Kiss off, 2008

lookout123 · 01-06-2009, 05:27 PM

Here is a little recap of 2008.

I am a small business owner. I make my living helping people make good financial decisions. That's painfully ironic considering where I'm at right now.

I left corporate world to form my own company in 2007. I do not regret that decision in any way. I do wish I'd avoided some of the potholes I created along the way. My accounting/legal pro's I had used and worked closely with for quite some time made some mistakes in setting up my corp. They advised, and I said "do it", so I hold the blame for all that followed. The mistakes in setting up the corp resulted in the company paying taxes in a manner for which it didn't qualify. Fast forward to the accounting/legal partnership dissolving which led me to a new team who immediately realized there were problems. Effectively I had paid taxes for a year as a corp, had filed as a corp, but really because of the screwups i owed as an individual. There are some other twists and turns in there, but that sums it up. The solution was rather expensive. I paid additional taxes, penalties, and fees to uncle sam. I also had to pay the new team to fix things. Those costs were pretty large and wiped out my business and personal reserves with a few strokes of the pen.

But done is done, right? Not so fast. A few years ago, while separated, I bought a house for Lil Lookout and me. Nothing outlandish, but certainly overpriced as all houses were at the time. Mrs L and I reconciled so LL and I moved back. I put the house on the market, knowing I would take losses on my improvements and have to lay out cash to payoff the mortgage if I sold, as the market had already dropped dramatically. I listed the house with a realtor who had a client going through a divorce willing to look at RTO or a month to month lease which was a perfect fit. She was someone I also knew from an extended aquaintance so felt secure. I was in negative cashflow, but that was just the way it was. My renter had my fully furnished house at a screaming deal but I had the security of knowing my renter was out if I found a buyer. No problem.

No problem at all, until my reserves were wiped out because of my company problems. With no reserves I wasn't in a position to pay off the short in the mortgage if I had a buyer so I pulled the house from the market and decided to keep it as a rental. The current renter wanted to stay on with a new long term, higher rent lease. She moved all utilities to her name. Still negative cashflow, but more acceptable.

I've worked strictly referral for years without much thought. My clients, while not thrilled with their recent returns understood they were beating the market and I had been prepping them for this year for some time so I haven't lost any clients. BUT because of the way my business is structured my fees have dropped dramatically. No big deal, the business is cyclical. Except my referrals dried up too. Again, predictable. I ramped up some programs to bring in new clients and have some successes there, but all said and done, my income for 2008 was 1/4 of my income from 2006. That's a kick in the teeth.

But that is life as a small biz owner. We cut expenses dramatically and stayed positive knowing we'll come through the other side as one of the survivors. I expect about 40% of advisors to wash out of business during this recession but I won't be one of them. That means I'll have access to a larger slice of the pie as clients seek advisors they can trust.

Then October came. My renter called to say the hot water heater wasn't working. I thought that strange because I knew it was a new heater, but went over after work to check it out with a plumber. The heater was fine, so no problem there. When I walked in the house it sounded like a hose spraying against aluminum siding. I checked all the appliances, showers, sinks, and found them all off. I knew then I had a pretty significant leak. I was surprised I didn't have sheetrock floating across the tile. As I tried to track the leak down, I knelt down to listen in front of my kitchen cabinets and my heart sank when my hands touched the floor. The tile was hot to the touch - clear indication of a slab leak. We don't have basements or cellars so the pipes are all underneath concrete slabs. When there is a leak, you drill up the slab, fix the leak and put in new flooring. Pretty damn expensive.

My renter had already given notice she was moving for work a week later. I spoke with her and explained the house was unliveable for 2-3 weeks while work was going on and she agreed to move earlier. I would refund the unearned rent and security deposit at moveout. With that I felt confident there would be no issues as she certainly needed the $2,000+ I would be returning to her. I was predictably wrong. She completely fucked the house and the furniture on the way out. I knew she wouldn't clean it, but I didn't expect dog (I hope) shit ground in the carpet, walls gouged, fixtures broken, furniture ruined. The water was shut off so they left me presents in each of the toilets. We aren't talking about some young dumbass here - this is a 40ish professional woman who runs in some pretty nice circles. Absolutely vile.

