Sunday, December 21, 2008

Loan Modification Information

LoanModificationInformation.wordpress.com goes live. Get information links to the phone numbers of the major banks. Modify your mortgage loan and stay in your home.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Consumer Dave Puts Spammers on alert

If you are spamming me, I will be listing you on my blog. Spammers you have been warned. Consumer Dave is taking it back. If you want someone who is spamming you listed here, just contact me or leave it in a comment on this site.

Monday, December 15, 2008

What Are The Downsides Of Reverse Mortgages?

What Are The Downsides Of Reverse Mortgages? Reverse mortgage can have closing cost near 10% of the homes appraised value. A reverse mortgage should only be obtained when there is a real need to meet monthly living expenses.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Where can I get a CR 1616 Battery

Where can I get a CR 1616 Battery? I found it at Walmart. They have tons of odd sized batteries.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Are you upside down on your mortgage in Arizona?

Are you upside down on your mortgage in Arizona? You may have a great option if you have an fha loan. If you have an fha loan and you are upside down you can do what is called an fha streamline refinance. You do not even need to provide pay stubs or bank statements to be able to qualify for this loan. An FHA streamline refinance is one of the few loans that you do not even need to to an appraisal.

If you are interested in an FHA streamline refi call 1-888-368-6668. It could just very well save you from foreclosure and give you a much lower mortgage payment.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Cox Communications Suck

Cox Communications Sucks the big one. They cannot get my cable bill correct. I turned my dvr box in months ago and they are still charging me. What the hell is wrong with these people. I think they must only hire morons. I think I am going to switch to dish.

Bank of America closed my business account

Bank of America closed my business account without telling. I had a business account open with bank of america for over 7 years. They decided to just close it without telling me. I had all kinds of auto pays and auto deposits. They told me that they could not re open it with the same account number. About a month later they sent me a statement on my business account. Those stupid assholes. I went to Chase and opened up a new one.

With my personal account B of A keeps charging me a $20 maintenance fee. I have free checking. So every month I have to call and spend 20 minutes to reverse the charge. What the hell is wrong with bank of america. This is the worst fucking excuse for customer service I have ever had with a bank.

Bank of America is the worst bank in America. They are a big dumb animal. This is my opinion. Do not use them.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Is Arizona Corporate Headquarters a scam?

I received a letter in the mail from Arizona Corporate Headquarters. They wanted $125 for filing of annual minutes disclosure statement for my LLC. It seemed a bit fishy to me. It reminded me of all the mortgage insurance crap that you get when you get a new mortgage or refinance your home. You don't need that stuff either, it's just a scam. The address of Arizona Corporate Headquarters is 5025 N. Central Avenue, Suite 573 Phoenix, AZ 85012.

Does this ring a bell for anyone?


Too Much Debt?

Monday, November 10, 2008

Down Payment Grants for First Time Home Buyers


GetPrequalified.com is completing the first website to have down payment and first time home buyer programs all listed on one website. This information is completely free. All 50 states will be listed by the end of November. If you are short on cash you may have an option of receiving down payment assistance from your state. This down payment assistance can be in the form of a loan or a grant. It just depends on the state that you live in. For more information contact your local banker or mortgage professional.

Down Payment Information

Monday, August 18, 2008

Credit Card Tips

Your credit card company is a predator. They are in business to make money. Make money off your your more specifically. Credit card companies are making billions off of late fees and over the limit fees each year. You wont get any sympathy for a late payment anymore. This is how they make money.

One of the newest tricks the credit card companies are pulling is shortening your billing cycle without telling you. They are going from a 30 day billing cycle to a 20 day billing cycle without notification. Guess why they do this. So they can slap you with a late payment.

Why you don't want to pay over the phone, because they charge you for the privilege. What's worse the late fee or the pay by phone privilege. The credit card company are assholes now. If you are behind and can't make your payments screw them. You can negotiate with them anyway. Your credit score will come back over time.

Credit Card Debt Settlement

Friday, July 18, 2008

Jesse Jackson uses the N word - Jesse Jerkson

Apparently in Jesse Jacksons tantrum against Barack Obama he used the N word. According to Oprah nobody should use the N word. Not even Jesse Jerkson. So quit using the N word, you know what I'm sayin?

Sunday, July 13, 2008

How do you know if your friends are lying to you? - Crocs

How do you know if your friends are lying to you? They don't say anything to you about wearing your crocs in public.

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Jesse Jackson want to cut off Barack Obama's nuts

Jesse Jackson wants to cut Barack Obama's nuts off. He thinks that Obama is talking down to black people. I know that he apologized, what I can't figure out is why he apologized. That is what he is thinking, why would he want to apologize for what he actually thinks. He is apologizing because he doesn't want to look bad. He already looks bad. He cheated on his wife had a baby and got caught. He says one thing but does another. To me he is an inauthentic self righteous jerk. If I were the media, I would not give him a platform to apologize. It's just a lie anyway. He doesn't really mean it.

The better question for Jesse is what does he really feel about things rather than what his facade says. This guy really turned out to be a piece of shit.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

StatClinix billing service is horrible- Statclinix Urgent Care center

I went to a StatClinix urgent care facility a few months ago when I had the flu. I paid the bill in full or at least I thought that I did. I pulled a bill out my mailbox yesterday that said that I owe another $30 for "Urgent care center global". What the hell is that. That also say that this bill is 120 days past due. I have never seen anything from them. I find this very insulting to be honest. I always pay my bills.

