not blowing loads of money on a “sweet” wardrobe. Same old blue shirt and khaki trousers. Where is the blue ball? Is that a Jamba Juice card? Sweeeeeeeet…
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JLIN
December 25th, 2006 at 10:30 pm
Merry Christmas Casey.
:)
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Darren
December 25th, 2006 at 11:06 pm
dont ya love the people that think they know jesus …lol…ahhh look out casey im sure theyve got their fire and brimestone ready ….i dont even think jesus exists let alone worrying about what billions are up to ..add to that the few goin bad in real estate - and even if he did …remember he had to sleep in a barn ..sure beats the homeless he leaves running around in the cold ..ahhh for the love of god
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Darren
December 25th, 2006 at 11:09 pm
Miguel ..if jesus would despise a person like casey…why would he create him in the first place? go on give me one of those “makes no sense religious” explanations
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Ding Dong-Will someone get the door?
December 25th, 2006 at 11:21 pm
to “doitcasey”
Shut up! TMI>You go on and on about nothing. A true hater.
Give it a rest. What ARE you on anyway?
It is Christmas folks…How do you spell holiday?
People DO rest on Holidays. Uh hum.
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Daniel (foreign)
December 26th, 2006 at 6:19 am
merry christmas to all!!
hey! Casey Serin is the only real Serin, all the others Casey Serin are just imitating. So won’t the real Casey Serin please stand up, please stand up.
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getaclue
December 26th, 2006 at 6:44 am
Casey what’s with the Jamba Juice thing? I don’t get it? Why are you obsessed with that place?
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Kevin
December 26th, 2006 at 7:03 am
Casey - you wrote:
“Anon, I don’t know anything about “foreclosureboy18″ but I guess its like the guy who is selling “I am Facing Foreclosure” shirt on eBid (which I don’t get any proceeds from)… people have nothing better to do with their time… or maybe trying to capitalize on my story and what not… I give them credit for creativity though”
Helloooooo!?!?! Damn it, copywrite the saying ‘iamfacingforeclsoure.com’ and sue his ass! Get some $$ from it!
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Bubbers
December 26th, 2006 at 7:15 am
OK, I’ve finally joined the ranks who see this site as a SCAM. Casey is a TROLLER. His posts are aimed strictly at inflaming the masses.
And I’ve decided that the people giving Casey legitimate advice via comments on this blog are in total denial.
People, this is an intervention. Whatever you suggest or recommend, he will not do it. Face the cold hard truth and move on. Whatever you suggest or recommend, HE WILL NOT DO IT.
Absolutely Amazing Attitude hit the nail on the head. That is the formula for the blog. No progress will ever be made, no constructive action will be taken. Dear readers, it’s time to face the cold hard truth and move on.
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Focusing on the Positive
December 26th, 2006 at 7:31 am
Casey, help me wrap my head around the positives in your situation. I appreciate the thought of trying to be positive but am lost in what could be positive about being in foreclosure without any ability to turn the properties.
Also, I hope you had a good christmas and that the new year ahead is full of love and happiness for you.
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dumb and dummererest
December 26th, 2006 at 8:12 am
ok merry xmas casey.
one of my credit cards was due on Dec 25.
so my car note is due on Jan 5.
another payment is due Jan 1.
so i guess they’ll let me slide if i tell them i wanted a guilt free holiday with my family and didnt mail the payments priority mail with confirmation of delivery just in case you know all those dear santa letters slow down delivery.
******
so casey what & how much did you BUY / PURCHASE / BORROW /OVERDRAFT for xmas gifts???
i think you need to come clean, theres alot of info out there on other websites about your adventures in seminars, but i guess you’ll keep deleting posts or moderating messages as if the only ‘casey serin’ info online is on your website!
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Jobu
December 26th, 2006 at 8:31 am
Casey, do you have any other shirts? Maybe you are like the Seinfeld episode where the girl wore the same dress every day and Jerry tried to get into her closet to see if there were 20 of the same dress in there.
Anyways, it’s great that you took time off for the holidays. However, today is not a holiday and it’s time to get going again on solving your problems. Carpe Diem.
Here is something funny that I found on the anti casey site.
http://iamnotfacingforeclosure.....reclosure/
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Abi Titmuss
December 26th, 2006 at 9:16 am
Hi Casey. This sort of thing happens in the UK all the time, in fact there are TV programs on almost every day telling people how to do it!
Anyway, the reason I wanted to comment was to let you know that you are not the only person in the world who is hated by many people whilst remaining a fascination with many.
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Cutie Pie
December 26th, 2006 at 9:18 am
Casey:
First - your hair is much better in your Christmas photo posted on 12/25/06 than anything I’ve seen — your myspace photo is horrible…. your hair in the photo on this blog, the media photos, and video appearances has been too messy. This looks much more professional - keep the look for job searches, meetings with lawyers, and court appearances. Eliminate the side burns and facial hair. And don’t let it appear greasy.
Let us know, now that the holidays are over, how you intend to meet and accomplish your December goals in the next four days.
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Hit The Ground Running?
December 26th, 2006 at 9:30 am
Casey:
It is 9:30 a.m. December 26 - the holiday weekend is officially over. Were you an early riser this morning?
First - we want a report on your meeting with Chris last week - it was your “job review.” Will you continue to work for Chris, or will you be seeking a new job? (Remember, you need a steady paycheck and benefits - medical, dental, etc.)
What are your goals today? How are going to accomplish these?
When does your wife start the new job? Her assistance with you this week is would be very helpful. She could be sorting receipts, working on various elements of the spreadsheet, evaluating your resume and cover letters, drafting letters to mortgage companies, lenders, credit card companies. She could also be scheduling appointments with various lawyers.
In short - GET TO WORK - and report back on your accomplishments.
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Sac Realtor
December 26th, 2006 at 9:41 am
Merry Christmas and good luck flipping all your houses in the new year…
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Les Webster
December 26th, 2006 at 10:17 am
Casey’s 12/26/06 To Do List & Schedule
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Christopher
December 26th, 2006 at 10:39 am
Hi Casey,
I was working on a real estate deal with my brother in 2004. We got hit with a number of unfair lawsuits from the same group of people.
Over xmas, I didn’t go to any holiday functions. I spent time on the lawsuits.
And over New Years, I spent the New Years with a couple of bottles of alcohol working through the night, working alone in an office building with my stacks of papers.
No parties. No family gatherings. Nothing.
I did that because we had so much money in the real estate thing that it was critical to my whole life to make sure I did everything I could to win the suits. I have a wife and kids and they are important but the deal would affect my whole life and their whole lives.. it was more important.
Because of the amount of work we did, the lawsuits were cleaned up the following year and we ended up making money. Enough to make it all worth it.
But I never got to take time off. Ever. When you step into battle, you can’t take a few days off.
You make a mistake by taking xmas off. You shouldn’t be spending time at these family functions. Your wife should understand that.
Frankly, it shows both your and her lack of understanding of the situation you are in and the impact it is going to have on your life and the lives of those around you.
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BT98
December 26th, 2006 at 11:45 am
Tim, from Monterey Bay area - boring
Come on! give it a rest with your spreadsheet mombo jumbo. It clobbed too much space on this page. Nobody cares about the details. We need brilliant ideas to get Casey out of this hole, not some dull spreadsheet to track his loses.