The carpet in every room is unsalvageable even though it was less than a year old. Apparently she didn't care about her money, or didn't believe me when I said I'd be giving it back to her.

I was pretty depressed not just about the money to repair the place, but also because I put countless hours of work into that house while going through my divorce and to see all my work destroyed was pretty hard.

But I got the calculator out and started crunching numbers. I ordered the plumbers out for the next week so I could get a new renter asap.

What else could possibly go wrong, right? The plumber answered that question. He ran tests so he'd know where to dig. The ground was too saturated to really do things right. There was no logical explanation for that level of saturation until I got my mail that day. The renter hadn't paid the water bill from the month before. Normally the bill should be $30-40. It was $294. Ironically she left me a vmail that same day asking for her deposit refund and telling me she got another water bill in excess of $300 which was too high for her to pay so she felt I should pay all but $30 of it. Uh huh.

All said and done what started as a small slab leak which would have resulted in noticeably reduced water pressure had been growing worse for more than two months. She had previously called me to tighten sprinkler heads so I know she would have called unless she just didn't give a shit anymore. She didn't call me until ALL the water was gone. The house is a total loss at this point. The trenches under the slab run all over the house and are filled in with sand before the the concrete is poured. The water ran for so long it oversaturated all the sand causing it to expand and push the slab outward. With the water shut off the sand dried and the slab is sinking back into the trenches. Tiles are snapped in half across the front. They are just randomly popping up in the back. The entire slab is ruined.

Good thing I have insurance, right? Yeaaaah, no. Because it is a maintenance issue (a leak) discovered before any damage to the house appeared(cracks, sheetrock, etc) it isn't covered. There is a lot of legal jargon that goes in here but my lawyer says there isn't much hope of getting them to pay up. Their lawyers are paid to make sure they don't have to pay stuff like this and all that jazz.

So where does that leave me? In a big fucking hole. The house will go back to the bank. I am out $90,000+ in real cash losses, the bank will be about out the same - actually you the taxpayers will be. I'm sorry. Seriously.

My credit is thrashed. My accounts are empty and there is seriously nothing left for me to do. I've played this one so close to the bone I'm actually accepting pay for coaching - something I'd always done for free before.

So is this thread just a bitch session so you'll feel sorry for me? Nah. Well, it's a bitch session but I'm not in need of pity. I made the decisions to put me here so I don't get to point and cry much. As bad as things look from my side of the fence I know others are in worse shape than I am. This thread is my official shoutout (mainly to myself but thanks for playing along) that 2008 sucked to the hilt but 2009 will be filled with complete awesomeness.

In short, my plan for the current economic disruption is this: put my head down and keep pulling. There are only two options. This too shall pass or I will. Either way, problem solved.

I still have a skilled trade and an operational company so I haven't lost my job. I just have to dig deep and be better at what I do. My wife and I are doing well. My kids are healthy. We still have our home. I've got some good friends who seem to like having me around. I love playing and coaching soccer. 2009 sounds like a year of opportunity to me - what more could I ask for?

lookout123 · 01-06-2009, 05:29 PM

Yeah, I know it's long but it felt good (in a sick sort of way) to type it out and see it in black and white. or blue-ish and gray-ish as the case may be.

Aliantha · 01-06-2009, 05:36 PM

Well I guess 2009 couldn't possibly be much worse financially huh?

Always nice to have your health and that of your family too.

It's good to count your blessings.

limey · 01-06-2009, 05:40 PM

Oohhhh, Lookout

! I know you're not looking for a pity party - but let's have one anyways!

