Transcript
The Jacobsen Group with Jon Jacobsen · Thu Apr 16, 2026
Who used all the Wi-Fi?
Ah, apartment life.
Bad Wi-Fi, mystery laundry piles, and a roommate who says, I'll Venmo you.
Maybe 2027 deserves an upgrade.
Coming August 2027, Four Lakes Properties introduces the brand new Union Station Apartments, furnished in-unit washer and dryer.
Internet included a great central downtown location, one to five bedroom apartments, and no double occupancy fees.
That's less adulting and more actually enjoying where you live.
Union Station Apartments, now leasing from Four Lakes Properties.
Wait, we have a washer and dryer in the apartment?
apartment?
Who used all the Wi-Fi?
Ah, apartment life.
Bad Wi-Fi, mystery laundry piles, and a roommate who says, I'll Venmo you.
Maybe 2027 deserves an upgrade.
Coming August 2027, Four Lakes Properties introduces the brand new Union Station apartments.
Furnished, in-unit washer and dryer, internet included, a great central downtown location, one to five bedroom apartments, and no double occupancy fees.
That's less adulting and more actually enjoying where you live.
Union Station apartments, now leasing from Four Lakes Properties.
Wait, we have a washer and dryer in the apartment?
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you're enjoying this KXEL podcast, then we invite you to listen to KXEL's great programming in real time too.
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We're gonna have a wonderful show today.
We're gonna talk about free market enterprise economy.
And at the midpoint, some great entrepreneurs here in eastern Iowa.
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Go to liferunners.org and order your t-shirt to run and walk for a life like the loving gracious Deborah Jacobson does.
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Well welcome back guys, here where we bring back our terrific friends from Hames Homes, the Homes people.
Curtis Hames, well named.
after his outstanding grandfather and co-founder along with Norma Kurt and Norma Haymes, Haymes Homes, the homeless people that I remember over half a century ago when they started out right around 1970 as a kid growing up in Marion and they had the best commercials.
Let's go back a quarter century to one of those great Haymes spots.
If you're tired of soaring utility bills, consider an energy saving manufactured home from Hames.
You can save like the Eastler family of Cedar Rapids.
Last year, their utility bills averaged just over $45 a month.
That included heating, air conditioning, cooking, and everything else for their spacious three-bedroom mobile home.
And similar savings can be yours, thanks to Curt and Norma.
Our energy efficient homes means more good living for the money.
Come and see us.
We have the
answer.
Hames.
The Homes People.
Quite a family tradition with your multi-generational great bloodline there Curtis
well very very honored to be part of that and thank you for playing that That's a that's a fun blast from the past.
I love it.
It sure is and of course a quarter century ago that one A quarter century and just a little bit of change from the very end of 1999 and Curtis what hasn't changed is your
wonderful custodial family being great stewards of this vocation to bring beautiful safe affordable hearth and home to families in eastern Iowa.
Absolutely.
I'm honored to be part of that long-standing tradition and we're very proud to bring a clean safe
affordable community here in eastern Iowa.
You know, we want folks to get over there.
It's springtime now.
This is a great time for a move.
We're going to have a new Federal Reserve chair.
Rates are going to go down.
The economy had a wonderful jobs report on Friday.
A lot of things bubbling underneath the surface that portend very well for the housing environment.
And Curtis, you guys make it easy because you've got
Affordable homes, you also help them with the financing and the insurance.
Talk about those three things, the affordability, the financing, and the insurance.
We really pride ourselves on being kind of a one-stop shop, and I made a joke earlier this morning with the nice family.
I said, I'm their one throat to choke.
What we do here is where it's a land lease community.
and you can pay cash for a home or you can get help with financing from a bank.
Not every lender is going to understand the loans to our product, but we're here to make it as simple as possible.
And Clint and myself in the sales department, what we're willing to do is be the liaison for new homeowners.
So if people come in and it's their first time buying or if they're looking to downsize, we're glad to pair people
with the correct financing option.