BT
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Jason
December 26th, 2006 at 12:17 pm
“You are some piece of work. I work for the govt and can name a half dozen people who will be working Sat, Sun, AND Mon. And no, we are not open on the weekend. They are working because the work needs to be done AND they won’t be getting any overtime for it. I know you won’t post this but I HAVE to say it.You are a lazy egotistical self centered worthless little shit with some sort of vague sense of entitlement. But man do I love the slow trainwreck that is your life.”
Sorry for their bad luck… I’d rather be in Casey’s shoes then slaving away for the big man…Grow some balls and take a chance everynow and then…You like watching this blog because Casey is everything you wish you were.. kinda living vicariously I assume…..
Damn Republicans…Clinton in ‘08
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sean-sisb
December 26th, 2006 at 12:28 pm
dumbfounded’s post near the top is quite possibly the most hilarious post I have ever read.
Cheers, mate
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Craven Moorehead
December 26th, 2006 at 1:51 pm
Your goals on your intro: “Trying to avoid foreclosure, sell quickly, repay everyone, and blog my lessons to help others in trouble.”
Any sane person would say you haven’t come close to hitting any of these. The only thing you’ve done is blogged but I doubt anyone has learned anything from you other than what a LOOSER you are. Heck, you can’t even get up at by 6 a.m. Mr. early riser.
I suggest easier to attain goals. Breathing, bodily functions, long naps and late night “work sessions.” Drop us a line when you finish up your guilt free “vacation.”
Love ya, mean it.
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Back To Work
December 26th, 2006 at 1:57 pm
Casey,
Back To Work!!
You’ve had about 5 days off (not counting 75% of the last couple of months).
So, how’s the good fight against foreclosure going?
Have you got the Utah situation all settled by now?
At least opened the mail?
Spreadsheet in process?
??
Yeah - that’s what I thought …
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Gordon
December 26th, 2006 at 2:01 pm
Just notices a website you might check out… www.prosper.com .
I dont know if it will help but you might give it a shot. It might be your only chance to get yourself a few more months.
Hope you had a great Christmas
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Back To Work
December 26th, 2006 at 2:28 pm
Casey,
Someone asked you the question below about the NM house on November 7. You never answered their question. What’s happening with this house? It’s your best one and highest priced one, so it should be getting your attention.
“What has the activity been on the NM house? Many showings? How do the recent comps look? ”
Casey - ignoring your problems won’t make them go away.
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LostCause
December 26th, 2006 at 5:33 pm
While you were out, Casey:
Have you figured out how much equity you lost? How about how much interest that you have to pay? Time is money!
You reallly are a trend setter: way ahead of the curve. There must be thousands of people like you. And most economists are still talking about soft landing. A swift correction is not in the cards. The bleeding could last for years.
I went to San Diego. Very pretty. Amazing how ugly the real estate market it is already. And South Orange County. So many condos, still half completed. Ouch.
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Casey Serin
December 26th, 2006 at 5:41 pm
I tried to get back into the swing of things today… but it didn’t go too well. I shouldn’t be saying it here because I’m just asking for angry comments, but I think it is still better than not saying anything at all.
This blog is supposed to be about reality. And reality has been a little tough in the last couple of days / weeks. The holidays distracted me from the feelings of depression and helpless I have been feeling lately.
I know I need to just stop whining and get to work on solving my problems. But it has been very hard to motivate myself lately. I normally am a very positive and proactive person. So it has been extra tough for me because my self esteem is being afected.
By the way, I want to appologize about “trading time for money” comment I wrote in Russian. Not many people understand that my goal has been to reach financial independence where I have enough passive income coming in from investments / assets / busineses that I can retire early = stop trading time for money.
I’m not sorry for having such a goal though. I am still determined to achieve it. I think its a very smart thing to do. And it’s not “get rich quick” because that implies a greedy attitude or doing something shady . It’s get rich quicker… whether its 1, 5 or 10 years from now. Everybody should be worried about how they are going to retire because the government is not going to be there to save you like in the past. I am just getting a head start on securing my retirement with my goal, that’s all.
Anyway… What I am sorry about is using a phrase such as “Are you financially successful? Are you still trading time for money?” loosely without explaining what I’m referring to like I just explained above.
See when people hear that kind of thing from me they think I’m some lazy/greedy guy who is against having a job. They don’t understand that what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.
So I’m sorry for not explaining myself properly.
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WTF????
December 26th, 2006 at 5:55 pm
Jason
yeah, Casey is my hero. Can you even conceive of how ignorant your statement is? What is ballsy and brave about trying to lie steal and cheat your way through life and then failing so completely? And then having the arrogance to “educate” the world through your mistakes? If thats your idea of how to live life, I’ll keep my little 9 to 5 gig.
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Coyote Investor
December 26th, 2006 at 6:26 pm
Casey Serin: “I know I need to just stop whining and get to work on solving my problems. But it has been very hard to motivate myself lately.” [the last three + months]
The gap between these two statements is called REALITY.
“They don’t understand that what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.”
It is abundantly clear that you are unfamiliar with very hard work. You don’t own anything accept fistfulls of i.o.u.s, aka mortgages, credit cards and personal loans. You own negative assets that are growing in the wrong (negative) direction. You are racing away from your stated goal as quickly as is humanly possible.
Wake up Casey.
I repeat myself, as does everyone offering you sound advice: you must see a credit counselor, a legal advisor/lawyer and a marriage counselor. NOW.
Merry Christmas and happy new year.
Do it today.
First thing.
It is over.
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Absolutely Amazing Attitude
December 26th, 2006 at 6:32 pm
Your comment quoted below is the first truly honest and real comment I think I’ve ever heard from you … (but - read my next post)
“I tried to get back into the swing of things today… but it didn’t go too well. I shouldn’t be saying it here because I’m just asking for angry comments, but I think it is still better than not saying anything at all.”
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Absolutely Amazing Attitude
December 26th, 2006 at 6:37 pm
… but then you go and ruin my brief positive impression of you by getting all delusional again. Geez!!!
“what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.”
So, tell me, when does the hard work start for you? When are you going to buy something with your own money?
Looks to me like you’ve already found / created that place where you don’t work.
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Absolutely Amazing Attitude
December 26th, 2006 at 6:42 pm
You say:
“I know I need to just stop whining and get to work on solving my problems.”
I say:
JUST F***ING DO IT!! Just quit endlessly talking about it over and over and over again. Talk is cheap…..
Your New Year’s resolution should be - “In 2007, I’ll grow up, become an adult, act responsibily and take action.”
Based on my experience with others your age and what I’ve seen from you, I honestly think it’ll take you 3 to 5 years to get there.
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Ethical Realtor in DC
December 26th, 2006 at 6:54 pm
Gift cards? If I were a relative, i may have considered a little debt forgiveness, but not sure I’d give you psuedo-cash when you are failing to pay back friends and family and financial institutions…
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T
December 26th, 2006 at 6:55 pm
Why are you so allergic to work? You’re a young guy, surely you’ve got a good 10 or 20 years in you to invest in a career, make some money, invest wisely, and THEN retire early. Why do you need to worry about retirement now?
Because you’re LAZY, that’s why. You want the PRIZE (retirement) before you do any of the work that’s required to EARN that prize.