I called them yesterday to ask a question about it and I have not heard back from them. All you get when you dial the number for billing questions is an answering machine. I called today as well and got the answering machine. I even tried to get anyone on the line to talk to. I got a message machine that said that the messages were full. Nice service. Medical care and service in this country really suck. I will never use StatClinix again.

Saturday, June 28, 2008

First American Home Warranty has horrible customer service

Is a home warranty worth the money? I have a home warranty through First American Home Warranty. My compressor for my air conditioner is going out . How can I tell, its the end of June, I live in Phoenix and my home is not cooling off. I called First American to come out for a service call. I called them on a Friday and they sent someone out on Monday. Desert Valley Aire Inc. came out for the service call. They told me that I needed a new compressor. They told me that they would come out on Wednesday to make the repair. They never showed up and didn't call. Then they said that they would be out on Friday. Desert Valley Aire Inc. again didn't show up or call. I called First American Home Warranty that next Friday, keep in mind that a week has already passed, they told me that they forgot to put the work order through. I thought I was going to scream, I think I did a little. After a lot of screaming and yelling they escalated the call and are coming out on Monday to fix it. This will be over 9 days of an air conditioner that wasn't working correctly. Some service. After they fix it, I am going to cancel it. This has been one of the worst customer service experiences all the way around with these people. I don't even have the words to describe how bad it was.

GetPrequalified.com

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Joe Arpaio takes the badge away from Shaq

Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio strips Shaquille O'Neal of his special deputy badge for racial slurs against former teamate Kobe Bryant. Shaq was seen in a video posted on the celebrity news and gossip site TMZ rapping that "Kobe couldn't do without me" That's what rap is about, slams. I don't see what the big deal is. I think we need to to get Sheriff Joe's badge back. He seems to not like Mexicans. I think the Guadalupe profiling was disgusting. He is doing nothing to stop the Canadians from coming across our northern border. Canadians have done a lot of damage to this country. They have ruined major league baseball, the NBA and screwed up football with the crazy Canadian football rules. We messed up hockey. But we're America, we can do whatever we want. Haven't we been tortured enough by Bryan Adams?

Monday, June 23, 2008

Hypermiling Test

I will admit that I don't enjoy $4 a gallon gas. In fact it makes me a little crazy at times. When you stop and add it up, it ain't cheap to drive anymore. I just filled up my BMW 328ci and it cost me over $70. It is a 5 speed and gets what I would call fairly respectable mileage at 25mpg. Which for a BMW I think is quite high. I have been testing out a new hypermiling strategy and I got 27.5 mpg using hypermiling strategies. That's an extra 40 miles a tank. I'll take it. Quite honestly it was no big deal. I just drove a little slower and took my foot off the gas when I see a red light coming. It works. Give it a try and let me know how you do. Just be careful.

What is hypermiling?

Friday, June 20, 2008

There is no energy crisis in America

You heard it here on Consumer Dave first, there is no energy crisis in America. People are still buying and driving there SUV's, I see them all over the road. Gas still flows a plenty. Our government is not putting any demands on the public to restrict gas usage not even to sacrifice for the war effort. There are no incentives to buy energy efficient cars and incentives on solar and other alternatives are still falling short.

Everything you read on the news is just hype to drive the price of gas higher so the oil companies can make more money.

Arrowhead drinking water - new eco friendly bottles

Arrowhead drinking water is claiming a breakthrough in the amount of reduced plastic their new bottles use. They claim to use 30% less plastic and are better for the environment. Big deal, plastic in any form is horrible for the eco systems. It takes plastic over 100,000 years to break down. If they said that they would be making their bottles out of bamboo I would be willing to give them praise where praise is due. To me it is just a feeble attempt to look and sound green when in fact they are not. If they were really going to do something good for the environment, they would outlaw bottled water.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Western Regional Mortgage Brokers Conference

I got this email from the Western Regional Mortgage Brokers Conference in my inbox today;

You spoke.

We listened.

Mortgage brokers and LO’s are telling us this is NOT the year for them to spend money to travel to the Western Regional Mortgage Brokers Conference in Las Vegas. We get it!

So we’re postponing this year’s Western Regional show until 2009.

In the meantime, we’re bringing the information and tools directly to you! Watch for more information soon.

We’re confident that we can weather the tough times together!


That must be bad when the whole mortgage industry cancels one of its biggest conventions. I almost think people need to suck it up and go. This is the time when you need encouragement most. Not just when times are good.

GetPrequalified.com

Rising food prices offer hope for an expanding US waistline

I think I found a positive to the rising food prices. With food prices rising, Americas waistline should start to shrink. Binge eating may be a thing of the past. It's just too expensive to eat anymore. Therefore people will not be able to buy as much food and they will loose weight. Think of it as a forced diet. I recently went to Ireland for 12 days and food was about 3x what it is in the US. I came back 5lbs lighter. I stopped eating the crap I normally eat because I didn't want to pay for it. Hopefully the same thing will happen in the US. People are just too big here. I don't think it will hurt us.

Monday, June 16, 2008

Tri City Property Management in Phoenix does not return phone calls.