So we can take an application, look at somebody's credit, their income, and their down payment, and we can make a suggestion on a bank, whatever might be the best fit, and our job is to pair with the best monthly payments for our homeowners.
In addition to that, we are an agent
For foremost, then we can sell insurance and get, quote, you don't have to use our lenders.
You
do
not have to use our insurance to come live in a Hames community.
It's all here as a resource for our potential homeowner.
Here with the great Curtis Hames, Hames Homes, the Homes people.
Curtis, you have a wonderful inventory of available homes and let's talk about
You really gotta bracket it for young families, for downsizers, and for 55 plus.
Talk about the range of offerings you have.
We're wide open here.
Different seasons of our lives is what we like to talk about here.
Our best buyers are people who are getting educated and they're learning about the value that we provide.
What we're excited to see is different types of folks, whether it be getting that first home, them and their significant other, and starting a family.
We're excited to help those people and get a leg up, help them become first time home buyers, people who are downsizing in a different season of their lives.
They have a big real estate home and it's just too much house.
Maybe the kids are grown, the grandkids, you want a new space to share with them.
We're glad to help with downsizers too and different sizes of homes that fit different people's needs everywhere in between.
We can help with financing,
We can make a cash sale extremely simple.
People who are selling their real estate, we have amenities for them to bridge them from their real estate closing to getting into our home without moving twice.
We've seen it all.
and we're excited to have everybody at every station of life.
You're listening to Curtis Haymes from Haymes Homes.
See how easy home ownership can be.
Affordable, manufactured homes in Eastern Iowa.
Listening to us on the Western Hemisphere's original 50,000 watt clear channel blowtorch, a century old KXEL 1540, 100.5.
Curtis, you've got these wonderful two communities, Summit View,
and Grandview, tell us about this community aspect.
Our terminology that we like to use in-house is that we're a planned community.
What we do here is we have a brief background check, and so we do a brief screening for criminal history.
But what we really try to provide is no sub-leasing, no rentals.
Everybody here owns their home.
So you'll know your neighbor.
It's going to be a clean, safe, planned community here on the southwest side of Cedar Rapids.
And guys, nothing better than testimonials from the people who live there.
Rebecca E says, living in Grandview has been wonderful.
The community is so pretty and clean.
Marnie Glukka says,
a great safe environment for retirees.
Michelle Tim says, management is on top of everything.
Nice playground for kids.
And Marnie says, after I sold my house, I was in the position to buy another house or condo instead.
I chose to buy a Haymes home and live in Grandview.
You can't do better than that, can you, for testimonials, Curtis?
Our satisfied homeowners are our best resource for advertising.
We, our job is to make sure everybody is satisfied and happy in their home, in their community.
This is not an interaction where we sell someone a car and they drive off.
We're in here for the long haul with our homeowners and we need to honor our commitments to them and make sure our community is safe, it's clean, it's well maintained.
What we want is people to have an affordable home.
place to live and high, high end expectations of our homeowners and they should have high expectations.
I'm going to have Curtis a moment, tell us how you can find these guys, both in person and electronically.
Curtis, what I'm impressed with, you guys still buy homes and you also have a great blog post on simple steps to trade in your home.
You guys are there to help whatever the need is, aren't you?
We know that there's a lot of things that people can be going through as far as homeownership.
changes in career, your changes in needs from a family perspective.
There's just, again, I keep saying it, it's seasons of our lives.
And we know that people don't do this all the time.
Changing your house is not something that you just roll out of bed and you do it willy-nilly.
Some people just need some guidance and we want to make sure that it's very, very simple.
When you come to Haynes, we've seen it all.
So we're the experts.
You're going to be in good hands and we're going to educate people every step of the way.
And no one's going to go in blind or not know what they're doing.
We pride ourselves in making sure that everybody's savvy.
They know what they're getting into because we provide a lot of value.
We don't need to obscure what we're doing.
Our job is to educate and make sure everybody is going in with open eyes.