The more you post, the more disgusted I become. But at least now I’ve figured out what your major malfunction is: You, my friend, are extremely lazy.
I think you deserve every bad consequence that you’ve got coming to you.
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Crashlander
December 26th, 2006 at 6:58 pm
This blog is now a humor blog. Casey you should treat it as such with sideline of reality.
Someone make a flash game with casey and houses and he’s flipping them that would be sweet! hehe
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Hater
December 26th, 2006 at 7:43 pm
Retiring early doesn’t usually occur that early. 24? Aim for something closer to 40. A lot of successful people are just 2 years out of college or just wrapping up a grad degree at 24. It takes a good ten years of working very long hours to build up enough wealth to retire by 40, but it is possible.
Try reading some other blogs written by real REI people, not the ‘gurus’. There are a few that are getting by during this rough time, but it is far from easy. Forget the 9-5 M-F routine.
BTW, you are looking really rough in that picture. I think you’ve aged 5 years since September. It shows in the bags under your eyes. And those gifts, well, they kind of suck. Batteries with a post-it note attached? Gift cards to Jamba Juice and bookstores, so you can possibly get more RK books? Are they laughing at you when you open these gifts? I would love to be there when you aren’t around to hear what they say about you.
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Absolutely Amazing Attitude
December 26th, 2006 at 7:46 pm
You said: “This blog is supposed to be about reality.”
Why start now??
Keep chasing sweet deals - you have to find a very creative way out of your mess. Don’t let traditional reality intrude - there is no way in normal ‘reality’ that this won’t end badly for you.
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japaul777
December 26th, 2006 at 10:13 pm
Casey,
Make sure you apply for the next season of “The Apprentice”. You’ve got my vote!
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BT98
December 26th, 2006 at 10:30 pm
Casey,
Oh boy, I wrote a lot of words then deleted them. In my mind you are a hopeless gambler and there is nothing anybody can say to change you. You have to seek professional help to treat your addiction.
BT
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doitcasey
December 26th, 2006 at 10:41 pm
Ding Dong-Will someone get the door?
“Shut up! TMI>You go on and on about nothing. A true hater.
Give it a rest. What ARE you on anyway?”
Ummm…why don’t you shut up? A true Casey on his bouncing blue balls lover. Why don’t you give it a rest with this hater moniker, you don’t seem like much of a lover with your comments about me you hypocrite. What am I on? Isn’t it obvious…I’m hyped on jamba juice and stuffed with macaroni grill goodness! I woke up early Christmas and decided to reward myself. Now bounce on outta here on your blue ball…..
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babyfrankie
December 26th, 2006 at 11:41 pm
happy holidays casey! good luck this coming year. there’s always hope.
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bo bo
December 27th, 2006 at 12:49 am
casey,
if your family loved you, they would give you St. Joe’s statues.
google it.
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Miguel
December 27th, 2006 at 12:54 am
“Miguel ..if jesus would despise a person like casey…why would he create him in the first place? ”
Because I was talking about the historical figure Jesus Christ from the 1st century AD, not some omnipotent deity who goes round creating people.
In any case, that’s a nonsensical argument. If this “Jesus” created Casey Serin, he also presumably created Timothy McVeigh, Ted Bundy, the Unabomber and possibly Saddam Hussein (though being a Muslim he may have been created by someone/thing else). Are you saying we shouldn’t despise ANYONE?
I judge people by their actions, not by some yardstick set by religious mumbo-jumbo.
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sisb (sean)
December 27th, 2006 at 1:27 am
CASEY:
“I said I was going to take a break from blogging (and told my wife I will) but I am not sure if moderating comments qualifies as that. I have kept it to a minimum though. ”
A break from blogging means a break from blogging. It means you unplug and avoid it entirely for the committed duration.
That’s like a drinker who says, “I was going to take a break from drinking (and told my wife I will) but I am not sure if moderate drinking qualifies as that. I’ll have to keep my drinking to a minimum though.”
Casey, most of the readers here know that you like to chase a high. It doesn’t matter if it is business or blogging. You like the feeling of altered consciousness that you get when you blog (a form of escape and repention of past sins) and when you chase those silly “sweet deals”.
You don’t accept this world nor the rules within it. Somehow you are removed, almost disassociated.
When faced with facts (many of which were introduced by the readers of this blog), you choose to meticulously believe in your own reality and you are unweilding to the influence of others. You trust your “gut” too much when it is your conscious mind that is responsible for the denial of reality.
You’d probably do well in a cult, or a cult-like religion like scientology and mormonism. Many of those people, especially recent converts, really want to believe in something. Anything. Anything that makes sense within this world. You, too, Casey — you desperately want to believe that there is a purpose for your life. That you are destined for great things.
But you realize deep down that there is a good chance that there isn’t much purpose in life. Logically, even if you become the most powerful man in the world, your life will hold a purpose only for a brief period of time. That purpose will be limited, no matter what you do or who you become. Whether you become a stock broker, investment banker, billionaire, a nobel prize winner, there is a 99.999% chance that you will be forgotten a thousand years from now and a 99.99% chance that you will be forgotten 100 years from now.
I truly believe that most of the anxiety that people feel today is a result of an inherent fear of death. I believe that most people *deep down* do not believe in an afterlife or a god. Unconsciously they do not believe it, but consciously they so wish for an afterlife, an excuse to slug it through for their remaining years. This conflict, quite Freudian in nature, causes much anxiety in the individual. At times, this anxiety can develop into a full blown neurosis which can take the form of an addictive personality or a myriad of other disorders.
An addict, in the desire for a high that excedes the statistical norms for human experience, will become addicted to the substance that alters the conscious enough to exceed these statistical norms. But why would one desire to alter one’s mind in such a way? The reason is the anxiety experienced in the unconscious realization that *most likely* there is no rational purpose to life and *most likely* when you die, that’s it. To curb this painful anxiety, a person with an “addictive personality” seeks to alter their consciousness in order to develop a new reality that challenges the reality held by the unconscious mind. It is a desperate attempt to find purpose and meaning.
Thus, Casey, your unbridled optimism is linked to your unconscious fear of death. It is defense mechanism for anxiety. It is a reality created by you when you were young to deal with and make sense of the conflicts you experienced in your environment. Your optimism gives you a sense of purpose and hope.
But I must argue, Casey, that this optimism is simply an outlet for anxiety (stemming from a fear of death) and is responsible for some of the erroneous choices you have made in your life. This optimism competes for resources with your rational mind. Your rational mind would have prevented you from making at least some of these financial mistakes. It also brings you closer to a conscious realization and acceptance of what your unconscious mind already believes: that there is no purpose in life and that when you die, that’s it.
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sisb (sean)
December 27th, 2006 at 1:51 am
“See when people hear that kind of thing from me they think I’m some lazy/greedy guy who is against having a job. They don’t understand that what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.
So I’m sorry for not explaining myself properly. ”
No Casey, we get it. We’ve known that’s what you’ve believed for the past few months. Unfortunately for you, though, that there are many events in life that you can’t control and probability has a lot to do with one’s success in life. You might very well be retired in four years (to do what, street preaching?) or you might also be working until you are seventy. Either outcome is statistically unlikely. It is more probable that just like everyone else, you’ll have to bust your ass for thirty years, get by, and have enough to retire by the time you are in your 60’s.
