How Interest Rates Are Used to Control Inflation
Many of us know that inflation is bad, but most of us don’t realize how it works. Paddy Hirsch gives a simple, but brilliant explanation. Watch this video and let me know what you think by leaving a comment.
Interest rates from Marketplace on Vimeo.
Ryan McKinneyThe 5 C’s of Credit
The 5 C’s of Credit
The Story of Your Business
The 5 C’s of Credit will help you to tell the lender why they should INVEST in you? Tell the story and you won’t have to SELL the story. Lenders want to lend money, but they are charged with being good stewards of the money. That means bankers are taking calculated risks. Write the story (TRUE STORY) of why you are a good investment using the 5 C’s of Credit and you’re a dead ringer for getting what you want.
It just make it easier for them to give you the money.
Using the 5 C’s of Credit won’t guarantee that you’ll get funded, but it will show whether you are a good investment. If when you are finished writing your own 5 C’s you find that you are not a good investment begin your work on improving the areas that need help. Then go apply. As always, talk with your banker. They are there to help you through the process.
Character
Character is the heart of the story. This is the “why” you should get the loan on a people skills level. This is somewhat subjective and looks a little like this.
Character Example: Jason has been working in heating and air repair and maintenance for 11 years and had a strong supplier network built for receiving supplies fast. His knowledge is rarely surpassed and the customer base he’s built is loyal. He has good reason to set out on his own.
Capital
Capital is the what can does the borrower have that will back up the loan if they default. NOT COLLATERAL. Collateral is the security of the loan. Capital can refer to down payment, equity in the property, or over all net worth.
Capital Example: Dr. Jones is a good capital risk because his net worth is $3MM non-real estate and we are only loaning him 40% of the what the property is worth
Capacity
Capacity is the ability to repay the loan concerning cash-flow. What debts are out there and how much money does the company have coming in to support the loan and it’s terms.
Capacity Example: Phillip has been running his business out of his garage for 12-15 months and saving every dime he has possible without taking on any long-term debt except his work truck. He has a monthly payment of $350 and enough cash in reserves to support the business operations, the loan payment, and his work truck payment for 18 months before running out of cash if none at all was generated. For the last 12-15 months he’s generated 5 times revenue over debts. There is good reason to believe this trend is here to stay.
Collateral
Collateral is simply what you pledge in lue of the money. Or better put: Collateral is what they will come and get (for a fee) if you default on the loan.
Collateral Example: You put up your work truck, inventory, office furniture, etc for a $15M loan.
Conditions
Conditions refer to what special circumstances make THIS particular venture the right one to INVEST in right now. What considerations should the lender take into account before extending a loan? These can include market conditions, personal experience, etc.
Conditions Example: Eileen has been working as a seemstress for 30 years and loves embroidery. Her husband is a business man and has many contacts. For years people have commented on the intricate embroidery on the cuffs of his dress shirts. This is Elieen’s handy work. There is a strong referral base set up and with the marketplace for business jobs thinning out due to the economy, Eileen has positioned her “low-cost extras” as a competitive advantage for out-of-work business men to have that added edge that gets them remembered.
In addition to that, she has recently retired and has 30 – 40 hours per week to devote to the business.
The Story of Your Business
If you are a lender just starting out and you haven’t used this before, I implore you. Knock your underwriter’s socks off. Do this and watch the nature of your business change. From the initial interview with your client to the closing to the follow up as the loan is being paid off.
Out of Gas
As a Banker, I have to get re-certified for things all the time. This is a story about the time I had to get my insurance license re-certified. Now Augusta has close to 500,000 people in the Metro Area, but no re-certification centers. So I HAVE TO drive to a town made up of 50,000 students that has tons of wings and beer to get re-certified. So I decided to leave Augusta the night before and stay with my sister-in-law Andria in Athens. That way I could be early and prepared for the exam.
My trusty Jeep Cherokee was a great car, but a thirsty one. For some reason, my preparedness didn’t extend to getting a full tank of gas before leaving Augusta. My mind MUST have been reviewing all of those insurance laws or something. I certainly wasn’t thinking about wings or beer.
I noticed the __ miles to Empty indicator showed about 11 when I was 30 miles away from Athens. If you’ve ever traveled from Augusta to Athens you know there really is one place to buy gas. I prayed I’d make it.
I coasted into the gas station just in the nick of time as you can see from the picture.
Since then, I’ve received my insurance re-certification, gotten a new car, and stopped for gas a few times. One thing I’ll never do again is leave home without a full tank.
Although, there is some mystique about a country gas station that sells Fresh Fried Chicken 
(I’m scared of that)
What’s your out of gas story? Leave a Reply on the website and tell us all about it!
Snow Day Augusta!
10 Years in the making, but we finally got a snow day. Gabby was thrilled! Check out these pictures. Gabby kept wanting to eat the snowman’s nose. We didn’t have any coal so we had to paint some rocks. Soon the snow melted and we were left with only memories and these pictures. It was a blast. Throwing snowballs at each other, rolling a huge ball of snow around the house to build the snowman, and sipping hot chocolate by the fire to warm up.
When April left to go home on Friday night she almost ran over 2 kids rolling a 5 ft tall snowball down the street. It was a wintry dream come true… for every one of us kids.