We're very, very proud of that fact.
And we know that we provide a lot of value.
You know, I'm going to use a sports analogy, Curtis.
I urge all of our listeners to enter the Hames Homes.
portal for the NIL, NIL sending for new, ideal living.
How's that?
Get into Hames Portal.
Curtis, how do they find you online by telephone in person?
Our transfer portal is wide open over here.
Absolutely.
Find us on Facebook.
We have a very active Facebook page.
Indeed.
It's a great follow for current homeowners and prospective homeowners, both Hames Homes on Facebook.
The best place to do
To come and look, see us in person.
We're on the corner of Wilson and West Post Road on the southwest side of Cedar Rapids.
Come to our open houses.
We try to work by appointment, but if you just need to drive around and see the inventory, we'd love to see you too.
Please call us 319-377-48.
And
that outstanding website, HamesHomes, H-A-M-E-S, H-O-M-E-S dot com, and those great patriots that fly old glory, our Iowa Liberties Reprise and rights we maintain, and always that third flag for our POWMIA, the senior Hames as the late Curt Norma, wonderful veterans that were at the front lines of...
winning the Cold War.
Curtis, you got a great family legacy and your leadership and your generation edifies that entire family and serves our community so well.
Always a joy to have you with us.
Happy Easter Resurrection Sunday and continued success to our Hawkeyes as we're rotating out of hoops and be into football before you know it.
No rush through spring here.
Football will be here before we know it.
Love, love, love.
Let's take our time with spring and summer.
absolutely
guys we'll be back next week with perhaps Curtis will do an encore since we've been rotating Barbara and Clinton a little bit too let's listen back to back Curtis we'll bring you back next week how's that sound Curtis I'm looking forward to it we'll visit them all right guys you're listening to the Jacobson group here on KXEL
Who used all the Wi-Fi?
Ah, apartment life.
Bad Wi-Fi, mystery laundry piles, and a roommate who says, I'll Venmo you.
Maybe 2027 deserves an upgrade.
Coming August 2027, Four Lakes Properties introduces the brand new Union Station Apartments.
Furnished, in-unit washer and dryer.
Internet included a great central downtown location, one to five bedroom apartments, and no double occupancy fees.
That's less adulting and more actually enjoying where you live.
Union Station Apartments, now leasing from Four Lakes Properties.
Wait, we have a washer and dryer in the apartment?
This is the Faith in Economics Podcast, a presentation of the Gortney Institute at Ottawa University.
Welcome to our show.
This is Russ McCullough.
I am the Wayne Angel chair of economics here at Ottawa University and founder and director of the Gwartney Institute.
And I'm running solo today without my other buddies, Peter and Justin, because my brother is visiting from out of town.
So I have a special guest today.
And he is an expert in credit repair.
So he has been the owner of Armor Credit Solutions in the Louisville area.
And he started getting into this after being an educator.
He got his bachelor's degree from St.
Cloud State University up in Minnesota in 1999.
He resigned from there and started getting into his own business with credit repair.
He was a veteran of ours, so three years active, seven years reserves in the U.S.
Army.
So thank you for your service, brother.
And so him and his family have been over in the Louisville area for a number of years and he's built up quite a business there.
And so happy to have you on the show, Chip.
Well, thank you.
Appreciate that.
It's nice to be here talking with my brother.
talking with other folks that like to hear about faith in economics.
And we won't get sidetracked too much on paddlefish, but the real reason he's here, so listeners, if you want to google paddlefish, just see an incredible animal that's in kind of Missouri and Kansas, Oklahoma area, so...
That's what brought them here, but now we get to talk about credit repairs.
So what have you been doing for people over the years?
Well, so for the last 20 years people have called me so that they can kind of straighten out the credit, raise their credit scores, and buy a house.
That's usually why people call me.
Matter of fact, I work with, oh, I don't know, many different loan officers and things that banks and mortgage companies and they'll send leads to me where, you know, typically somebody wants to buy a house and we need to kind of work on their credit and straighten up that.
um razor scores and then they can buy a house.