The Average is a very strange beast and is quite magnetic. Although studies have shown that higher IQ’s correlate to higher incomes, the higher incomes aren’t much higher than the average. The Average is a strange attractor and like the concept of particle entanglement, engages in spooky action at a distance. What this means is that no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, you are likely to “dither” around the average. Since you are obviously more intelligent than the average person, you are more likely to “dither” 1 to 1.5 standard deviations above the mean. That is a harsh reality, isn’t it?
Like Texas Hold’em, there are a limited number of “outs” based on a current financial position. The more wealth you have, the more outs you have. However, obtaining the necessary amount of wealth to create a non-linear growing number of outs is the hardest part. This is where probabilities and the non-linear dynamics of our capitalistic economic system come into play. The system is such that the odds are extremely unlikely that you’ll have enough “outs” and thus be able to retire early. Fortunately, the odds do exist, but unfortunately, only for a small number
of people. There probably is a relationship to the number of outs one has and their ability to assume financial risk. The fewer outs, the more risky a financial maneuver becomes. Similarly, a low number of outs means that you are more likely to have to borrow money to leverage your position. Most Entrepreneurs are in this state. Most of them end up assuming too much risk and do not make it.
Think of American Idol. It is a great show to watch because in real time you witness the mass delusion that is a result of optimism gone awry. The vast majority of contestants do not have any talent and are funny to watch. Even within the top ten, most can sing well and have some stage presence, but only the best of the best can become number one. Entrepreneurship is similar. Most people who wish no longer to trade their time for money at their own exploitation and expense are like the contestants on American Idol. The majority of them will not make it. They believe they have what it takes to beat all of the odds that are against them and consequently, assume too much risk. Only the entrepreneurs with the best ideas and the most drive succeed, and out of these, most succeed only moderately.
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Hi...I'm Dolph DeRoos
December 27th, 2006 at 3:23 am
T: Don’t be a “hater” now. Casey doesn’t work so he can make all the sweet deals he can.
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Aaron
December 27th, 2006 at 3:37 am
Casey,
Stop quoting the f’n gurus. Regurgitating what they have brainwashed you with won’t solve your problems. Go:
1) get a good bankruptcy attorney
2) a good criminal attorney
3) marriage counseling
4) new brain
OK so number 4 is out of the question but stop being so LAZY. You have not done any hard work your entire life.
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Jilly
December 27th, 2006 at 4:11 am
Hi Casey,
If I were you I would file bankruptcy asap. You have enough life left to take advantage of at least 3 more RE cycles. You can still cut your losses.
Any “creative” ways of getting out of this is just a shell game that you are playing with yourself.
The blog may generate a pittance of income but your story will evnetually come to an end with bankruptcy and foreclosure - then so will the traffic, the ads, and the trickle of income from whatever PPC you use.
Your initial idea was to help others in your situation. There’s really nothing helpful on this site to someone facing foreclosure.
Your blog has turned into a side show at a circus. You are fodder for the haters. A legit audience will never stay tuned without helpful content and there is none here.
Get help and by all means take down this blog. It’s just another one of your distractions.
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Austerity
December 27th, 2006 at 4:22 am
“…Not many people understand that my goal has been to reach financial independence where I have enough passive income coming in from investments / assets / busineses that I can retire early = stop trading time for money…”
I am afraid that you have traded (other people’s) money
for some time; the only question is how much “time”
you will get.
10 years?
20 years?
But ,with time-off for good behavior it might
be less….
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Jozsibacsi
December 27th, 2006 at 5:02 am
You wrote, “I’m not sorry for having such a goal though. I am still determined to achieve it. I think its a very smart thing to do. And it’s not “get rich quick” because that implies a greedy attitude or doing something shady . It’s get rich quicker… weather its 1, 5 or 10 years from now. Everybody should be worried about how they are going to retire because the government is not going to be there to save you like in the past. I am just getting a head start on securing my retirement with my goal, that’s all.”
Debts in excess of 2 millions dollars, lack of a plan, and lack of discipline sound more like a milstone around the neck than a head start. Can you at least try to find out what is going on with your Utah property? It sounds like that should be a priority. Also, you might consider hiring an accountant to help you get a clear financial picture of your situation. It could take weeks or months to do this on your own, and you cannot afford to waste any more time.
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Sandra Rose
December 27th, 2006 at 6:06 am
Everyone answering this Blog do you wonder why it is taking so long to foreclose on Casey’s propeties? I sure am? Something is amiss here?
Gypsy
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Coyote Investor
December 27th, 2006 at 6:28 am
Here is a site that has a listing for a house in the same neighborhood as Casey’s in New Mexico.
http://www.fsbonm.com/southwes....._no=492048
As you can see from the pics it is comparable in space and location. They are asking $352,900. I visited it online last week and I remember the price as $368,900 or thereabouts. Either way the difference from Casey’s property is north of $165,000. This is the painful reality of buying at the peak of a speculative bubble. All those tulips and nowhere to plant them.
BK now.
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Granite Counter Flop
December 27th, 2006 at 7:58 am
“And it’s not “get rich quick” because that implies a greedy attitude or doing something shady .”
Well it’s good that you’ve stuck to your guns and not done anything greedy like buying multiple houses you could not afford in an attempt to make yourself as rich as fast as possible, or say lying on loans to get those houses.
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Jimmy Jazz
December 27th, 2006 at 8:05 am
Casey,
The people who are truly successful in life are the ones who work harder than the rest! You are wasting your time listening to con artists like Kiyosaki—whom, incidentally, someone needs to expose as the fraud that his is—and trying to get rich quick in real estate. You know what the Bible says about work: that he who is skilled in what he does will serve before kings!
When you are great at what you do, this whole idea of “working for the man” and all that other nonsense goes out the window. Why? Because with a little talent and a whole lot of smart, hard work you will BECOME the man!
It doesn’t matter what field you are in, it doesn’t matter what you do for a living, if you are GOOD at what you do, and you show energy and passion for it, you will rise to the top.
That said, why don’t you throw yourself into becoming the best programmer you possibly can! Or instead of this pathetic nickel and dime blog, why don’t you write your story including the wisdom you’ve attained as a book. There’s a lot of books that talk about how to become rich in real estate but I’ve never seen one that talks about the pitfalls to avoid. You could be the first to blaze a new trail.
Casey, I admire your entrepreunerial spirit; I am not much older than you and I would have never had the courage to attempt what you did at 24. By the way, I think if you had started flipping two or three years earlier you would probably be a millionaire by now just because of the market during those years.
God bless you!
J.J.
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Sam
December 27th, 2006 at 8:27 am
Did you get arrested???
Did a government entity seize your computer?
Homey DA Clown please inform the rest of us.
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BT98
December 27th, 2006 at 8:34 am
financial independence … passive income … retire early … trading time for money.
I’m not sorry for having such a goal though. I am still determined to achieve it. I think its a very smart thing to do. And it’s not “get rich quick”
What a bunch of BS. What have you achieve lately instead?
financial poor house … massive debt … negative cashflow … may die young … trade debt for time, but rope is getting shorter and tighter.
You are not sorry? You still not able to fathon how big the hole you have digged yourself into.