Clodfobble · 01-06-2009, 05:42 PM

Wow, man. That just sucks. I guess when you bought the house there was no home warranty, and/or it had expired and/or it didn't cover pipe leaks? It seems like a really huge problem to suddenly happen out of nowhere, you would think something would have shown up during the home inspection, or something... [/talking out of my ass]

warch · 01-06-2009, 05:47 PM

Yikes! I've toyed with the idea of renting out property. Noooooo thankeee.

lookout123 · 01-06-2009, 05:47 PM

Home warranty doesn't cover slab leaks as they are unable to be inspected prior to purchase.

It didn't really happen out of nowhere. Chances are there had been some seepage for a long time but that is the norm, not the exception around here. Slab leaks aren't all that rare, really. The only reason this one became such a big issue is when the leak (the actual noticeable evidence) showed up she didn't notify me. Most people see a drop in pressure and start hearing a noise they look for a problem. She told the realtor that noise had been there for a while but she didn't think anything of it. So the trenches flood, and the rest is history.

I've always advised people not to be landlords if they've only got one or two properties because it can be pretty labor and time intensive, but I just happened to have had this house I couldn't sell, so...

Pooka · 01-06-2009, 05:53 PM

Unless my mother graciously buys us out of our house we may be forced to rent this house out as well. I totally feel ya... you may recall the ongoing foundation issues we've experienced... and plumbing... again ongoing... so I can kinda relate... not on the scale you've experienced, but enough to have a inkling of what you mean.

Lets banned together and decide that 2009 will be better than 2008 come hell or hot water?

monster · 01-06-2009, 06:03 PM

Well my 2009 sucks pretty bad so far so 2008 ain't looking so bad from this perspective.

Here's hoping it gets better for all of us. Except LJ 'cause he's a dork.

Cicero · 01-06-2009, 07:01 PM

Yah. I agree with monster's sentiments on this one. I have started my year putting out fires. Not everything that happened was my fault or decision, unlike lookout. Some of it was, but I am swimming currently in a new year of utter horse-puckey.

I have high hopes and actions,however, so it doesn't seem that gloomy. I just have some challenges to face.

Sorry to hear the news lookout! That's how I'm dealing with it, except my head is up and I keep pulling. I have a lot to live for. And I have a lot to live well for.

I sincerely wish better for you and yours!

footfootfoot · 01-06-2009, 07:33 PM

That sucks lookout. I'd check with another lawyer to be sure. I did a bunch of water damage renovation work for a lawyer. When the insurance adjuster was at the house trying to back out of covering the claim he asked the GC what theowner did for a living, "Is this guy a doctor?" "No, the GC said, he's a lawyer. He specializes in suing insurance companies."

Needless to say, the guy just folded right then and there.

remember there's always the flying bitchslap when the normal one doesn't cut it.

Nirvana · 01-06-2009, 08:13 PM

is all I can think to say but I am wishing for good karma to be flowing your way!

glatt · 01-06-2009, 08:48 PM

Lookout, that's a horrible story. You had posted some of it before, but I had no idea it was that bad.

Here's to 2009!

monster · 01-06-2009, 08:57 PM

Here you go, lookout, the bright side.......
1) it's not the house you and your clan live in. It is surplus to your requirements.
2) The money and credit rating maybe gone, but so are the hassles that came with being a landlord and the souvenir of a time when you and Mrs L were less happy together
3) You know that your current client list is solid and strong. all that happened is the chaff blew away. Now you are left with the seeds.
4) 2009, whilst not prime, is only divisible by 7 and 41, which are pretty cool numbers.
5) there's always the Dwellar NSFW thread.....

Pie · 01-06-2009, 09:15 PM

Lookout, I admire your attitude. Best wishes to you in this new year!

