When the Big Dogs are Fightin' It's Smart to Leave 'Em Alone

“I don’t have a dog in that fight.”

Have you heard the phrase? It’s said when there’s a dispute happening in which you really don’t have anything at stake. It came to mind the other day when I was reading about the launch of Apple’s new payment system – Apple Pay.

On the exact day it launched, some major retailers announced that they were not going to participate. If you haven’t been following the drama, there’s something of a standoff occurring between the retailers on the side of Apple Pay and another group of retailers who are pushing a payment system called CurrentC.

Market disruption

These competitive battles happen often in finance and they can be very disruptive. The CurrentC backers hope to disrupt the credit card system and eliminate the fees they have to pay to credit card processors. These developments will probably shake up some big financial institutions in the not-too-distant future.

Anyway, I’m glad that I don’t have a dog in that fight. It’s hard to tell what the effect on investment portfolios will be as these things play out, especially for investors who are heavily into the financial sector.

It’s great to have an investment portfolio that pays a consistent and competitive return, and that’s exactly what you can accomplish with First Trust Deeds through Evoque Lending. We’re experts on Orange County, Los Angeles and San Francisco area real estate lending. The team at Evoque Lending has been delivering great returns for our clients for more than 15 years.

A sensible approach

The key to our success – and the success of our investors – rests on two important factors:

• Insuring sufficient equity in the property – generally at least 40 percent.

• Certainty in the ability of the borrower to make payments.

These are our two most important considerations when we work with applicants. When both of these factors are in place, investors enjoy the steady stream of income that they are looking for as well as the safety that they need in order to protect their financial position.

Experience in screening applicants, working with trusted and proven appraisers, and understanding the real estate markets where we do most of our business are the three pillars that have allowed us to achieve continued success throughout our years in business.

Further, our investors always have the final say on whether or not they want to fund a First Trust Deed, and they can exercise control in other ways as well. For example, if you decide that holding one or more First Trust Deeds in your portfolio works with your financial strategy, you can determine the term of your notes, typically from three to 84 months. Of course, you could devise a mix of terms tailored to your anticipated financial needs.

No crystal ball

I don’t know if we’ll all be using Apple Pay or CurrentC two years from now, but I do know that California real estate will continue to be bought, sold and borrowed against and there will always be a big demand for First Trust Deeds. The question for you is whether or not to participate in this opportunity.

That’s not a question you can answer from the quick overview I’ve provided here. Why not call me so we can discuss this in greater detail?