Admit your errors is the first step towards healing. You are greedy (want something for nothing), lazy (don’t want to do real work), fool (pay 35K for BS) and dishonest (lie and cheat to borrow money).
You are not trying to make a honest living. You lie and cheat on loan application; you don’t want to work 9-5; you borrow from family and friends and don’t repay; you listen to lie and deceit from those dream sellers. you a lazy and wicked man. You will get what you deserve.
I am not a hater, but my compassion for your situation is wearing out for you have not recognized your wicked ways.
Unless you admit, repent, and turn from your wicked ways, you are hopeless and nobody can help you. You have to help youself to a certain point so that others can help you.
Keep saying you are right/smart/have right intensions/will keep doing what you are doing/intend to pay back every dirty penny does make your situation worse. People will see you as a joke and treat this site as a bad humor. You will lose the opportunity to get any good and honest ideas.
BT
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Jim
December 27th, 2006 at 8:37 am
Looosing …. conciousness …..
CASEY!! GIVE US THE DIRT ON THESE HOUSES!
How low have you reduced the asking prices? What offers have come in?? Did you get any certified letters yet?
What sweet deals are you looking at? Tell us!! We need numbers, details, we want the dirt!!
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Robert Kiyosaki
December 27th, 2006 at 9:08 am
Casey,
Hire an arsonist and have (him or her) burn your homes to the ground, then hand the keys over to your insurance company.
Piece of cake! ;-)
Bob
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Robert Coté
December 27th, 2006 at 9:13 am
“I tried to get back into the swing of things today… but it didn’t go too well. I shouldn’t be saying it here because I’m just asking for angry comments, but I think it is still better than not saying anything at all.”
Let’s break this down into bitesized chunks.
“I tried to get back into the swing of things today…”
Tried and failed. If failure is so hard to acknowledge in the little things imagine the self-delusion that is going on with the bigger things. Take the small step. Admit you screwed up today. If this sounds like a technique out of addiction recovery self-help books, it isn’t coincidence.
“… but it didn’t go too well.”
[In my best Johhny Carson audience voice:] How bad was it? If you cannot analyse the little things that went wrong today how can you address the big things? Did you waste the day googling your wife’s name to make sure she wasn’t being implicated? Did you lie in bed? Did you check for XP updates and install a fresh copy of Flash? Or did you do research on realtor dot com checking comps on the NM house, or latest consolidation loans from the distress lenders? None of these take any longer than it took to post and certainly lot less than it takes to moderate the comments.
“I shouldn’t be saying it here because I’m just asking for angry comments…”
Especilly since eyeballs and clicks no longer matter. But the real problem here isn’t the negative comments, it is how you deal with them. How many posts of the haters are of the “Why didn’t you listen?” variety. A 30 min visicalc two weeks ago would hve saved at least a hundred comments. A 30 minute excel 2 months ago would have saved $50k. A 1-2-3 last year would have saved $400k.
There is anger out there, anger you refuse to defuse. If you found out someone was using your credit card would you be angry? Anyone with a credit card the same originator as yours IS paying for your behavior. Don’t mistake deserved anger with anything else.
“…but I think it is still better than not saying anything at all.”
And when was the last time one of your decisions worked out? Decision to get up early? Reward with a debit card overdraft? Signing away story rights? Wrap management? Auto purchase? Foreclosure? Decisions to not open the mail? How are your descisions working out sport?
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Cara
December 27th, 2006 at 9:43 am
“Hard work” is not sitting in an office pushing paper, occasionally, when you feel like it. It’s not flying back and forth to look at houses and getting a hand cramp signing loan papers. It’s not sitting and typing blog entries.
Hard work is when you get up at 5:00 EVERY MORNING, without a Mom or wife making you, to do what has to be done to feed yourself and your family. Hard work is when your schedule changes every week and you function on no sleep because it has to be done. Hard work is wheeling loads of bricks around, carrying sheetrock, cutting down trees and piling wood in the pickup so you can keep your family warm through the winter.
VERY hard work is when you do all that for ten hours and still get three kids off to school and keep up the housework and grocery shopping and yard maintenance and help the kids with their homework and find a little time to play with them, too.
Office work CAN BE very hard and draining, but not the way you do it.
I’d really like a reply to this particular post, Casey. What have you done that YOU think is “hard work”?
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Do Your Own Thing
December 27th, 2006 at 10:03 am
Casey,
This made me think of you perhaps you are not being yourself and need to reevaluate how you got in this spot and where you go now. You have unique skills and talents and it is highly likely you are trying to make yourself something you are not and need to find your true calling.
Be Yourself
Be yourself. Life’s too short to be anything else. Paul said “I have finished my course.” You can only win if you run on the track God gave you. To run any other kind of race is to lose.
Perhaps you remember the movie Catch Me If You Can. It’s based on a true story. Frank Abagnale, Jr. lived a wild and crazy life as a doctor, airline pilot, banker, investor, attorney and celebrity. The irony is, he wasn’t any of those. And even though he deserves an academy award for his portrayal of them, he was a fake, a fraud and a pretender. It all began
early in his life when he realised he’d the talent to convince people he was “somebody” through his sheer confidence and acting ability. He began to make money at his game and soon found himself addicted to role playing. Before it was over he’d helped perform surgery in an operating room, conned banks out of thousands of dollars, flown an aeroplane as a
pilot, and gone places most people only dream of going. The problem was - it was all a show. A few years into it he wanted out. The glamour was gone. He was desperate to come clean. But he had created such a web of deceit that it wasn’t easy. The FBI was onto him, and he ended up spending years in prison. Frank had a great talent, but he wasted it pretending to be someone else.
God can only bless you when you’re committed to being what He redeemed and called you to be. To live any other way is to be lonely, fearful and unfulfilled. So, be yourself!
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invest3
December 27th, 2006 at 10:16 am
“See when people hear that kind of thing from me they think I’m some lazy/greedy guy who is against having a job. They don’t understand that what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.”
Have you ever worked? Tell us what your AGI is for each of the past 5 years. Have you ever made over $10k? Real estate is for two groups- investors with equity and gamblers/speculators. You are nothing more than a gambler and a flim flam man. Until you realize that your illusions and wealth fantasies will never materialize with out earned cash to build on you will continue to always be one of life’s big losers. How does it feel knowing that some bum sleeping on the streets of San Francisco has a larger net worth than you? Money talks, BS walks.
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Steohanie J.
December 27th, 2006 at 11:09 am
Shh.. Everyone, stop… Listen…
You hear that?
It’s the sound of Denial.
It’s getting louder and louder; like an oncoming train.
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Craven Moorehead
December 27th, 2006 at 11:14 am
You said “It’s get rich quicker… weather its 1, 5 or 10 years from now.”
I think you should be worried about getting to zero in the next few years vs. getting rich in a few years. Oh, and it’s “whether” you loOser.
You said “I am just getting a head start on securing my retirement with my goal, that’s all.” That’s hilarious. Which seminar told you to go $500k in the hole with no job or skill? You’re doing a good job securing a retirement but for the gurus, loan brokers, etc.
You said “they don’t understand that what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.” Just curious, when does the very hard work begin? And when will your properties begin producing income? I’ll give you a hint….NEVER.
I would go on but Absolutely Amazing Attitude, Cayote, WTF, and others have pretty much summed up how most sane bloggers feel.