This is an update from a few posts ago about Tri City Property Management. They still have not returned my calls. I can't believe how lame they are. After a straight conversation with the secretary about how nobody is calling me back, I figured I would have received a call today. Nothing.. Strange.. but consumerdave is on it. I will keep you posted.

MBT shoes are the most comfortable shoes

I have to admit that I have never loved a pair of shoes more than my MBT shoes. They have changed my life. I used to suffer with back pain and since wearing them, I can move around in comfort and with no pain. They are not cheap. I paid $250 bucks for them. I ended up buying a second pair. I'm hooked on my mbt's. For this kind of relief I would have paid $1000 a pair.

America's Ice Cream Crisis - forget the oil crisis

I just purchased a carton of Dreyers Slow Churned Rich and Creamy One Split Wonder the American Idol edition. I noticed one thing odd about the packaging. It shrunk. The cartons on all ice cream seemed to have shrunk by about one third. The price seems to be the same. I wonder if packaging on other goods is shrinking as the price of food goes up. Food producers probably are trying to mask the price of food going up. All ice cream packaging not just Dreyers has shrunk. I'm not buying it anymore. I don't care, it's time we put our foot down and got thin.

Friday, June 13, 2008

Tri City Property Management has horrible customer service

Most times I need to contact Tri City Property Management in Phoenix Arizona and leave a message they never call you back. I live in the Scottsdale Vista Townhomes in Scottsdale. You have to keep calling and calling and hope that you get someone on the phone. I had a matter I needed to discuss with them recently. I have called them three times and I have still not heard from them. When I told the receptionist the situation, she didn't seem to phased about it. She said that seems par for the course and that she has been hearing this complaint a lot lately. It wasn't even a big deal for her. It sounds like it happens all the time. I could tell you about the numerous other times that this has occoured. If it were my business I would be embarrassed to have such horrible customer service. Call me back the next day. Never getting a call is a disgrace to the customer service industry. They do not seem to concerned however. If this is the biggest problem in my life I would be satisfied however.

Servamatic Solar Hot Water - Solar hot water is the right solution for todays energy challenges

Servamatic Solar Hot Water heaters work great and are much cheaper than their Photo voltaic cousin. With global warming on the minds of more people, we need to look for clean and cheap solutions. Most of a homes energy costs are a result of keeping a tank of hot water around. If you can get the same result from the sun why not. Every new home in Israel is required to have solar hot water. As a result of this, Israel now can boast that 3% of its overall energy use is covered by the sun. It is the highest of any nation. I live in Arizona, it makes sense that every home in the state have a solar hot water heater on it. The sun is one thing that we don't have a shortage of here in this state. (Servamatic Solar Hot Water Heater benefits)

Additional Green Articles

Saturday, June 7, 2008

Why Big Brown Lost the Belmont

Why Big Brown lost the Belmont, it's very simple. The other horses just ran faster. The hopes of a triple crown winner are yet dashed again. You heard the breaking news here on Consumer Dave.

Friday, June 6, 2008

Rosemary McClure Los Angeles Times Ireland Article

This is a response to an article written by Rosemary McClure that appeared June 1st in the Los Angeles Times about travel to Ireland. I agreed with Rosemary about everything until she talk about the discourteous drivers in Ireland. I would like to report that the drivers in Ireland were very courteous and I did not hear one horn the entire two weeks. The drivers in Ireland would always let you in with a smile. The drivers in the US are the worst most obnoxious example of driving, not the Irish. My hats off the the Irish for their good driving and courtesy.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

My furniture is making me sick

I just bought a the Belize Outdoor Occasional set from Cost Plus a few days ago. There seems to be some type of fumes coming off of it. Every time I sit on it my eyes get irritated and start to swell. I have to come in an wash them off with water. It is made out of teek wood and was originally manufactured in Vietnam. Anyone else having this trouble?

Friday, May 30, 2008

Tax Write Off Ideas for Saving Money To Get Out of Debt, Save For A Down Payment

There are many ways to save money for a down payment for a home, or for a new car, or to get out of debt. One place that is easy to overlook is your US annual IRS tax return. In this article is a list of possible tax write offs. Please consult with your tax adviser about whether any of these items being applicable to your individual tax situation. (click for Full Story)

GetPrequalified.com

Provident Funding whacky underwriting

If you are a loan officer and you are considering sending your loans to Provident Funding beware. It seems like they are not following fannie mae guidelines and making up all kinds of crazy conditions. It's too bad because their rates are great, they are just too hard to work with now. I think they are just running scared and don't want to write any bad loans.

GetPrequalified.com

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

My experience with Expedia

From previous posts you will recall that a car that I reserved online through Europcar with Expedia ended up being just about double after it was all said and done. The final cost could only be determined in Dublin at the Airport where I was informed about all the extra stuff that I was not told about on the website. The biggest scam is the insurance. In Ireland you are required to have car insurance. My American Express did not cover it. Most places it does however. I called today to make a complaint. I got a $50 travel certificate for my efforts. Big deal, I paid over $700 to rent a car in Ireland for 5 days. I should have just bought the car for the week.

When on the Expedia website for rental cars, just be aware that there may be other expenses.

Monday, May 26, 2008

There is no oil crisis in America

With gas prices over $4 a gallon the news has been touting a gas crisis. I am happy to report that the gas crisis is over. My car gets 26 miles to the gallon while the monster suv's get 14 miles to the gallon. You expect not to see many of these. While driving on the freeway yesterday I am happy to report an abundance of suv's. For every economy their are 5 gas guzzling suv's. So don't fret over the gas crisis. There is plenty of gas.