So
you're kind of the go-to person there you developed a network of relationships with lenders especially they get new clients in and
the
credits messed up you need to talk to Chad.
That's right.
So, yeah, no, I've built a nice business over the years and to me it's all about relationships, you know?
So if you do people right and help people straighten up their credit, help the loan officers, turn deals and things too, I mean, that's really what it's all about.
You gotta help people and you gotta do what you're saying and not overpromise the world too is important too.
So, you know, after 20 years of doing what I do, I still enjoy what I do.
I
can
tell, I overhear his conversations with people and he's animated kind of like I am in the classroom teaching economics.
So I still love to analyze credit reports and I don't know, I guess every credit report's like a snowflake or something.
They're all unique, you know, and you can't just do the same things to help people improve scores across the board.
You have to kind of pick out what's happening on a credit report.
Maybe we need to work through the credit bureaus and help.
then out, remove, update, correct some of the negative information that's on the report.
So what we'll do is dispute and contest some of that negative information depending, you know, what we think is erroneous or duplicated or incomplete or unverifiable or whatever it may be.
So because according to the FCRA, you can't have that sort of net, you know, information on a credit report.
Everything's got to be 100% perfect.
And of course,
it's not a lot of time.
So that's how we're able to help remove some of it and increase scores.
And what's interesting is people can do this all on their own, right?
But similar to other professionals, you can just do it a lot quicker.
You're an expert, you know, the ins and outs and the details.
And like you said, it's almost like, I think I thought a financial consulting or financial planning, as far as everybody's unique, depending on if you're 64, if you're 30 or kids, no kids, blah, blah, blah.
But it's kind of a reverse thing of helping them repair bad stuff in the past.
You're kind of coaching them through there.
And the stuff you do is just part of your level of expertise that you bring to the table.
They can hire you for around five, six, seven hundred dollars.
Isn't it somewhere in that range?
Just to throw out a number so your listeners kind of have an idea.
And literally, if you go do this on your own, you will spend hours and hours and hours just getting to first base.
Yeah.
And so that's why you hire professionals as to that you guys can do it quicker and help.
It's not a lot different then.
I mean, I guess you can represent yourself in court too.
But a
lot of people call it an attorney.
Right.
You know, I used to change my own oil.
I don't like to do that.
I don't want to deal with the oil in the garage and let it sit there.
And then I got it.
go over to the little oil chains joint.
So it's no different than
that.
And
economics, it's comparative advantage, right?
So Chad has a comparative advantage in credit repair and
it
helps a lot of people out for that.
And you brought up something where...
It could take you a long long time to figure it out and really you kind of have one good chance to fix your credit right and what I mean by this is I don't know Let's just say somebody's got a handful of collections or something that need to be dealt with and you know Sometimes you do want to deal with them.
Sometimes you need to settle them.
Sometimes you need a payment full You always want to try and get them off the credit report, which is not always possible But you might still want to do it and there's some dogs better off laying around still, you know, you really don't want to
Wake them up.
You don't want to stir at the hornet's nest.
Oh, I
see what you're
saying.
Yeah.
So
you kind of want to leave that one alone and deal with this because it's collecting dust for like five years or something.
It's going to fall off.
Well, okay.
Well, you hit the nail on the head.
So as far as five years ago, there's a date on the report.
It's the DLA.
It's the date of last activity.
And that is the key date.
of when something's going to fall off your credit report.
So if you have a collection or a late that happened five years ago, well, it's got two more years to fall off your credit report if you're weighing.
Okay.
So, but, you know, sometimes we'll get after that.
I will tell you this, there is no law stating that it must.
stay on there for seven years and that's a little word I come in and you know some of our angles that we may take on certain derogatory information on our reports and but so you got to be careful with what you're doing with certain collections and some of them need to be settled and so I started settling that three years ago which I
It's kind of fun.