Go back and read some blog comments from a couple months ago. It’s the same (ignored) advice from different folks that have since jumped off the blog. Me, I’m here to the end.
Love ya, mean it.
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(the original) Voice of Reason
December 27th, 2006 at 11:40 am
“They don’t understand that what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.”
This further confirms what I’ve said about you before: you are totally and completely devoid of passion. Your sole goal in life is to do nothing. Without passion in life there can never be any motivation.
Here’s a dose of reality for you: no one ever suceeded who wasn’t passionate about something in their life. You are totally bereft of any passion, and that explains why you have less motivation than a crack addict.
You want success, but more than that, you want it handed to you, just like everything else in your life has always been handed to you. This is the mark of a true loser.
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Tim from Monterey Bay Area
December 27th, 2006 at 12:32 pm
Yes, there are really “$1000 an hour” jobs out there, and Robert Cote points at one obvious example:
“But the real problem here isn’t the negative comments, it is how you deal with them. How many posts of the haters are of the “Why didn’t you listen?” variety. A 30 min visicalc two weeks ago would hve saved at least a hundred comments. A 30 minute excel 2 months ago would have saved $50k. A 1-2-3 last year would have saved $400k.”
This is the point several of us have been making, that “running the numbers” a year ago, even without any foreknowledge of the price declines in 2006, would likely have convinced a sober analyst NOT to undertake to buy 8 properties.
(Slight aside: Even for experience home rehabbers (skilled doityourselfers or experienced contractors), doing more than one house at a time is a big step. Even more so when the houses to be rehabbed are in Texas, Utah, and New Mexico and one lives in Sacramento. This would not easily show up in a balance sheet, but would be pretty obvious to anyone thinking ahead about how the actual rehabbing would be done. And the financial analysis would of course show various implications of houses being vacant, unrented, unsold…the carrying costs. Any rehabber needs to think about this just for a single house. Let alone two. Let alone 6 (gulp).)
The real value of doing the number-crunching a year ago would have been to show that the phony “gain” of “cash back at closing” was no different from just borrowing money.
It appears from what we have been told here that Casey has actually “made” a grand total of $30K in his 8 or so real estate purchases (I get a little confused about whether the condo is counted as one of his 8 purchases). And this $30K was for a condo purchased a few years ago and fixed up with the help of his father…the combination of still-appreciating prices and the elbow grease of doing the work themselves apparently allowed for this modest profit.
ALL of the later property purchases are either still underwater and facing foreclosure, or were sold in a somewhat dubious wrap-around which will not net any overall profit (and may still generate further losses, but maybe not), or were already foreclosed upon. Even the Calla Way “successful sale,” a year ago, was not really a clean sale, as Casey agreed to take on the buyer’s run-down house, which has been a boat anchor around Casey’s neck for the past year (Burdette, if I am remembering correctly). Put bluntly, it looks like the buyer of Calla Way got the better of the deal and Casey got screwed.
A spreadsheet or other simple accounting would have shown Casey that his “money back at closing” string of purchases was just a kind of pyramid scheme pulled on himself…he was getting deeper and deeper into debt with ever purchase.
Ironically, his inaugural posting here, where he launched the blog, lays it all out and basically says the same thing. In this sense, Casey has known what happened since at least this past September. Some of his interim comments (such as “we are blessed” and “look on the positive side” and “more sweet deals”) suggest he has forgotten his September realism, though.
So in several years of investing, Casey has made one actual profitable deal, the sale of his very first condo, and then a bunch of losing deals (still unfolding). Not exactly a “sweet thousand dollars an hour” history.
The real thousand dollar an hour jobs are the ones where a few hours’ worth of careful financial analysis heads of massive losses.
–Tim from Monterey
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Grouper
December 27th, 2006 at 12:49 pm
“Hire an arsonist and have (him or her) burn your homes to the ground, then hand the keys over to your insurance company.”
That’s called Jewish lightning.
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Loan Runner
December 27th, 2006 at 1:19 pm
Casey, I am having more and more trouble reading the comments that are being posted; constructive criticism is fine, but many of these people are pure haters for no reason at all. I am going through a storm of my own right now, and trust me..no one wants to feel bitter pain, helplessness and despair coupled with the uncertainty of the future. It amazes me that so many want you to fail, but would wish that everyone show them sympathy in the same situation. Just know when you come out of this, you will be THAT much stronger; and you will be a success story to the people who are afraid to take risks, and who accept the crumbs that they are given. No risk=no gain. Have a good holiday!
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Anon4
December 27th, 2006 at 1:35 pm
Today I showered in the morning and rewarded myself with some Jamba Juice. It’s the little things in life that keep me going.
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wealthyboomer
December 27th, 2006 at 1:35 pm
According to “The World Distribution of Household Wealth,” a report released last week by the United Nations, the richest 1% of the world’s adults own 40% of all global assets. The 37 million people who hold that 40% chunk all have a net worth of $500,000 or more. The report also concluded that the richest 10% of adults own 85% of global wealth, while 50% of the world’s adult population owns barely 1%.
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Miguel
December 27th, 2006 at 1:43 pm
“Here’s a dose of reality for you: no one ever suceeded who wasn’t passionate about something in their life. You are totally bereft of any passion, and that explains why you have less motivation than a crack addict.”
This nails it for me. Casey keeps talking about “sweet deals” and other things to do with the financial side of things, but at no point have I got the impression that he’s really passionate about fixing up houses, working decorative miracles on a tiny budget or any of the other things that explain why he’s picked this business and not, say, widget manufacture.
Has he even visited all of the houses that he “owns”? I’m guessing not. And I’m also guessing that a trip to Utah isn’t on his itinerary any time soon.
It should be.
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Ozzie Tim
December 27th, 2006 at 1:56 pm
G’day mates!
Ozzie Tim here.
Got some good oil for you.This blog’s supposed to be about you and your houses. Haven’y heard much about them for a few weeks now. That’s deadset.
You’re about cactus and you don’t even give us a glimmer of what’s going on! You’re porky with all pf your associates and after we all thought you were in jail you rock up with a flimsy story of techno difficulties. I think you went on a walkabout to find yourself and came back empty.
You need to come clean on what’s up now in order to hold interest.Nothing shonky or skite, just areal update. Alot of your “haters” are spewin because you haven’t provided substance. Sure we’re all a bunch of sticky beaks but that’s what’s got us here to begin with!
Now I’ll just ist here with my mates and a few tallies of amber fluid waiting for you to get back to basics.; We’ss se how long that takes!
Now THAT’s good oil!
(figjam…)
Hooroo. Ozzie Tim
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Robber Kiyosaki
December 27th, 2006 at 2:02 pm
People,
Easy, Since the houses are going to foreclosure soon, let’s have party in all of Casey’s abondon houses.. Let’s have fun.
We can make room for the dance floor…etc..
Let’s have fun for New Year///
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I Am Not Facing Foreclosure
December 27th, 2006 at 2:55 pm
Check this out everyone (Casey too). I have posted my January goals. Sweet.
http://iamnotfacingforeclosure.....r-january/
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WillPerk
December 27th, 2006 at 3:17 pm
Casey,
You’re okay.
The odds of you getting charged with much of anything are pretty slim. You didn’t help yourself with all the blogging . . . but you’re probably fine just the same.