Do you have trouble with your curent mortgage?

If you are feeling the squeeze of the mortgage crisis help may be on the way. Hope Now is an alliance between banks, counselors and other industry organizations with the purpose of trying to keep you in your home and avoid a foreclosure. The Department of the Treasury and HUD supports the formation of this alliance to encourage responsible business practice and to help avoid any additional downturns in the real estate market.

For additional information go to Hope Now

Bank of America, no cost mortgage

Just to set the record straight on Bank of America and their no cost mortgage, it isn't. I was recently in my branch and asked one of the personal bankers about it. He told me that they just raise the rate to cover the fees. What a breakthrough. Thanks BofA.

GetPrequalified.com

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Corded home phone issue solved

I use Vonage as my phone service provider. I have been having very scratchy calls lately for about the last month to the point where my friends didn't want to talk to me. I spent hours on the phone with Vonage to try and correct the problem. It turned out it was an old headset. When the copper wire gets degraded and the copper wire breaks down and frays, the broken connections come in contact with each other and make static. Quite annoying and very easy to fix. I just picked up a new plantronics headset and the problem was solved.

Expedia did not disclose all the fees

I booked a car rental from Europcar online. They basically left off all the additional fees that I would be charged. It ended up being double the quoted online fee by the time I left my destination. Buyer beware of Expedia. If you do plan on using Expedia, ask a lot of questions or call the service provider to confirm all fees. Bottom line for me is no more Expedia.

Friday, May 23, 2008

My experience with EuropCar

I just got back from Ireland. We rented a car from Europcar. I can tell you that it was one surprise after another with them. First they said that we need their insurance and it was about the same rate as the daily car rate. Of course they don't tell you this on the Expedia website. We only learned about this at the airport in Dublin. They don't tell you what 80% of the charges were. You find that out when you get there. By the time I was done at Europcar it was twice as expensive as the rate that I searched for on Expedia. Five days of car rental with Europcar was over $700.

My advice when renting a car overseas is to ask a lot of questions. I relied on Expedia to give me detailed information. It was a joke. I wont be using Expedia again.

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Credit Card scam beware

I had a friend of mine call me telling me about how he got scammed out of $12,000. Someone paid his credit cards down $12,000 and then requested the money back. He believes that the people were out of Russia but they were using a Florida address. He refused and contacted Citibank about returning the funds that were deposited in his Bank of America Account. He made the exchange, did the right thing and got nailed. Bank of America is now coming after him for the $12,000. Very odd but true. If this happens to you, you might want to hang on to the money even though it was stolen from somewhere else. In this case doing the right thing cost my friend $12,000.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

The National George Bush Bake Sale

The National Bake sale that was held on May 5th seemed to have been a failure. This countries financial woes only seem worse as the cost of gas keeps going up. You don't even hear about the housing crisis anymore. It definitely has not gone away. The bake sale was supposed to help homeowners who are upside down in their mortgages. For every $1000 they are negative, they would need to sell 1500 cup cakes. Americans are big eaters and will binge on just about anything. My thought was that we could turn our economy around on our indulgences. It failed miserably. Nobody would get in their cars and drive.

What did John McCain do in Arizona

I live in Arizona and quite honestly I can't name one thing that this guy has done in this state. I respect his sacrifice for the country. It is a little scary to think of this guy as our President. Everyone in this state knows about his wifes drug problem. I have not heard one mention of it on the campaign trail. It just seems odd to me. The press only reports what they want.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Debt Cures by Kevin Trudeau, Really

I saw this guys show on tv for an infomercial. He has a very compelling message. I later found an article on the internet stating that Mr. Trudeau plead guilty to passing $80,000 in bad checks. Is this really the guy that is supposed to be the face of a debt free America? I will admit his message is great but I think we could use a better spokesman. How about Dave Ramsey or Suze Orman?

NNDB

For Free information on how to get out of debt go to DebtNegotiationZone.com

Saturday, May 17, 2008

Bank of America offer

If just wont stop. I just got another one yesterday. I'm about ready to scream. This time I'm sending them back a brick with my reply. As long as the return envelope is attached to it, they have to pay for it. I once heard of someone sending an engine block back with one of those sender pay postage envelopes. I'll keep you posted.

Friday, May 16, 2008

Credit Bureau and Credit Report Shame

The credit report companies like Transunion, Equifax and Experian don't want you to improve your credit report. I just discovered on Commission Junction that if you own a website that has information on how to repair your credit, you are not allowed to have a credit puller on your website. Seems crazy but it's a fact. Big business has no interest in you having good credit. The better your credit, the less money they make off of you. Who do you think is pulling the strings on this one. The man just wants to keep you down.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Sallie Mae screws up

A mistake by Sallie Mae recently messed with the credit scores of thousands of borrowers who signed up for the graduated loan payment program. With a Sallie Mae loan you can defer payments often for a couple of years. There was a glitch that starting reporting these people late. Sallie Mae is reporting that this had only impacted 10% of its borrowers. I'm glad I'm not part of that only 10%. The only 10% people aren't too happy I'm sure. A late payment like this can knock someone out of their ability to obtain top tier credit rates. If it were me I would be pissed.

