Author - Taylor McKenzie

Taylor McKenzie

I got my start in the world of credit troubles myself when I was in my twenties. Those darn pre-approved credit offers sucked me right in, and eventually I had bitten off more than I could chew, or afford to pay back.

I suffered the effects of stress, humiliation, embarrassment and consequently, a bankruptcy. I remember how low and worthless I felt. Walking into that bankruptcy court room was one of the lowest points in my life and I vowed to myself that I’d never put myself into that position again.

So I got a job in the “sub-prime” lending industry and over time, taught myself about what hurts your credit and what you can do to correct it. This knowledge led me to helping others with their credit issues, almost two decades ago.

I came into the lending business when people with poor credit were charged rates around 15%, and up to 10 points per loan transaction. My goal was to council these clients out of having no choice but to accept these kinds of rates and fees. There was a need for people in this situation to borrow money, but if they knew the steps to take so they no longer needed my services; that became my ultimate goal.

I’d say that 90% of the people I worked with were in a bad credit situation because of some traumatic event that occurred in their lives, such as a divorce, loss of job, disability or some unforeseen medical situation. The other 10% were people just like me who had been sucked in by pre-approved credit offers, which ultimately put them in a situation they did not know how to get out of. It certainly was not their choice to have bad credit.

In the past couple decades, I’ve worked for finance companies, a bank, and a couple sub-prime mortgage companies. My issue with working for these companies was their ultimate goal, which was making a lot of money. These companies (except for the bank) preyed on people in trouble. The bigger your problem, the more money they made because they knew you were stuck between a rock and a hard spot. Because I had also worked for a bank, I knew the difference between a good loan and a bad loan. It never made complete sense to me why sub-prime companies charged so much more when people with bad credit always had less money to spend. How were they ever going to get out of their situation if they always had to pay so much more for everything?

All these people wanted was someone to really help them, not take advantage of them, and that became my secret mission. Yes, I helped them get a loan because that was my job, but I also spent quite a bit of time playing “credit counselor” and telling them what they needed to do to clean up their credit, restructure their finances, and the steps they’d need to take to line themselves up for future transactions in order to be considered “A” paper and “bankable” once again. The satisfaction I got from my job came in the form of gratitude I heard in their voices, and the referrals I received because of the trust that was formed. This propelled me forward to want to do more.

I was in the business long enough to know how the game was played and eventually I got tired of making loans for the immense profit the company I worked for. I knew that I could do the same thing on my own; charge way less for the service, give even more value and still provide the ultimate service…..Educating my clients on how to get their credit back on the road to recovery so they could begin to live again in the world of “choice”. Most people don’t know how important that is, until it’s taken away from them, and that’s what I wanted to give back. So I became a Mortgage Broker, specializing in helping people with “less than perfect credit”.

In the world we live in now, the rules have changed more than we have ever seen before. What used to be regarded as good credit, is now considered fair to poor. The percentage of people who are considered to have “excellent credit” are now the minority and “choices” for people are becoming more and more limited.

Either you shape the culture around you or the culture shapes you.  Either you influence everyone around you positively or you allow their negativity to influence you.  You know that they say there are people that are “glass half-full” people and there are people that are “glass half-empty”.  Funny thing is, they are BOTH RIGHT. The glass is BOTH half full AND half empty.

The question is not whether you or the person you are talking to is correct.  The question is how will you look at the situation and respond.  The only response that gives you a chance is the positive response.  Clinging to doom and gloom has NO upside.  Opportunities are only seen and seized by people who look around with an opportunistic mindset.  You can NOT stay focused on the negative.  If you are going to make it through this time, you MUST keep focused on the positive, focused on solutions.

It remains my mission to educate everyone on the new credit rules in today’s market. I want to give you the knowledge you need to change your habits because you’re now aware of how your old ones put you in a position of “no choice”. I want you to feel empowered to live the life you want and help you get through these tough times; whether that be helping you understand what affects your credit and helping you repair it, giving you the resources you need if you’re facing foreclosure, going through a divorce, deciding if bankruptcy is your only option, or re-establishing your credit after a traumatic event in your life.

No doubt, the market is down.  No doubt, the economy is tough.  Those are facts.  But you get to choose your response.  You can either take advantage of this incredible opportunity and snag some awesome deals that great credit will afford, or you can sit and be a “victim” and miss the great buying opportunity of this decade.

I love that phrase, “Do the thing, have the power”.  There is a truth in this that is rock solid. Success – true success – requires honest effort applied to a good cause.  You can’t cheat your way there – and no good thing fails to yield a reward – even if it may not be seen at the time. There is no catch!  I would never try to create something that is not win/win because I understand this powerful law.  I always try to give more than I get.  And I am glad to put forth the effort because I am the true beneficiary of going above and beyond – not anyone that I serve. You reap what you sow.  Sow mightily and you will reap mightily.  So “Do the thing and have the power”. The choice is yours. What will you do with it?