Suze Orman

Wow! that is good advice. That's why you need a CFA on TV.

Was Wendy cooking up a slim jim?

i am not sure she has a cfa -- i think she was bankrupt at one point...

I guess he's making up for the piss-poor advice she was spouting for years about how people need to pay down debt -- even at the peril of having no savings -- and to just use their home equity lines of credit and credit cards as their source of "emergency funds" during times of unemployment.

Guess she didn't figure that during times of EXTREME unemployment, the banks would shut off the credit spigot and freeze those lines of credit, leaving many unemployed people with no savings AND no credit lines to "tap".

meant CFP.

That doesn't answer my question.

My great aunt lived through the Great Depression and recently celebrated her 102nd birthday. She once said that we would never have another period like it because of social security, unemployment insurance and credit cards. Well, one leg of that support system is being seriously destabilized. However, if you have untapped home equity, and a HELOC taken out before the credit crunch, you can still borrow at prime minus one-half percent, or 2.75% variable rate. That is amazing compared to some prime borrower credit cards at 23.99%.

Good but obvious advise. Suze made her fortune marketing herself. Has no real insight into finance.

Does anyone on CNBC know Finance?

"However, if you have untapped home equity, and a HELOC taken out before the credit crunch, you can still borrow at prime minus one-half percent, or 2.75% variable rate. That is amazing compared to some prime borrower credit cards at 23.99%."

Assuming that the bank hasn't "readjusted" your credit line.

I have a friend on Long Island whose house is worth $700K or so, has a first mortgage that's less than $200K (he bought many years ago), and had a HELOC for something like $350K. He'd done some home renovations and had a balance of $40K on the HELOC. After the banking meltdown, without ever having missed a payment, he noticed his available line of credit was cut from $350K down to the balance he owed. He called the bank to complain, but they held firm, and pointed out that they reserve the "right" to adjust credit lines "at their discretion".

Now he has ZERO available credit on his HELOC.

It's amazing how many confused a line of credit with money.

"It's amazing how many confused a line of credit with money."

Including Suze Orman.

She sold FICO score kits. FICO scores were a huge contributor to the Housing bubble, so in the spirit of muchEasy Street analysis it's clear Suzie Orman helped cause the crisis. She's a Democrat by the way!

http://www.newsmeat.com/celebrity_political_donations/Suze_Orman.php

What about Barbara Corcoracan*?

"Does anyone on CNBC know Finance?"

CNBC, despite being able to get interviews with high profile financial players, is a joke among the serious financial world

Your equity is not money until you borrow or liquidate the asset. Many believe their HELOC is drawing down on a savings account, it is not, it is a loan (debt)