The 2 million in debt is another one of those things that isn’t what people seem to be making it out to be. And you’re not getting further in debt by the second.
As each of those houses goes, “poof,” so does the loan doing the poofing. How do you get out of the $2 mil debt? You just let the houses foreclose and it’s effectively gone.
And bankrupcty, at this point, serves no purpose.
You don’t need to file bankruptcy. Now, that all changes when some judgment creditor is garnishing your wages or attempting to seize your assets, but having neither or either, there’s little chance that will happen and little bankruptcy can do for you.
Putting your head in the sand, ignoring all the silly shouting, and getting some sense of peace in your life are not bad things.
No guilt needed . . . you just took a shot.
You made some dumb mistakes, you are a bit confused about the real estate business, and you’ve got a lot to learn.
Not such a bad thing.
Round 2 . . .
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Fielding Mellish
December 27th, 2006 at 3:38 pm
Casey,
You need to learn about and more from this gentleman. He knows what he is talking about. You will see:
http://www.johntreed.com/realestate.html
Fielding
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Tim from Monterey Bay Area
December 27th, 2006 at 3:48 pm
Casey wrote:
“They don’t understand that what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.”
First, this is not what you have been doing. That is, you did not work very hard for a few years so you could buy income-producing assets. Rather, you started immediately and with the stated goal of _flipping_ properties, neither saving up money to put a decent amount down, nor even renting them out. The exact opposite of your quote above.
Second, while I did not see what work you were doing before this blog started, there is every indication that you did VERY LITTLE WORK on at least several of these properties. Unmowed lawns, weeds, trashed carpets, plumbing issues in the bathrooms…why are you not out at these properties every day swinging a hammer, laying new tile, etc.?
(Granted, I saw a new facade at the Angleridge property, though most of that work was lost in foreclosure. There’s a small chance some of the facade work will be reflected in a small increase in the eventual auction or sale price, and hence in less of a loss for the lender, and hence in less of either a bill to you for the loss or a 1099 taxable event. But mostly the work was a waste, unless it had been successful in very quickly selling the property, which it was not, obvously. Also granted, I saw a new kitchen in one of the California dumps. So you _did_ hire at least some contractors to do some work. But much work remains undone.)
Second, the real work is not even in the repair and rehab, but in the proper pricing of properties. That you are talking about “creative marketing” and “passing out fliers” (one of your action items for December) shows a naive approach to real estate…only unqualified buyers buy from fliers passed out at the local shopping centers.
Third, by buying 8 properties with zero money down you were just _gambling_ that you could fix-and-flip and somehow outsmart others far more experienced than you.
Fourth, from everything I can see, _YOU_ were the one who was outsmarted. Sorry to be harsh, but you were probably seen as a naive mark by all of the agents and sellers you saw. You paid too much, then deluded yourself into thinking your were “earning” $20K or $40K or whatever by the “cash back at closing.”
(A rule of thumb is that local real estate agents, while not always rocket scientists, usually understand house values, neighborhoods, etc. better than someone visiting the city for the first time. The agents in Dallas, Rio Rancho, Highland, and Modesto almost certainly could have spotted a value long before an outsider could. Unless an outsider brings some special skills or willingness to work very hard–such as by redoing the interior himself, as one of my relatives by marriage is willing to do–it is unlikely that any raging deals will be found. I know real estate agents who have bought special deals FOR THEMSELVES (for resale) when they encountered deals that were actually very good. And they had the benefit of many years working the neighborhoods nearby, knowing which deals were good and which were sucker bets.
Fifth, if you were serious (and understood what you wrote, as opposed to just typing some good-sounding platitudes about hard work) you would know that “working hard, saving, and getting income-producing assets” is not something doable by a 23-year-old (when you started) with no money down and an almost immediate “in the hole” massive debt.
(My jaw drops open when I try to figure out what was going through your mind when you added up the monthly payments you had obligated yourself to. Did you not realize the implications of owing $15,000 a month just in mortgage payments, plus some amount in credit card payments? How could you delude yourself into thinking that you were not going to crater?)
Lastly, as others have put it, you have a long way to go just to get back to ZERO. You are approximately $400K underwater, even assuming your properties are foreclosed upon or short-sold soon. While some of this may be discharged in a bankruptcy, or may not if the judge or other special master decides fraud was involved, some of this debt will likely NOT be discharged. In particular, credit card debt may be hard to get discharged.
Bankruptcy is not a “Get out of debt free” card. It can involve repayment schedules, court control of expenditures, and will likely have repercussions for many years.
Your fanciful idea a few weeks ago about somehow incorporating and getting more loans to pay off your personal loans was a silly diversion. It shows that you are not getting competent legal advice from any kind of bankruptcy attorney. And it distracted you for a couple of weeks (counting the cloud you were on as you went to Phoenix with dreams of more sweet deals and a “special deal” you said you couldn’t talk about at the time).
Fact it, you are so deeply underwater that you’ll be working hard at a cube job until you’re 30 just to get out from debts for which you have payment plans (including the IRS and FTB). Only then can you start saving and (maybe) acquiring income-producing assets.
This is the reality. Crunch the numbers. Do the math.
–Tim from Monterey Bay Area
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doitcasey
December 27th, 2006 at 3:48 pm
“They don’t understand that what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.”
Well you got the second part perfect…you are at a place where you aren’t working…
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Austerity
December 27th, 2006 at 4:06 pm
Phone call, Casey !
It’s ole man Potter!
Oh, well, it’s been a wonderful life!
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Austerity
December 27th, 2006 at 4:07 pm
But remember what Clarence said:
“No man is a failure who has CREDIT!”
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LostCause
December 27th, 2006 at 4:30 pm
The question should be “What is my net worth?” and “How much money do I need to break even every month?” If you don’t break even, eventually you will go broke. I wish I could say that you made only one mistake — like getting into flipping in a declining market. But really — you only have today to live, and every day you make mistakes. Not knowing your net worth today results in the helpless feeling. You are very smart to think about retirement at your age. It would be nice to be set for life. (But you would still work, if you were smart.) Financial independence is a worthy goal.
You are thinking about a $2M mountain of debt, but everybody has a gigantic mortgage. I think you have a $5k problem. That is what you need to get your cash flow positive every month: OK, maybe more than $5k. Even in a down market, you could rent those houses. You need to take control of your life, because others will take control for you if you don’t. Such as forclosure.
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doitcasey
December 27th, 2006 at 5:08 pm
Loan runner stated
“It amazes me that so many want you to fail” umm correction,,,he has already failed, wanting him to fail would imply that it is still a possibility.
“Just know when you come out of this, you will be THAT much stronger”
He could also come out of this much weaker, in terms of obtaining credit or getting future loans, but you pollyannas always forget about this more likely outcome.
“and you will be a success story to the people who are afraid to take risks, and who accept the crumbs that they are given. No risk=no gain.” You also forgot that no risk ALSO means no LOSS. Then again in your perfect world everything always comes out alright, but if that were true then he wasn’t really taking a risk was he?
Go buy some Rich Dad books…your attitude and brainless optimism are exactly the type of person that he caters to.