What is with all the tattoos in the NBA

What is the deal with all of the tattoos on all of the NBA players. By looking a them you would guess that people were afraid to tell them how stupid they look before they got them. I don't think I've seen anyone with a good tattoo on them. If I were David Stern I would make them play in long sleeve t shirts. Does Allen Iverson really think he looks cool. I don't get it. Can someone please fill me in?

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

B of A will not stop sending me junk mail

I don't know how many hours I have spent on the phone trying to get the junk mail to stop. I finally went into my branch and I was assure that it will stop. It didn't. I have a plan. I will keep you posted as to my next step. if you have any ideas on how to get Bank of America to stop sending me crap I would be happy to listen.

Monday, May 12, 2008

McCain is an Idiot on the gas tax vacation

John McCain is an idiot to suggest that suspending the gas tax for the summer would be a good idea. The oil companies will jump on this one and raise prices anyway. Great idea mr politician guy. I would rather have the money go to roads than the oil companies. What an ass. I'm sure it was a political move to take a shot at Obama. Obama does not want to remove the tax.

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Travel in Europe is Expensive

If you go to Europe this summer bring your wallet. I just got back from Ireland and the Isle of Man and I could not believe how expensive it was. Gasoline was over $9 a gallon and a meal that would normally cost $25 would be over $60. Nothing is cheap over there. I planned a head and brought a lot of power bars and nuts as snacks. I was glad that I did. The water out of the tap there is as good as any bottled water that you would have.

Friday, May 9, 2008

High Gas Prices, Not really compared to Ireland

I just got back from Ireland and gas was over $9 a gallon. I wont complain about the $3.50 a gallon cheap fuel in the US. Gas was 1.23 Euros per liter in Ireland. One gallon would be 3.79 litres. It takes 1.62 Dollars to make up 1 Euro. Yes it is expensive.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Credit Crunch hits Ireland

I just got back from Belfast. I could not believe how many houses were for sale. There was a Sherry Fitzgerald sign on every corner. Real Estate signs are everywhere. I heard that values were dropping as well. I spoke with an estate agent who told me that Ireland is always behind the US by six months. I even saw a sign advertising 100% financing. I don't think that they learned anything from our mistakes.

GetPrequalified.com

Euro vs. the Dollar

We are getting hosed. Check out the rates from Halifax on savings accounts. These guys were all over the airwaves. I only get just a hair over 3% on my savings at HSBC Direct. Some of these accounts pay over 7%. I might consider opening an account over there. Keep in mind that you will lose about 3% of your value as a commission to convert from dollars to euros.

GetPrequalified.com

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Arizona Cardinals Shame

I am not a fan of the Arizona Cardinals and I live in Arizona. They have been a disaster ever since they landed here in the Valley. They are losers. They are a commitment to losing, always have been always will be as long as the Bidwells have control. They don't do what it takes to win. Matt Leinart on the web drinking beer with his beaches was nothing. That was actually a good thing. That was the most positive thing I've seen in a while.

If you are a player you should be ashamed to been seen in public. I see you guys walking around Phoenix acting tough and cool. I just wanted to let you know that we are all laughing at you.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

What the hell is wrong with Lending Tree

I guess if you give your information to Lending Tree you lose. There is a new report that the LendingTree.com database was hacked. It seemed other mortgage lenders wanted access to their database and people from the inside let them in.

If you had done a loan with Lending Tree in the last couple of years you may want to have a credit report done to see if there has been any fraud on your credit profile.

GetPrequalified.com

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Billing Solutions Inc update

I had filed a complaint with the Attorney General about Billing Solutions Inc. The had bill me over $400 for a fax that I was trying to send Wells Fargo. The original bill that I got from Billing Solutions Inc. made no sense. I had to have an attorney get involved to help me get it straitened out. In their response to the Attorney General for Arizona they stated that they pride themselves on superior customer service. I didn't have that experience. The were very confrontational with me when I originally questioned them on the charges. They weren't willing to do anything until I got an attorney involved. My advice if you are a loan officer or loan processor is to mail your vod's into Wells Fargo and not use the Wells Fargo 900 Vod number.

Original Post

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Is the City of Scottsdale retarded?

I think so. I just found out that the stretch of road between Frank Lloyd Wright and Thompson Peak is going to be torn up and made into one lane in each direction. It is currently four lanes now. There is nothing wrong with it. I'm sure they will spend millions of dollars to do this. What a waste. What they really need to focus on is fixing Cactus from 96th street to the 101 freeway.

Bank of America no Cost Mortgage?

I was in my Bank of America branch yesterday setting up a new checking account. I noticed a sign in the lobby touting a no cost mortgage. I inquired with the personal banker about the details of the mortgage. He told me that they just raise the rate to cover the closing costs. I said to him that it doesn't sound like a no cost mortgage because there is a penalty in rate for the no closing cost option. I also said that if it were a true no cost mortgage then it should be the same rate as the full fee mortgage. He did not have any comment on that. My guess would be that there is no such thing as a no cost mortgage. Thanks BofA for confusing me.

GetPrequalified.com

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Why did my home equity line get reduced?

Consumer Dave can help you answer that question. Millions of Americans are receiving letters from their second mortgage lenders alerting them that their home equity lines or helocs have been cut or reduced. Can the banks cut your home equity line? Absolutely, it is written into their notes. I know it sucks but they can do it. They just are hedging against future loses.

