As some of you may already know, I have been following the story of Casey Serin, the 24 year old fellow who is facing foreclosure and possible bankruptcy, currently left holding the bag on 4 remaining properties (he used to have eight) with a debt worth over $2 million due to overleveraging and shady deals. I thought his story was going to end there, but the twists and turns in this tale made me shake my head in pure disbelief and sympathy, as I find myself utterly astounded by someone’s crumbling financial world. But I thought, there were lessons to learn here and they were deep lessons involving one’s character and spirit that perhaps deserved a few words.
If you read this post by Casey and this post by a well-respected young blogger and businessman named Ramit Sethi, you may discover that money or the pursuit thereof can be viewed quite differently by individuals who share many things in common, such as youth, ambition, talent, smarts and the entrepreneurial drive. And through the highly popular blogs of these two men, who strangely enough are coincidentally old high school buddies, one can see just how financial strategies, experiences and values can lead to vastly divergent destinies.
I can only commend these two bloggers for their frankness, for in their honesty I was reminded once more of these truths: among the things more valuable than money itself is reputation: once tarnished, earning it back may take a timeline that is indefinite and immeasurable. The same with trust: once lost, earning it back may take a course that is uncertain and unpredictable.
Since then, Casey has been in the thick of a few more misadventures, which have prompted me to once more shake my head in wonder. How could so much happen to someone in so little time, and with people of such high visibility? I suppose you can thank the media and the nature of the predicament he’s in.
Because of all this, you may be inclined to judge Casey for his numerous blunders but lest you forget, through his mistakes, we have already learned volumes.
< Thank you to Matrix for the pic. >
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I saw the article about Casey on the cover of the USA Today a few weeks ago. Pretty amazing how much amibition that guy has. Hope he turns his situation around.
I heard about this perhaps a week ago. It’s really not that unusual. It’s too easy to buy houses with no money and no credit. So easy in fact many end up buying houses they probably shouldn’t and before you know it you have multiple mortgages you can’t pay.
Casey is not the bad guy people make him out to be. He did not buy these properties to start his blog. His story is not the only one that where someone has gotten in over his head with property investments.
Agreed. I believe he was just a bit over-anxious and too aggressive. We do learn from our mistakes though.
I always warn clients about over-stretching themselves when it comes to property investments. Just as this is happening in the USA, the UK is quickly following suit; so I think there will be a few more cases like Casey’s that we’ll hear of.
This story was a bit before its’ time in the mainstream, but what are your thoughts on loan modification?
BTW, this is definitely a pretty wild story.
@Stopping Foreclosure,
Just checked your web site… first time I heard of the term “loan modification”. Is that some kind of debt consolidation term?
I hope he can make a quick turn around. He has worked so hard hopefully he has the skill to rebound from this crisis.
well lets all hope he can regain himself. I feel sorry that a man that has worked so hard has lost so much. I feel for Mr.Casey.
Mr. Travareli,
Nice to know there are people who are sympathetic to Casey. He had a lot of detractors, but I tried to understand his situation.
Casey’s story is definately something that will stick in my mind as an investor. The key to real estate investing is choosing the right income producing properties in the right place at the right time. Now is perhaps a buyers market, but count on a good few years of waiting to resell the property before making a big profit.
There are many goals and motivations behind financial investments. You can’t judge people too quickly.
I wonder how Casey is doing right now. Anyone have any updates on him? By the end of the day, its the decisions he make that shaped the outcomes. There is no right or wrong. There are only good or bad decisions in one’s life and the lesson is to be responsible for it and learned what’s being taught.
Casey is on Facebook and as far as I know, he’s behind a few online projects. He’s still doing his thing… just not sure exactly what he’s involved in. Yes, let’s all learn some lessons from his experience: it was a bitter pill he had to swallow, being the poster child of foreclosures.