“Staffing job trends lead nonfarm employment by three months when the economy is emerging from a recession”   American Staffing Association

Staffing employment in February was 13% higher than in the same month last year, according to the ASA Staffing Index.  Sounds like great news.  Staffing agencies are starting to place people in jobs.  It makes sense; companies are starting to grow again but are a little hesitant to add too many costs so they turn to agencies to hire.  Great, that just means there are more qualified buyers out there right?

Wait, hold on a second.  Be careful.  In the eyes of most lenders a staffing job is a “temp” job.  Yes, I know that often a position placed through a staffing agency is considered a permanent position.  Yes, often it might be more secure than a direct hire’s position.  Unfortunately in the eyes of most lenders it is still considered a “temporary” position.

Even further, keep in mind that your clients may not understand this.  I recently had a borrower call me to be pre-qualified.  Of course one of the first questions I asked was where he worked.  He explained he just got a new job with Kraft Foods.  Great, I said and started discussing the job and some numbers.  As the conversation proceeded to unfold I happened to ask him how he found the new job.  When it came down to it, of course he was being paid weekly by the staffing agency.  Yes he worked for Kraft, but technically his employer was the staffing agency…or in the eyes of the lender the “temp” agency.

Just one more reason it is important to have your buyers pre-qualified!

If you are in need of a mortgage in Morris County, Middlesex County, Sussex County, Bergen County or anywhere in New Jersey please give me a call!

For all you Foodies out there, this is a great charitable event.  The restaurants go all out and this year the Napa Valley Vintners Association will be attending.

Attend the BEST Wine Tasting & Food Event of the Year!

Taste of Madison 2011

10th Anniversary
January 18, 2011
7:00 – 9:30PM
VIP Hour 6:00 – 7:00 PM
The Park
Avenue Club
184 Park Ave
Florham Park, New Jersey

www.parkavenueclub.com

Info Tel.: 973-377-7830

Gary’s Wine & Marketplace and the Napa Valley Vintners Association will
once again help sponsor the Taste of Madison. The 10th Anniversary
event will be held at the Park Avenue Club and will feature an amazing group of
Napa Valley winemakers from Shafer, Cliffe Lede, Schramsberg, ROY Estate,
Saintsbury and more-pouring their own distinguished wines and showcasing the
best of Napa Valley. For a complete list of those attending click here.

A highly anticipated annual food and wine extravaganza, Taste
of Madison has become THE premiere food tasting event in Morris County,
providing the opportunity to sample signature dishes from some of Madison’s
finest chefs and restaurants, all on one night and under one roof.

This annual fund-raising event is organized by the Madison Rotary Club Foundation,
the Madison Chamber of Commerce, and the Madison Downtown Development Commission
and will feature food, desserts and wine offered by the restaurants and
retailers of Madison NJ. For a complete list of restaurants click here.

The Federal Reserve has launched a new website that shouldbe bookmarked by everyone.  Finally thereis a website that is a good resource for credit related information that doesnot try and sell you anything; nothing, no related services, no underlying adrevenues, purely informational and completely trustworthy.

The Consumer’sGuide to Credit Reports and Credit Scores is a well planned, easy to understand website that deserves high praisefor the government.  As the site says:

Your credit history isimportant to a lot of people: mortgage lenders, banks, utility companies,prospective employers, and more. So it’s especially important that you understandyour credit report, credit score, and the companies that compile thatinformation, credit bureaus. This site–maintained by the Federal ReserveBoard–provides answers to some of the most common, and most important,questions about credit.

Here are what I believe to be some of the highlights of thewebsite:

• Getcopies of your creditreport– then make sure information is correct. The site tells you how.

•Understand how your credit score is determined. The new site tells you.

• Learnthe legal steps to take to improve your credit report. Again, the informationis online.

• Bewareof credit-repair scams. The web site keeps you up to date.

• Thewebsite offers step-by-step instructions to help you correct an error on yourcredit report — not an uncommon job for credit-active consumers.

The siteis new and fresh with the latest government regulations dovetailing into yourresponsibilities, indicating it’s not just up to the law to make sure creditorsdo the right thing.