01-06-2009, 05:27 PM	#1
lookout123 changed his status to single Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Right behind you. No, the other side. Posts: 10,308	Kiss off, 2008 Here is a little recap of 2008. I am a small business owner. I make my living helping people make good financial decisions. That's painfully ironic considering where I'm at right now. I left corporate world to form my own company in 2007. I do not regret that decision in any way. I do wish I'd avoided some of the potholes I created along the way. My accounting/legal pro's I had used and worked closely with for quite some time made some mistakes in setting up my corp. They advised, and I said "do it", so I hold the blame for all that followed. The mistakes in setting up the corp resulted in the company paying taxes in a manner for which it didn't qualify. Fast forward to the accounting/legal partnership dissolving which led me to a new team who immediately realized there were problems. Effectively I had paid taxes for a year as a corp, had filed as a corp, but really because of the screwups i owed as an individual. There are some other twists and turns in there, but that sums it up. The solution was rather expensive. I paid additional taxes, penalties, and fees to uncle sam. I also had to pay the new team to fix things. Those costs were pretty large and wiped out my business and personal reserves with a few strokes of the pen. But done is done, right? Not so fast. A few years ago, while separated, I bought a house for Lil Lookout and me. Nothing outlandish, but certainly overpriced as all houses were at the time. Mrs L and I reconciled so LL and I moved back. I put the house on the market, knowing I would take losses on my improvements and have to lay out cash to payoff the mortgage if I sold, as the market had already dropped dramatically. I listed the house with a realtor who had a client going through a divorce willing to look at RTO or a month to month lease which was a perfect fit. She was someone I also knew from an extended aquaintance so felt secure. I was in negative cashflow, but that was just the way it was. My renter had my fully furnished house at a screaming deal but I had the security of knowing my renter was out if I found a buyer. No problem. No problem at all, until my reserves were wiped out because of my company problems. With no reserves I wasn't in a position to pay off the short in the mortgage if I had a buyer so I pulled the house from the market and decided to keep it as a rental. The current renter wanted to stay on with a new long term, higher rent lease. She moved all utilities to her name. Still negative cashflow, but more acceptable. I've worked strictly referral for years without much thought. My clients, while not thrilled with their recent returns understood they were beating the market and I had been prepping them for this year for some time so I haven't lost any clients. BUT because of the way my business is structured my fees have dropped dramatically. No big deal, the business is cyclical. Except my referrals dried up too. Again, predictable. I ramped up some programs to bring in new clients and have some successes there, but all said and done, my income for 2008 was 1/4 of my income from 2006. That's a kick in the teeth. But that is life as a small biz owner. We cut expenses dramatically and stayed positive knowing we'll come through the other side as one of the survivors. I expect about 40% of advisors to wash out of business during this recession but I won't be one of them. That means I'll have access to a larger slice of the pie as clients seek advisors they can trust. Then October came. My renter called to say the hot water heater wasn't working. I thought that strange because I knew it was a new heater, but went over after work to check it out with a plumber. The heater was fine, so no problem there. When I walked in the house it sounded like a hose spraying against aluminum siding. I checked all the appliances, showers, sinks, and found them all off. I knew then I had a pretty significant leak. I was surprised I didn't have sheetrock floating across the tile. As I tried to track the leak down, I knelt down to listen in front of my kitchen cabinets and my heart sank when my hands touched the floor. The tile was hot to the touch - clear indication of a slab leak. We don't have basements or cellars so the pipes are all underneath concrete slabs. When there is a leak, you drill up the slab, fix the leak and put in new flooring. Pretty damn expensive. My renter had already given notice she was moving for work a week later. I spoke with her and explained the house was unliveable for 2-3 weeks while work was going on and she agreed to move earlier. I would refund the unearned rent and security deposit at moveout. With that I felt confident there would be no issues as she certainly needed the $2,000+ I would be returning to her. I was predictably wrong. She completely fucked the house and the furniture on the way out. I knew she wouldn't clean it, but I didn't expect dog (I hope) shit ground in the carpet, walls gouged, fixtures broken, furniture ruined. The water was shut off so they left me presents in each of the toilets. We aren't talking about some young dumbass here - this is a 40ish professional woman who runs in some pretty nice circles. Absolutely vile. The carpet in every room is unsalvageable even though it was less than a year old. Apparently she didn't care about her money, or didn't believe me when I said I'd be giving it back to her. I was pretty depressed not just about the money to repair the place, but also because I put countless hours of work into that house while going through my divorce and to see all my work destroyed was pretty hard. But I got the calculator out and started crunching numbers. I ordered the plumbers out for the next week so I could get a new renter asap. What else could possibly go wrong, right? The plumber answered that question. He ran tests so he'd know where to dig. The ground was too saturated to really do things right. There was no logical explanation for that level of saturation until I got my mail that day. The renter hadn't paid the water bill from the month before. Normally the bill should be $30-40. It was $294. Ironically she left me a vmail that same day asking for her deposit refund and telling me she got another water bill in excess of $300 which was too high for her to pay so she felt I should pay all but $30 of it. Uh huh. All said and done what started as a small slab leak which would have resulted in noticeably reduced water pressure had been growing worse for more than two months. She had previously called me to tighten sprinkler heads so I know she would have called unless she just didn't give a shit anymore. She didn't call me until ALL the water was gone. The house is a total loss at this point. The trenches under the slab run all over the house and are filled in with sand before the the concrete is poured. The water ran for so long it oversaturated all the sand causing it to expand and push the slab outward. With the water shut off the sand dried and the slab is sinking back into the trenches. Tiles are snapped in half across the front. They are just randomly popping up in the back. The entire slab is ruined. Good thing I have insurance, right? Yeaaaah, no. Because it is a maintenance issue (a leak) discovered before any damage to the house appeared(cracks, sheetrock, etc) it isn't covered. There is a lot of legal jargon that goes in here but my lawyer says there isn't much hope of getting them to pay up. Their lawyers are paid to make sure they don't have to pay stuff like this and all that jazz. So where does that leave me? In a big fucking hole. The house will go back to the bank. I am out $90,000+ in real cash losses, the bank will be about out the same - actually you the taxpayers will be. I'm sorry. Seriously. My credit is thrashed. My accounts are empty and there is seriously nothing left for me to do. I've played this one so close to the bone I'm actually accepting pay for coaching - something I'd always done for free before. So is this thread just a bitch session so you'll feel sorry for me? Nah. Well, it's a bitch session but I'm not in need of pity. I made the decisions to put me here so I don't get to point and cry much. As bad as things look from my side of the fence I know others are in worse shape than I am. This thread is my official shoutout (mainly to myself but thanks for playing along) that 2008 sucked to the hilt but 2009 will be filled with complete awesomeness. In short, my plan for the current economic disruption is this: put my head down and keep pulling. There are only two options. This too shall pass or I will. Either way, problem solved. I still have a skilled trade and an operational company so I haven't lost my job. I just have to dig deep and be better at what I do. My wife and I are doing well. My kids are healthy. We still have our home. I've got some good friends who seem to like having me around. I love playing and coaching soccer. 2009 sounds like a year of opportunity to me - what more could I ask for? __________________ Getting knocked down is no sin, it's not getting back up that's the sin