Some people think I'm a little nuts for doing it because it seems you're just wheeling and dealing with attorneys and, you know, other firms collecting on money.
And so before we even get into that, talk about the change in policy from the Biden administration that caused you to have to move
maybe a
different direction.
Yeah, I had to pivot for sure.
So I was at that time that was, I don't know, five years ago or so.
So it's just normal part of.
credit repair company like I have you know part of it is you see medical collections on people's report there's a lot of them out there you know I'm sure a lot of our listeners have medical oh sure of course linger in it and it happens and sometimes they're on people's reports for maybe didn't pay it for one thing possibly but number two maybe it was paid or covered
Oh, late.
And it should have been retracted from collections.
With the
whole mess of insurance covering it or I'm covering
it,
that
type of thing.
It's
all a little messy and muddy sometimes.
So anyways, I'll deal with that.
But here's where the big change came in five years ago, is that Biden had, I guess to help people increase their credit scores, they removed...
all the paid medical collections, so those went away and that was low hanging fruit for a guy like me.
I could get those off the credit report easy, okay, which would help thrive.
So there was a previous collection, it shows as paid but it's still on the report.
Still on the report.
So then somebody eyeballs that.
Yeah, so it would count against their scores.
It definitely counts against their scores.
And then they changed the collection but it was paid.
And then they changed something else where they had a, if you had a medical collection under
$500, it cannot be under credit report, period.
People think we don't have free healthcare, but you're saying if it's under 500, we can't have free
healthcare.
But like, although I'll tell you this, I can't tell you how many $501 collections I see on people's credit reports now.
Oh yeah, they kind of got smart with that, do I think?
520, 501.
But, you know, so if they go and pay a medical bill, it has to come off your credit report period.
So anyways, this is, I'm explaining this because I had to pivot.
and so I was seeing a lot less leads because you can imagine with all of these medical bills medical collections not on a credit report the people had scores maybe good enough to buy house let's say 620 or something where some of these other ones are driving scores down into 500s where a loan officer would send that lead over to me and then I
try to go to work on it, right?
So, but now I'm just getting less late.
And I'm like, whoa, all right, I gotta figure this out.
So, and I noticed the credit reports that I was analyzing had a lot of collections with credit cards.
And it might be a $600 collection.
It could be 1200.
It could be, you know, a couple grand, whatever it may be.
But I've known over my career that if we can help remove these, settle them for them and remove them, it's a big deal.
And in
You know, believe it or not, there's lots of people that don't want to pick up the telephone and do this themselves.
Right.
So it actually became a nice value add for my business with this, that I'll do it for them for a fee or whatever.
And so you were able to see, because you look at so many credit reports daily, just this pattern of an opportunity to help people out.
And when they...
part of the negotiations, and I'm kind of asking this, of course, because I'm not sure, is you say, they owe you $800, we'll send you $200 to settle it, and you remove it from their credit report, with the key thing of it being removed from the credit report,
right?
That's part of the negotiation.
That's right.
Oh, yeah, for sure.
I mean, that's the reason somebody's coming and calling us is that they want to improve their score.
Yeah.
And I
just know that.
we have to get that collection off the credit report.
And listen, not every collection company is willing to do that, but several of them are, and that can also help negotiate that in sometimes
if
they're willing to do that.
And that immediately jumps their score because a thing that's a pretty big negative, there's no lingering effect is what I'm trying to say.
Once you get it removed, it's like it was never there.
It's like it was never there.
Yeah.
So
then
you could be a hundred point raise probably or whatever.
I don't know
what's funny You
bring
up
the the number 100 because I don't know if people know this out there, but one collection I don't care if it's paid or unpaid I don't it doesn't matter if it's $300 from an AT&T bill you didn't pay or if it's $4,000 coals charge off credit card that whole thing is worth about 110 points if you if you if you're used to perfect credit and you're used to 780 800 credit scores and you somehow
Get a collection somehow.
I don't know.