We all know about some of New Jersey’s bigger, well funded museums like The
Liberty Science Center. What a great place to spend the day. What you might
not know is that New Jersey has a large number of smaller, off the beaten path
museums that are just as amazing for both adults and children. Here are a
couple that I really like:

Morris Museum

Normandy Heights Rd., Morristown, 973/971-3700

ImagineThat!!! Discovery Museum for Children
4 Vreeland Rd., Florham
Park, 973/966-8000

Northlandz
495 Hwy. 202 S., Flemington,
908/782-4022

My favorite of them all is the Silverball Museum in Asbury Park. If you are
a pinball fan like I am, you have to make the time to go here. Not only do they
have all the nostalgic pinball machines from your childhood, but you can play
them all…no quarters needed. Make a day of it as Asbury Park has some
wonderful restaurants as well!
Silverball Museum: Pinball Hall of Fame
639 Cookman Ave., Asbury Park, 609/577-0232

Any other hidden gems???

Thank you Paul for this great post on wellness. With the New Year coming up this is some great advice.

Via Paul Newell at Balanced Wellness:

I was listening to a Robert Kiosaki CD and he mentioned that adults should have a financial report card. Yeah, that’s right, a financial report card! Its actually a pretty creative way of assessing where you really are in your financial education.

From our elementary school days, we have always been graded on our understanding of course material and in some cases our application of what we’ve learned. As we go through high school and college, those grades mean the difference between going to an average/outstanding college, or getting into a secure, high-paying job. In those days we get programmed to focus on a grade instead of focusing on the actual learning experience and how it applies to all things.

Report cards have been established in our mindset as a measurement tool that can bring good and bad outcome. I was a B – C student so when my report card came home, I got that speech. You know the one; “you can do better and you need to apply yourself or you won’t get that good job.” If it the report card was good, then I was getting rewarded in some way, most likely ice cream at Do Me A Flavor (ice cream store in Summit, NJ).

So I decided to create a Wellness Report Card for people in school, work or even in retirement. Here’s how it works:

1. Pick your five areas of wellness – what does wellness mean to YOU. The book Well-Being by Tom Rath writes that there are 5 main areas of wellness that contribute to our well-being; career, financial, social, community, physical. So to make the exercise easy let’s stick with those or you can use the five I chose: career, finances, community/charity, relationships, health.
2. Define what your grading scale looks like and means – In order to get an A in your career category, what does that look like? Are you an entrepreneur, and Fortune 500 company executive? Are you making a certain amount, living/working in a specific area? If you got a C in finances, does that mean you’re living paycheck to paycheck? Determine your grading scale from A to F (“+” and “-” do count); and this takes thought so don’t rush through this part.
3. Grade yourself – Now that you have a grading scale, what grades would you give yourself? Be honest!! No one else has to see this report card but you because its your responsibility. This is a very important snapshot of where you are right now. If you have poor grades its okay for now, but this will make you aware of areas that need improvement. If you earn, yes EARN, good grades then you’re rewarded with a happy, healthy and rewarding life and being.
4. Scan the consequences – Now you have your five areas of wellness, you have a grading scale, and your grades; reflect on what the consequences are if those grades stay the same. For example, if you have a C in career, what happens if you stay in your current situation? Could lead to more stress, more work, less engagement, etc. What if you have a C in health, what happens if you stay your course? Would it lead to high blood pressure, diabetes, weight gain. Reflecting on the consequences will help with your next step.
5. Take Action/Get a Plan – In school if you were getting poor grades or you wanted to get better in music or sports, what was your course of action? Did you practice or study more? Did you get help from a coach or tutor? Those tactics still apply, because to get better and accomplish anything you need repetition, and the help of others. Once you have a report card, craft a plan for the next 90 days before you reassess for your next report card. If you got a B in relationships, what can you do to improve to an A? Is it spending more time with family, or reconnecting with friends? I gave myself a C+ in that category because I want to connect with my family in Jamaica and get out to Colorado so see my friend Ward and his family. I have to book the trip to see them or have already made the visit before my next reassessment.

Do this exercise and be honest with yourself on where you are right now. There is no right or wrong or where you should be; its about where you are right now and figuring where do YOU want to go. I’ve always felt that everything we need to succeed is always within us, we just have to rediscover it. That requires honesty and accountability. Damn, I just sounded like my mother after one of my average report cards!! But for the first time I truly understand what she was talking about back then.

If you need some assistance with the exercise or have questions, reach out to me and we can go through this.

Be well and find your balance,