Additional Mortgage Articles

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

John McCain should get equal time for his wife who allegedly forged prescriptions

I think Obama and Clinton have had enough crap thrown at them. We should bring out Cindy McCains drug silliness just to be fair. In 1994, Cindy McCain admitted that she had solicited prescriptions for painkillers from doctors who worked for an international charity that she founded, the American Voluntary Medical Team. She then filled the prescriptions in the names of her staff. I guess she thought that getting drugs should be voluntary. Anyone could make that mistake. She walked away from that one.

The rest of the article click for full story.

Countrywide advertising can be deceptive?

I just saw an advertising on the MSN homepage for Countrywide that the key interest rates have dropped and it is a good time to refinance your home. This is the biggest blatent lie by a bank that I have ever seen. First of all there is no such thing as a no cost mortgage and secondly what the Federal Reserve is doing with interest rates has nothing to do with mortgage rates. If this were the case, the 30 year rate would be below 3%. Interest rates have everything to do with how the stock market is doing and not what the feds are doing. Shame on Countrywide for being bozos.

Shame on you Countrywide for slick advertising. Consumer Dave to the rescue.

Additional Mortgage Articles

Cox Communications Sucks

I recently got dvr and digital cable from cox communications. I installed it myself I had a problem with the dvr portion as to it would not record. I called for assistance and got someone that could not speak English. She could not figure it out and called a technician in for further assistance. She didn't tell me that there was a charge for this. If she did, I couldn't understand what she was saying. My free installation now became $34. Make sure you find out if there is a fee to have someone come to your home before they come out.

Bottom line as a consumer I don't like surprises. Big corporations are like dumb animals and need to be treated as such. They don't care about you only their profits. Ask a lot of questions before they want to provide additional services.

Friday, April 4, 2008

Is Joe Arpaio a racist?

Is Joe Arpaio a racist? I don't know, but I would feel better if he would focus on keeping Canadians out of this country instead of the Mexicans. Look at all of the problems they have caused in the NBA and especially Major League Baseball. The Expos just about killed the league. I just found out that Joe Arpaio was the child of immigrants from Naples. Very Interesting. I have a suspicion that keeping the Mexicans out is not about race but about money. I would like to know if Joe has any interests in Mexican restaurants and is just trying to keep out the competition. I think that there is still room for Canadian restaurants.

The National Bake Sale Approaches

Start getting ready now for the national bake sale on Cinco de Mayo. Don't wait for the government to bail you out of your housing troubles, do it yourself. You will need to sell 1500 cup cakes for every $1000 in value you home has lost. For some of you that's a lot of cup cakes.

Rally the neighbors and lets rebuild together. Tell a friend.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Matt Leinart buzz over racey Internet Pics

Leave the guy alone, who cares. He is a young guy that does what young guys do. They hang out with chicks and drink beer. I don't think this should be s surprise to anyone. I did the same thing when I was young, big deal.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Bush Bozo and Hud Chief Alphonso Jackson Resigns

Another one bites the dust in the Bush team of Geniuses. This guy was allegedly lining his friends up with cushy jobs. Must be nice.

Monday, March 31, 2008

Once

Great movie, Great music. Nothing else to say really. I love the song Falling Slowly and When your Minds Made Up. Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova are awesome. Watch the movie buy the album its great.

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Poverty has been eradicated in Scottsdale Arizona

Poverty in Scottsdale Arizona has been handled. Although I thought I saw an 84 Ford Taurus on Scottsdale Road the other day. They may have been lost. We can now focus on Paradise Valley Arizona.

Why is the Chevy Tahoe Hybrid Car of the Year?

How can an auto company be congratulated for turning out a pig that gets 20/21 mpg. If it were to get 100 mpg they should give them a national holiday. 20/21 mpg is nothing to get excited about when gas hits $4 a gallon in the near future not to mention the carbon dump. The bottom line is that the Chevy Tahoe Hybrid is still going to pump out a lot of carbon in the atmosphere. I should get an award for driving my 2000 bmw 328ci, it gets an amazing 25 mpg. Cmon Detroit you can do better. I'm not impressed. I am still planning on buying a Toyota Prius Plug In Hybrid as soon as they are available. That'll get 100mpg. I think that would deserve an award.

I still don't get how the masses of people can still afford to drive their monster SUV automobiles around. It just doesn't make sense.

Beer Prices Are on the Rise due to wheat shortage

This news is even worse than the current housing crisis. The price of beer will be rising due to a shortage of wheat. There is a fungus called Ug99 that started in Africa and has moved its way north to Pakistan.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Heidi and Spencer break it off

I feel like such a loser, I just found out that Heidi and Spencer from The Hills are calling their engagement off. I wish that I could have been there for them. They showed about as much emotion as a wet paper bag. The moods and attitudes from the two were a proud display of juvenile reality tv at its finest. I hope they can patch things up. I think that they make a nice couple.

I hope that they were acting because if that is how they are in real life they seem like empty skin bags.

National George Bush Bake Sale Day

The National Bake Sale Day is on the Cinco de Mayo. Have your baked goods ready to go. This should help fill in the economic gap for the credit crunch. You will need to sell 1500 cup cakes to make up for every $1000 in value your home has gone down. For some of you out their you will be baking a lot of cup cakes. Luckily Americans love to eat too much so you shouldn't have too much trouble trying to sell them.