01-06-2009, 05:29 PM	#2
lookout123 changed his status to single Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Right behind you. No, the other side. Posts: 10,308	Yeah, I know it's long but it felt good (in a sick sort of way) to type it out and see it in black and white. or blue-ish and gray-ish as the case may be. __________________ Getting knocked down is no sin, it's not getting back up that's the sin

01-06-2009, 05:36 PM	#3
Aliantha trying hard to be a better person Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 16,493	Well I guess 2009 couldn't possibly be much worse financially huh? Always nice to have your health and that of your family too. It's good to count your blessings. __________________ Kind words are the music of the world. F. W. Faber

01-06-2009, 05:40 PM	#4
limey Encroaching on your decrees Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: An island within the south-west coast of Scotland Posts: 7,016	Oohhhh, Lookout ! I know you're not looking for a pity party - but let's have one anyways! __________________ Living it up on the edge ... of civilisation, within the southwest coast of

01-06-2009, 05:42 PM	#5
Clodfobble UNDER CONDITIONAL MITIGATION Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 20,012	Wow, man. That just sucks. I guess when you bought the house there was no home warranty, and/or it had expired and/or it didn't cover pipe leaks? It seems like a really huge problem to suddenly happen out of nowhere, you would think something would have shown up during the home inspection, or something... [/talking out of my ass] __________________ My book My other book My spirit animal

01-06-2009, 05:47 PM	#6
warch lurkin old school Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Minnesota Posts: 2,796	Yikes! I've toyed with the idea of renting out property. Noooooo thankeee.

