Herman School of Business
Final Wednesday Update...
The couple who invested in a property in Cape May County, New Jersey have now completed their best efforts to raise money for the secured creditor of the property. They have made every payment on time. They have paid the taxes when due. They have paid for utilities and insurance as needed.
The best efforts did not yield a sale during the eighteen plus months when a professional Real Estate agent had the listing and advertised the property. A sale wasn’t realized when the price was lowered even below what the bank was owed.
Letters went out to Brokers three different times. No sale.
Finally a professional auction firm with a great reputation was engaged to advertise and conduct an auction on site. That culminated in there being seven people present last weekend on Saturday at the appointed time scheduled for the event. None were buyers, just curiosity seekers. No sale.
I have had the privilege of working with this couple for about ten weeks. They have been courteous at all times. They have been open and honest at all times. They have never tried anything but their best efforts couldn’t conjure up a buyer. The marketplace has beaten them this time.
This is a classic case that I will use in the future when people ask me when they should give up and get out. My words have always been to do everything within your power to succeed and if that results in your being unable to go over the wall, under the wall, or around the wall in front of you…then walk away and do something else. These people have nothing to feel bad about. Sure they lost money and have to still endure giving the property back to the bank and all that may follow from that but they should accept the consequence with a feeling of pride in the fact that they did what they should have done before throwing in the towel. In simple point of fact, bad things happen to good people. There is no guarantee that your hardest efforts and best intentions will always lead to a success. Sometimes doing everything right still leads to a set-back, or failure.
Hardship does not build character, it reveals character. This couple has a lot of character and I am proud to have met them and wish them better times ahead.
- Posted: 23 April 2008
- Comments: 0
- Category: Business failure
add a comment