You didn't pay your last water bill at your last house You just moved from it's it's worth 110 points.
It's enormous
So
all of these collections together and all of the others the word collections is that you owed some money to Coles and then they turned it over to a collection agency Or it can it be a collection agency within Coles like a department of theirs when you when you use the word collections when it shows up on a report that way Well, it starts with the inside collections with Coles.
Yeah
And so that
counts against you.
The 110 is...
Oh yeah, because it
labeled as a charged off account.
Oh,
okay.
So they just have, they may or may not have their own department.
They do have their own department, for
sure.
And they try and collect on it.
And when they get tired of trying to collect on it, then they'll sell it to ABC Collection Company and or...
they don't always sell it but sometimes they do and other times they just contract with them for to try and collect that debt and then that's the company I might call and try and negotiate a settlement with and I always tell I always tell people my clients just expect like half or less I don't try and promise hey this is gonna settle for pennies on the dollar and all of this because that doesn't happen a lot right now
So anyways, the people most of my clients are thrilled that I'm doing this forum and they know I'm looking out for the credit scores all at the same time.
So it's fun.
I've probably settled $850,000 of bag credit cards and repos and whatever else in the last three years.
600
here, 1500 here, 10,000 here.
What's the highest one you've ever sold?
Oh, probably $40,000.
So
I have a credit card.
So
850 and 40 is the biggest and that's pretty rare.
Right.
So it's a high volume of making
this
settlement.
So I had one couple, MetaHack two couples, but
They got into some credit card debt.
They had about $65,000 worth of charged off credit cards, which means it's in collections and all of this.
And I've analyzed their credit reports.
And so they got a little upside down in their finances, clearly.
So what they did is they had a house.
They sold the house.
They moved in with mom and dad for a hot minute with kids or something.
And they, with the proceeds of the house that they just sold, they called me and I.
settled at $65,000 for, I don't know, half or less, you know, like I always say.
But, but then I got the stuff off the credit report, which is important.
And then about five or six weeks later, their scores were high enough to buy the next house.
Wow.
So, and they were thrilled about it.
They're the kind of people I didn't want to pick up the phone and mess around and negotiate things.
And so they were just really happy that
I can just do that for them and they can trust somebody that's a professional.
Right.
Sorry.
All right.
Well, that looks like a good spot for a break.
So when we get back, we want to get a little bit more involved with the debt settlement and we can get into other areas of credit repair as well.
So we'll be back in just a bit.
Who used all the Wi-Fi?
Ah, apartment life.
Bad Wi-Fi, mystery laundry piles, and a roommate who says, I'll Venmo you.
Maybe 2027 deserves an upgrade.
Coming August 2027, Four Lakes Properties introduces the brand new Union Station apartments.
Furnished, in-unit washer and dryer, internet.
included a great central downtown location, one to five bedroom apartments and no double occupancy fees.
That's less adulting and more actually enjoying where you live.
Union station apartments now leasing from four lakes properties.
Wait, we have a washer and dryer in the apartment.
Ottawa University has an exciting new major, PPE, which stands for philosophy, politics and economics.
Each of these three fields is interesting in their own right, but they intersect in ways that are important to understand, both individually and for your community.
If you find philosophy fascinating but want to make sure that your study of the subject is practical, if you enjoy economic analysis but want to see how economic laws interact with moral principles, if you are interested in politics but want to explore how economic and ethical realities constrain our political choices, you should consider the PPE program at Ottawa University.
The Gordon Institute at Ottawa University is the best place in the Midwest for free enterprise education and its contribution to human flourishing, faith, and economics in action.
We have some great high school student programs like PPE Fest.
This is an event where students get to listen to some world-renowned speakers and then participate in competition geared around philosophy, politics, and economics.
Our everyday economics program is just a half day on a Saturday.
and we will have an integrated discussion about common sense economics.
We have a college credit microeconomics course that runs every eight weeks.
Your high school student can earn college credit for the special price of $200.
