What’s it all about?

What’s Straight Talk – the Bigger Picture all about?   A couple of things:

• I’m starting this site with the belief that there are a lot of “undercurrents” in today’s financial system.
• Many people don’t have an adequate understanding of the forces that are pushing and pulling in today’s financial system and economy.
• I’ve devoted over 20 years of my life to helping people manage their finances better and this is a natural extension of that.

So what is Straight Talk – The Bigger Picture going to be?

• It’s a membership site where we’ll compile all of the news that affects the mortgage and real estate worlds.   Between Straight Talk About Mortgages and Straight Talk The Bigger Picture you can be confident that the news that affects the housing and mortgage worlds will be covered.
• It is going to go deeper and dig into the details of what’s happening.   When Paul Krugman says he’s worried about a period of “stagnation,” what does that mean?    What’s the latest on the FHA tax credit loan saga?   What implications are the most recent Treasury auction going to have for the mortgage world?   Plus, on a daily basis, we’ll be answering the question, “Should we lock or float?”

I’m convinced that combining my knowledge of the mortgage and finance fields and taking the time to put it into a format that will help others not only understand it but navigate through it will be a very productive enterprise.   I’m excited about the opportunities and look forward to sharing my view of the mortgage and real estate world with more and more people.

What Straight Talk – The Bigger Picture is not…..

• This is not a sales and marketing site.   You aren’t going to read on here how to sell more houses, how to write more loans, how to list more expired properties.   That’s not what this is about.
• This is not a social media expert site.   I’m not going to be talking to you about how to write a better blog.   That’s what Darren Rouse and Problogger are for.
• This is not a solicitation for mortgage business.   I’m not doing this to try to build up my own mortgage business, I’m doing this because our country needs more financially educated real estate, mortgage professionals and consumers.   With that being said, if you want me to help you with a mortgage, I certainly won’t mind…… 

I’m planning on kicking the site into full motion around June 22, 2009.   If you are interested, stay tuned and you’ll be able to see excerpts of the kind of stuff that I’m going to be covering.

Thanks for stopping by!

Tom Vanderwell