01-06-2009, 05:53 PM	#8
Pooka Your Invisible Rabbit Friend Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Betwixt and Between Posts: 528	Unless my mother graciously buys us out of our house we may be forced to rent this house out as well. I totally feel ya... you may recall the ongoing foundation issues we've experienced... and plumbing... again ongoing... so I can kinda relate... not on the scale you've experienced, but enough to have a inkling of what you mean. Lets banned together and decide that 2009 will be better than 2008 come hell or hot water? Last edited by Pooka; 01-06-2009 at 05:59 PM.

01-06-2009, 06:03 PM	#9
monster I hear them call the tide Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Perpetual Chaos Posts: 30,852	Well my 2009 sucks pretty bad so far so 2008 ain't looking so bad from this perspective. Here's hoping it gets better for all of us. Except LJ 'cause he's a dork. __________________ The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity Amelia Earhart

01-06-2009, 07:01 PM	#10
Cicero Looking forward to open mic night. Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: New Mexico Posts: 5,148	Yah. I agree with monster's sentiments on this one. I have started my year putting out fires. Not everything that happened was my fault or decision, unlike lookout. Some of it was, but I am swimming currently in a new year of utter horse-puckey. I have high hopes and actions,however, so it doesn't seem that gloomy. I just have some challenges to face. Sorry to hear the news lookout! That's how I'm dealing with it, except my head is up and I keep pulling. I have a lot to live for. And I have a lot to live well for. I sincerely wish better for you and yours! __________________ Show me a sane man, and I will cure him for you.- Carl Jung

01-06-2009, 07:33 PM	#11
footfootfoot To shreds, you say? Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: in the house and on the street-how many, many feet we meet! Posts: 18,449	That sucks lookout. I'd check with another lawyer to be sure. I did a bunch of water damage renovation work for a lawyer. When the insurance adjuster was at the house trying to back out of covering the claim he asked the GC what theowner did for a living, "Is this guy a doctor?" "No, the GC said, he's a lawyer. He specializes in suing insurance companies." Needless to say, the guy just folded right then and there. remember there's always the flying bitchslap when the normal one doesn't cut it. Attached Images __________________ The internet is a hateful stew of vomit you can never take completely seriously. - Her Fobs

01-06-2009, 08:13 PM	#12
Nirvana Back in 10 Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 3,684	is all I can think to say but I am wishing for good karma to be flowing your way! __________________ Speaking simply... do not confuse this with having a simple mind.

01-06-2009, 08:48 PM	#13
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	Lookout, that's a horrible story. You had posted some of it before, but I had no idea it was that bad. Here's to 2009!

01-06-2009, 08:57 PM	#14
monster I hear them call the tide Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Perpetual Chaos Posts: 30,852	Here you go, lookout, the bright side....... 1) it's not the house you and your clan live in. It is surplus to your requirements. 2) The money and credit rating maybe gone, but so are the hassles that came with being a landlord and the souvenir of a time when you and Mrs L were less happy together 3) You know that your current client list is solid and strong. all that happened is the chaff blew away. Now you are left with the seeds. 4) 2009, whilst not prime, is only divisible by 7 and 41, which are pretty cool numbers. 5) there's always the Dwellar NSFW thread..... __________________ The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity Amelia Earhart

01-06-2009, 09:15 PM	#15
Pie Gone and done Join Date: Sep 2001 Posts: 4,808	Lookout, I admire your attitude. Best wishes to you in this new year! __________________ per·son \ˈpər-sən\ (noun) - an ephemeral collection of small, irrational decisions The fun thing about evolution (and science in general) is that it happens whether you believe in it or not.

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)