First Citizens Bank Hosts the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce
First Citizens Bank Hosts the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce
Dennis P Lockhart CEO of the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank is guest speaker. Ryan McKinney
www.MeetTheMcKinneys.com
“You Won’t Be The Same”
The Girl Scouts – My Nemesis This Time of Year
They stand outside of Walmart and knock on doors with their little red wagons filled. You know them as well as I do. The future sales women of America cutting their teeth with door-to-door sales. The Girl Scouts. From this picture you can see that even though I avoided them as much as possible, they have infiltrated my realm… AGAIN. Tagalongs rock. Now I have to go… I’m getting chocolate on my phone.
Ryan McKinney
www.MeetTheMcKinneys.com
“You Won’t Be The Same”
Cute Evan Pic
This is a cute Evan Pic snapped from Auntie April’s phone. Thank you Ape for all you do.
Ryan McKinney
www.MeetTheMcKinneys.com
“You Won’t Be The Same”
Gabby… My Valentine
Gabby is the sweetest, most loving little girl I have ever known. This picture says it all, huh?
Contrary to popular belief, Valentine’s Day is actually a Christian holiday. It’s debated hotly in many circles.
There were three St. Valentine’s, a bishop, a priest, and then another that most agree there isn’t enough known about him to be descriptive. What stands out to me is that they were all martyrs for love.
You can say what you want about love, but when you’ve found it you know two things for a fact.
- That God has something to do with it
- You would most certainly die for it
So for all of you hopeless lovers out there, Happy Valentine’s Day. Or as Gabby says, Happy ValentiMe’s Day!
What’s Your Valentine Story?
Burrito Bandit
This was my profile picture on Facebook. If there was ever a photo that had so much going on that it didn’t need explaining, it’s this one. BUT… I have been asked a thousand times, “What’s going on in your picture?”
Here’s the skinny:
We were Tailgating at the UGA Homecoming in October of 2008.
The woman behind me with the “That’s who’s been eating the Burritos” look is my Mother-In-Law.
Of course the guy with the “cat that ate the canary” grin is me.
All morning long, we had been sneaking the burritos out of the cooler. This had to be my forth or fifth. She had no idea where they were going. Just as you can see in this picture, I had no idea I was caught.
Amber took the picture just as I took a bite. I thought she was just taking a picture of me eating the burrito when I wasn’t supposed to. I had no idea I was caught.
What do you think about this picture? Leave a Reply below and let me know.
Peas in a Pod
Gabby is a great big sister. She can put a pacifier back in Evans mouth faster than us. She knows when Evan is wet, when he’s hungry, or when he’s going to spit up. She loves on him and kisses him.
She is human. She’s noticed that Evan the baby gets immediate attention and it just doesn’t make sense to her. We’re concious of this and we do our best to keep her from feeling neglected.
She is NOT neglected, but it’s hard to explain those kinds of things. You’ve got to SHOW them. Not with “over-the-top” gifts or “out-of-the-ordinary” things like the zoo this weekend. I have to show her with the little things. In everything I’ve learned, it’s what you do, not what you say that gets remembered.
She doesn’t understand that she’s my heartbeat. That she is the apple of my eye. She understands simple time spent with her doing the normal, simple stuff.
What do you think? Leave a comment if you’ve had a similar experience.
Tonka Trucks Are Catching My Eye
Walking through Target the other day something strange happened. I passed the boys toy isle as usual and was stopped dead in my tracks. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something I hadn’t seen since I was 10.
There was something about moving all that dirt around in the backyard. It hit me… hard. I am about to be able to play with toys again. Evan will be destroying my backyard like I did my aunt and uncles when I was a little squirt.
I remember it was one of my favorite toys. Probably because it wasn’t mine. That’s right. I didn’t even have one. My cousins had them and that was enough.
Do YOU have a favorite toy you remember from your childhood? Leave a comment and tell us all what it was?
Bad to The Bone
This one is a cutie. You’d think he loved from the picture. I guess he didn’t mind, but he spit up on it about 2 seconds after this shot was taken. It’s my favorite outfit for him. It’s a little Guns N Roses… ya know. Any way if you think this ones cute, leave a comment to let us know.
Daily Audio Bible
After being on the planet for about 30 years, I’ve learned a little about myself. For one, I’m an audible learner. That’s why I never took a book home in High School nor did I have to review very many of my notes in college. I was simply able to listen, process, and absorb the information and make it useful.
That may sound like a blessing, but it makes actual reading a pain in the neck. Drudgery, in fact.
Years ago I made a commitment to read through the entire Bible within a year. I am happy to say this is something I still learn from and enjoy to this day. The only problem? You guessed it. The reading part. I have to read, re-read, and re-read again to make the sentences and words soak in.
That sent me on a quest to find a daily audio bible. It took prayer and about 7 years to find it. I was looking for a specific format and something that wasn’t just someone else reading in the same boring monotone reminiscent of Ferris Bulers Day Off.
As a podcaster, I even did the research and work to put together a daily audio Bible and fully planned to run a podcast myself. Faced with making a mediocre product and trying to do my best for the Lord, I found myself searching again. My voice is just not the powerful TV/Radio voice that would do this project justice.
I’m happy to report that I have found it.
If you are interested in reading through the Bible in a year and feel like you don’t have time or cannot commit to something so big then you really should take a listen and see.
If you are an iTunes user search for 1 Year Daily Audio Bible or just go here –> Daily Audio Bible iTunes
If you are not an iTunes user, you can listen online right here –> Daily Audio Bible Website
There is also the Daily Audio Proverb (about 5 minutes a day) that is a good companion.
So many people want to change their lives. The single most positive way to do that is to dive into the Lord’s Word. Give it a shot and let me know what you think in the comment section below.