Monday, March 24, 2008

George Bush and a National Bake Sale

Instead of mailing everyone a tax rebate, how about the George Bush National bake sale. What's more American than a bake sale. Everyone loves good baked goods. We could all have our own bake sale to make more money to buy flat screen tv's and ipods. The Government would need to design a plan to make sure that we did not all have our bake sale on the same day because if we did there would be no customers to buy our baked goods. A better idea would be for the government to buy all of the excess baked goods. The surplus could be federal expressed to Africa as aid. We could then kill two birds with one stone. We would be providing and injection of capital in our economy and providing charity. We all win and Geroge doesn't have to roll out this ridiculous stimulus package.

Call your congressman about having a national bake sale. What the hell.

Billing Solutions Inc. Update

I did get it resolved. My real bill is $60 and not the $430. It was due and I did owe it. I can say the Wells Fargo was not helpful at all in terms of getting it resolved. All they had to do was call the billing company and they wouldn't. I had to have my attorney call wells fargo to get the right information so I could get this sorted out. My answer to the question is Billing Solutions Inc. a scam, no. I do find it odd how screwed up a bill can be for 3 faxes though. I do think the level of service is insulting that I got from Wells. Not everyone has the luxury to use an attorney to get things sorted out.

GetPrequalified.com

Battlestar Gallactica the final season on the Sci Fi Channel

I love the show and can't wait for the final season to start on the sci fi channel. It drives me nuts that Commander Adama lets everyone off the hook for everything. It like Gilligans Island and they keep doing stupid things to not get off the island. They need to start killing people to set an example to the other crew.

Truth in Lending

The truth in lending is that the banks make a crap load of money off of you. If you have a $100,000 and you pay back $330,000 on over 30 years, where is the 6%? Well the truth is that you pay back thousands of percent in the first few years of your loan. I'm not saying that borrowing from a bank is bad, it is what it is. We wouldn't have the lifestyle in our country if money wasn't readily available.

The other truth is that most loan officers don't know how to fill out the form. So the intended use of the TIL or truth in lending is not even met in most cases. The idea of the TIL is that a consumer has the ability to compare mortgage rates side by side with different lenders. It really doesn't work the way it is set up now. You really need to do your homework and compare when you are looking for a mortgage.

Additional mortgage articles

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Sam Adams beer, Brewer Patriot

Ever notice on the label of Sam Adams beer that they list Brewer before Patriot? I thinks it's funny that being a brewer is of more importance than being a patriot. I wonder if our founding fathers would have seen it this way. It wont stop me from drinking the beer. Sam Adams Light is one of my favorites.

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Tori Spelling and her new book

I would like to make my public statement today that I will not be reading Tori Spellings new book. Quite frankly I don't care about a spoiled brat and the hell that it was to grow up a rich kid in Beverly Hills. Life is rough in the Beverly and so is publishing a book nobody cares about.

Friday, March 21, 2008

The Fed Rate Cuts wont help you

Yeah the Federal Reserve lowered their rate again. That's good news for the bank and not necessarily good news for you. The Fed lowered its rates by 75 basis points yet mortgage rates only dropped by .25%. The banks make out on this. They will make more money. Also be wary of slick marketing telling you that rates have really tanked, they haven't. It's just slick advertising.

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Is LOST getting ready to jump the shark

I really love Lost but I'm starting to feel like it's ready to jump the shark. I watched it last night and it was exhausting keeping up with the plot twists. I found myself not caring about what they do to each other. Please end the show while it still has some quality left in it.

Monday, March 17, 2008

I Can Make You Thin with Paul McKenna

I just watched the TV show I can make you thin starring Paul McKenna. It was refreshing to see a show that can actually make a difference in peoples lives. You can incorporate what he teaches very easily into your own life. In fact I have already started. If you haven't seen it and you are looking for a practical way to loose weight I would definitely watch this show on TLC

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Brittney Spears & George Clooney

For the record I would like to state that I don't care about George Clooney or Brittney Spears. They have not added in any significant way to the quality of my life. If anything they have robbed me of brains cells just even contemplating the matter. I think I should receive some type of compensation for this. I'll get my lawyer on this at once.

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Larry Winget and Hyundai

I saw Larry Winget on a Hyundai commercial tonight. He is the straight talking get out of debt guy with the really awful shirts. I really like his style for straight talk when it comes to getting out of debt. I was surprised to see him in a commercial telling people to buy a new car. I realize Hyundais are less expensive than other cars, but it will still set you back over 20k. If you want to get out of debt or put money away for your future, don't buy a new car, buy a used one. I can't believe that he would represent himself this way. This move changes my view of him. Seems hypocritical if you asked me. Do as a say and not as I do.

Additional Money Articles

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Mortgage Prepayment Programs, the lie

To all of you bozos selling mortgage prepayment programs for $3500, my message is simple, business time is over baby. You can do this yourself. DebtFreePartners sells and ebook for $17 on how to do it yourself. Save your money and go on vacation you don't need to buy this crap.

DebtFreePartners.com

Is Billing Solutions, Inc a scam?

I recently sent a Verification of Deposit to wells fargo from my home office and got a bill from Billing Solutions, INC for over $400. I have my home phone service service with cox communications. I have never heard of this company. Has anyone else out there seen anything like this? Can someone hijack your phone line? I have sent a letter to the attorney general in my state regarding this. $400 for one fax seems excessive. They have two websites one is www.billingsolutinosinc.net and www.bankvod.com. It also goes under bankvod.com If you have any insight on this company it would be appreciated.

