MyTenSense.com

Being that we’re in desperate times, people are desperate to make money, especially salespeople.
I’m a salesperson, so I should know, but I have a conscience, and I cannot sell something to someone knowing that I wouldn’t buy it myself or that the person cannot really afford it. So it’s amazing that I’m the No. 1 producer for my insurance company.
But many salespeople don’t mind coaxing you into buying something you shouldn’t. Have you ever bought a car that you wish you could take back? Have you ever bought perfume you wouldn’t spray on your dog? Have you bought an expensive piece of clothing because the salesperson gave you such a great compliment?
I have. I bought a luxury sports car, but I returned it when I thought about how foolish I would be to pay $67,000 over the course of a six-year loan for a $39,000 car. Being a top insurance agent, I make enough to make the payments, but it would just be a foolish way to spend money in a recession.
In these times, you need to restrain yourself from needless purchases because the salespeople certainly won’t stop you.
I laugh when I think of how the finance guy assured me that the dealership operates so ethically and that he would speak up if he thought a person should not purchase a car. He sure didn’t speak up when I expressed reservations about buying the sports car in the first place. But he was gracious enough to take the car back, almost two weeks later with over 2,000 miles on it, and my credit was left in excellent condition.
I’m so glad to see car companies, such as GM and Hyundai, that don’t just give lip service.  GM offers a program that will make your car payments for up to a year if you lose your job, and Hyundai allows you to return a car anytime during the first year of purchase if you become unemployed or physically disabled.
Now, let me brag about my interior decorator Donna Stanton of Providence Homes in Jacksonville, FL. Even though I’m building my first house, she did not take advantage and try to sell me upgrades. In fact, when I wanted to add granite floors and Korean countertops, she advised me to have them installed later when I can pay cash instead of getting them now and having to pay for the upgraded floors and countertops for the life of my mortgage. I also wanted to add an intercom system, but she advised me to buy a wireless home phone system with intercom capabilities to save thousands of dollars.
However, the security salesman was more than willing to let me order an entertainment system and an intercom system. He told me that I could just add the cost to my mortgage. Thankfully, I had the sense to only purchase a security system to protect my family.
In these tough economic times, you’ve got to use your common sense and just say “no” when someone tries to sell you something you don’t really need or cannot afford.
By Teneshia LaFaye

If you were sitting on the sidelines of the housing boom, like me, before the housing industry crashed, I’m here to tell you it’s safe to get in the game now.

Now that we’re in a recession, home prices are down and interest rates are at their lowest in nearly a half century. Plus, there are first-time buyer incentives, such as a $8,000 tax credit toward a home purchase.

I’ve tested the waters, and I’ve got a very low fixed interest rate and a great price to build my first house on a prime lot in a highly-valued Jacksonville community.

I’m so glad I waited on home prices to fall before applying for a mortgage. I almost got sucked into getting an adjustable rate mortgage for a $300,000 house three years ago. I also was looking at a $200,000 townhouse. This was before the current recession when investors were flipping houses and buyers were more than willing to get adjustable rate mortgages to buy their McMansion dream houses.

Now, the $300K house I was looking at before is going for $100,000 less and the townhome is down by $80,000. And now I’m building a house for far less than I would have three years ago on a big lot.

My strategy was to wait until prices fell into a reasonable range because we all know what goes up must come down and I just thought houses weren’t worth as much as advertised. Plus, waiting enabled me to boost my credit from the 500s to my current 722 FICO score.

So if you’ve been waiting, like me, for the right time to buy a house, now is the right time to get a great deal.

By Teneshia LaFaye