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Broward Horne
December 27th, 2006 at 5:54 pm
Tim, let’s take the “hater” thoughts off-line, email me direct and straighten it out -
broward@browardhorne.com
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T
December 27th, 2006 at 8:08 pm
Hi…I’m Dolph DeRoos said: “T: Don’t be a “hater” now. Casey doesn’t work so he can make all the sweet deals he can.”
My bad, Dolph. From where I was sitting, the deals appeared more sour than sweet. LOL
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Bubbers
December 27th, 2006 at 8:24 pm
Love Tim from MBA’s comment — Casey pulled a pyramid scheme on himself! That is the whole situation in a nutshell.
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schizoid
December 27th, 2006 at 10:27 pm
“So it has been extra tough for me because my self esteem is being afected.”
Self esteem is the root of your problem. You have too much of it.
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Tim from Monterey Bay Area
December 28th, 2006 at 9:55 am
“Love Tim from MBA’s comment — Casey pulled a pyramid scheme on himself! That is the whole situation in a nutshell.”
Thanks, but it’s not as succinct as the “taking pictures of the tsunami as it’s happening” line that someone had a month or so ago. That really captured the situation of the past 3 months. My comment is more about the first 6 months of 2006.
I wonder what’ll be the tagline for the next 3 months?
BTW, I hadn’t made the connection that “Tim from MBA” sounds like have an MBA, the degree. I don’t. Yveoynne (or whatever her name is) asked last week if I’m an “analyst.”
Not a full-time financial analyst, but math and physics was my education, my career, and much of my retirement years’ main activity. I’m used to crunching numbers, though I generally prefer more abstract things (like topology, vector spaces, category theory, etc.).
Anyone trying to start a business, or buy a bunch of investment or speculation items, needs to crunch the numbers. Whether on a sheet of paper or in a modern spreadsheet, the key is to see the cash flows, the monthly carrying costs, the return on investment (projected, not a certainty), and the various things that could go wrong.
The small potatoes stuff of saving all motel receipts is NOT what this kind of analysis is about (though of course all receipts and deductions should be noted, saved, filed).
But I’m beating a dead horse here.
–Tim from the Monterey Bay Area
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Mister B
December 28th, 2006 at 2:51 pm
“They don’t understand that what I’m trying to do is to work very hard for a few years and buy enough income producing assets so that I can get to a place where I don’t have to work.”
Then you entire investing strategy is wrong. Your method is to buy property and flip it almost immediately. Once this property is flipped you don’t earn anything. From what we have seen of your finances, whatever “profit” you make(from the first condo sale or your many, many, loans) disappears into a black hole very quickly. If you were planning to invest in bonds or dividend stocks we haven’t heard about it.
If you are truly serious about (semi)passive income generators you would have bought properties in good rental areas, i.e. university areas. What you need to realize is that your gross income from each property is quickly eaten up from the mortgage, HOA fees and upkeep. You also must work the investment; upkeep, cleaning once the tenants move out, actively seeking out renters. This isn’t a “sweet deal” by any means, but it’s a reasonable way to make money.
BTW there are very few “sweet deals” in real estate. The housing boom is over, you aren’t going to see double digit appreciation YOY anymore. Most of the sweet deals come from people who own land in a growing area, or people who invest in commercial RE and have political connections to know what properties the government is going to buy in the future.
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jt
December 28th, 2006 at 3:10 pm
Casey,
Don’t let these “loosers” bring you down. While you were out doing stupid stuff and getting into trouble trying to make a buck, this is what your “looser” haters were doing.
1. camping out at the bestbuy trying to score a ps3, posting it on ebay, not doubling the $600 investment and subsequently returning it.
2. wasting hours scouring the internet for shots of britney’s shaved punani.
3. sitting next to you in that guru class, making the same mistakes in this ponzi scheme and hating on you because at least you are high profile and might still profit from your mistakes, whereas their blog doesn’t get nearly as much traffic as yours.
*
Handsome Xmas Pic
December 29th, 2006 at 5:01 pm
That’s a very handsome xmas picture, especially with your hair back like that — the camera loves you.
cheers!
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About
- Casey Serin
- I'm a 24-year-old aspiring real estate investor from Sacramento CA. After going to few seminars I bought 8 houses in 8 months across 4 states with no money down. I fixed and sold 2 and then ran out of cash. I am now facing foreclosure on 6 houses. I'm learning my lessons, finding solutions and blogging about it. Comments appreciated!
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- Listening to People In Foreclosure
- Real Estate Investing College
- “Mistakes Are Only Sins When Not Admitted” -Robert...
- Why Should I NOT File Bankruptcy?
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- Renting a House in Foreclosure
- Investor Unable to Stop Foreclosure as Burdett Buy...
- I am Thankful for Facing Foreclosure
- My True Credit Score / FICO Score
- Finances Out of Control
- Update on Stopping Foreclosure
- Facing Foreclosure at a College Real Estate Class
- Why is My Credit Score So High?
- I Got a Real Estate Job!
- Flipping Houses in a Down Market?
- Investor Found Buyer to Stop Foreclosure on Burdet...
- Larchmont Dr 1st Lender Won’t Go Below 240 on a Sh...
- Facing Foreclosure Video #3
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- One of Those Days :-(
- Man, I Need a Real Job Or Something
- Have You Been Foreclosed Upon?
- Dallas House Now an REO
- Asking Prlinkbiz to Void The Contract
- Dallas Lender Received Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure
- What Really Happened in Phoenix
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- Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure Sent
- Live Call-in Show Tonight
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- Back Home from Phoenix
- On Rich Dad TV with Robert Kiyosaki
- More Facing Foreclosure Juice by Nigel Swaby
- Hard Money Lender Approved Deed in Lieu of Foreclo...
- Meeting Robert Kiyosaki Next Week!
- Big News to Come Later Today…
- Officially in Foreclosure: 12 Days Left for Dallas...
- Facing Foreclosure with a Sea of Mail
- Facing Foreclosure in USA Today
- To BK or not to BK… Moral Issues of Bankruptcy
- Nine to Five at My Rich Dad’s Office
- Facing Foreclosure on NPR Radio and KFI AM 640 Los...
- Overwhelmed by Despair and Pressure
- Burdett Short Sale approved at 248K
- Need Stable Income… Get a Job?
- Crazy Real Estate Accounting Mess
- Commenting on Facing Foreclosure
- Borrowed $3000 to launch a come back
- What’s Next? How can I help YOU?
- Facing Foreclosure As Seen on TV and San Francisco...
- Dallas Finally in Escrow… I Think
- House Raffle Sign-Up and Brainstorm
- Motley Fool: Greed Makes You Stupid
- Attracting Credit-Challenged Buyers
- I Want to Repay Every Dirty Penny I Borrowed… via ...
- $70,000/yr Job Fell Through!
- Burdett Lender is Playing Hardball
- Yes, I Lied on My Loans!
- Lenders Keep Bugging Me
- A Better Hardship Letter
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- No Judging! Just Surviving and Helpin’
- Stupid or Not, I will Keep Blogging… Carefully!
- Will I Go to Jail for Mortgage Fraud?
- Voice of San Diego Reports on My Story
- Is This a Scam? Goals for This Blog
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- Very Honest “For Sale By Owner” Sign
- Not Your Typical Flyer
- Some Advice I Received
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- Utah Property Staged and Wrapped!
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