Thankyou for your input

Consumer Dave

Monday, March 10, 2008

New York Govenor Eliot Spitzer and prostitutes

I'm a regular guy with a regular job. I work alot and don't have a lot of free time. Where do these jerk off politicians find all this extra time for cavorting with prostitutes and doing all the other crap that they are not supposed to be doing. Must be nice.

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Blue State the Movie

You'll either love or hate this movie. If you are a demo you will love it, if you are a repo you may not appreciate the humor. The movie stars Breckin Meyer and Anna Paquin and it is very clever, very funny a must see for those who appreciate an intelligent political comedy.

A definite giddy up

Friday, March 7, 2008

LA Ink vs. Miami Ink

I don't know if it is just me but when Kat was on Miami Ink I liked her and thought that she got a bad deal. Now that I see her on La Ink, I think they couldn't have gotten rid of her fast enough in Miami. Is it just me? What are your thoughts on this?

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Man vs. Wild on the Discovery Channel, Bear Grylls

Man vs. Wild is one of my favorite shows on TV. You can actually learn something. Any guy that can piss in his t-shirt and put it on his head with a straight face scores major props in my book. Survivorman is also one that I watch a lot. I do have to say that any time I watch anything out of Hollywood now just robs me of brains cells. There aren't too many left so I need to be careful at this point.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Millionaires Club on Bravo

In theory you could learn alot from life, the same would go for a good reality show. The truth is that most reality shows look like entertainment and not reality. Patti Stanger who is the star of the show and the owner of the Millionaires Club does a great job in having the millionaires see how they occur to women. How we think we are and the experience others have of us can be completely different. Some of these man childs need a good slap in the face to pull their heads out of their asses. The issue with these guys is that they are boys and not men. Women want men and not boys, it's not to hard to figure out. However if no men are available, money would do I guess.

I give this show a thumbs up.

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Americal Idol

I could probably watch American Idol if it wasn't for Simon Cowell. I think there is a fine line between straight talk and being a jerk. I understand that it is entertainment, however I think that there are a lot of impressionable minds that watch this skin bag and think that this is an acceptable way to conduct yourself in society. I think it's a great opportunity to be discovered, that may be the price that you pay for fame I guess.

Let me know what you think.

Oil Company Green Ads

I don't know about you but when I see these oil companies doing advertising about how green they are I want to vomit. A tiger doesn't change its spots. If they really want to makes changes I think we would hear more about it. I live in Arizona, where are the incentives for solar, what is aps and srp doing to develop more sources of renewable energy. I don't ever hear anything about it in the media. I think BP is blabbing about the small things that they are doing saying it's a start. Get off your ass and take a stand you oil people.

I curious what you all think about it. Let me know.

Lemon Lime Tic Tacs

I don't know if it's me but the lemon lime tic tacs are gross. The lime ones are good but the lemon ones taste like lysol. Does anyone out there like the lemon ones? The cherry passion fruit do kick ass however.

Monday, March 3, 2008

GetPrequalified.com, Social Responsibility with your money

I will be acknowledging people out in the world making a difference. I did find a website that actually wants to help people with their finances. GetPrequalified.com is a financial education portal that wants to keep the average American out of financial trouble. Their articles paint the true picture of how money works and how to avoid the pitfalls of predatory lending.

If you have questions about money, go to GetPrequalified.com.

The Apprentice

I think The Apprentice could be a great personal experience to have should you be lucky enough to be chosen to participate on the show. I think the social destruction that the show has caused will take 400 years to clean up in our society. Donald Trump's demonstration on how to handle yourself in business is insulting. Kill or be killed. Not a great way to go through life. He even said in one episode that life sucks. Sounds like a fun person to be around. I think people watch this show and take this way of being into their own lives. I've run into a few of them out there in business. They leave a huge wake of destruction on their way to the top. The phrase that comes to mind to me is, selling your soul for the world. The problem with that is that once you get there nobody wants to be around you. The ones that are there just want your money. Donald has force but he has no power.

I would rather hang out with Richard Branson or Mark Cuban. They seem like a lot more fun and you might learn to be a human being and not a human dominator.

Project Runway the great wasteland

I just saw this show for the first time today, what a disaster. I'm all for interesting and entertaining TV. My problem with this show is there is no distinction for where fantasy and reality cross the line. I think the average Joe watches this crap and believes this is how you conduct yourself in the world. I know Simon Cowell has made a name for himself for being direct in his analysis of the singers on American Idol, however there is a fine line between straight talk and being a jerk. Heidi Klum is another insult waiting to happen. The contestants on the show put themselves out there, they don't need an arrogant smart ass putting them down. Straight talk is not berating or humiliating people for ratings. There is a way to honor peoples humanity and still give them an accurate representation for how they occur in the world. They could actually do a service for people. Instead it is sell out of the human spirit just for ratings. I felt ill just watching this show.

People watch this garbage and think this is how I am supposed to be with people in my life and relate with people to get ahead. If this is where you learn your model for interacting with people, you wont have to many friends in about six months.

My advice read a book or go to the gym. Project runway has no socially redeeming value that I can tell. I feel bad for the people they use that go on this show.