If you know some students interested in programs like these, contact Peter, Justin, or Russ today.
All right, so we're back.
And then I just want to continue on a little bit with the debt settlement stuff.
So it sounds like there's a real dynamic that you know some of the inside baseball of kind of how they
interpret what you're bringing to the table like does it you kind of know I can get them to 50% so is there a big negotiation like you know what what does it look like to these companies is are they and I'm guessing the person all the personal feelings and other emotions they're out the window and I'm guessing it's just right you know business so can you speak to that sure so when I call a company it's helpful that you know we're at the point where
the story of why this money went a little south and you know the company didn't get their money and the store it's really all about the brass tax and the dollars and what's going to happen right here you know and what really plays into it is do you have a lump sum of money to pay off yeah that's always a question do you need payments or do you want to do lump sum well listen the lump sum settle better okay so if you owe somebody two thousand dollars but you might be able to settle it for
Well, you know, let's say 35% or something if you need payments or something you might be 60% 70% like it's you want to speak in lump sums and You know if the people can get their money today, that's helpful too.
It's you know as far as that goes but so when it comes to Settling this debt you do kind of need to understand how the ballgame is played now after three years of doing what I do with this I keep data ongoing data with these particular collections and what I've settled it at
And whether they were willing to delete it, did I have to fight them for trying to get a pay for delete option?
Which ones go straight to 50% off and then you can work lower from them.
So
this is
your own internal database.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So then fast forward one, if I got a new referral today, I'll analyze the credit report and I can see this collection company, this collection, and I already know what those companies are going to do.
This is where I'm at with this.
And so, and so for that reason, I can work very quickly.
I know what a good deal is with that company and what's not.
And of course the people trust me that knowing that I'm going to try and get as stupid as I can for them, etc.
But a lot of times it's kind of interesting because it's really like it's playing a game of poker over the phone.
And you can't see the people, you know?
So there's a little bit of that.
And some of that's circumstantial, whether they actually have control of some purse strings with that or they need to go back to XYZ company and ask their permission if they can do a 50% settlement or 42% settlement or something like that.
And so I know for credit repair you charge kind of a...
Basically a flat fee you you look at their case and decide how much maybe how much work there's gonna be or whatever
Is this
the same way with that settlement or how do you you know kind of get paid?
It a little depends you know if there's a couple of things that I see in there that I know for sure
are going to need to be settled.
I just know how it's going to impact their credit scores, particularly.
And so I'll talk with them on the front end of all that.
And I'll tell them, hey, I'll settle both of these for you.
No big thing.
You want to do nothing.
I'll handle it.
Right.
However, some people have six, seven, eight, 10 different things to settle.
Well, if I charge them $600 or $700, that's too much time on the phone.
That's a lot of work, actually.
So I'll charge them additionally.
per
okay per just kind
of analyze that separately because sometimes it gets into long full first of all i got a fax and a poa so that they know that i can talk with this company and and then as soon as
you're over there
any poa yeah power up yeah so and then it might xyz company might say well you got to now call this firm over here and then you get a hold of that firm and they're saying when you got to talk to your legal over in this department and now the people you know and they'll sometimes they'll tell me they're about one week out from getting sued
right now.
So immediately I know that we gotta settle this right now.
We don't have time to mess around.
So this is something that I know the progression of some of this because they don't always sue you, but a lot of times they will.
I mean, if you don't pay people, they can get...
Yeah.
You know, I'm had enough to want and just take you to court, so.
All right, so let's circle back to kind of credit scores.
There's a lot of things with building credits, so I know I like to have my students pull the report.
The actual Experian report is what I...
have learned to kind of tell them because all of a sudden students were bringing me up.
Well here's my credit thing from Discover.
Here's my credit thing from this or that and everybody's, the system kind of changed away from the three primary credit reporting agencies and I don't even care what their credit score is.
I give them extra credit so that they actually look at their credit because
in
my class multiple times I've had a few students.
Doesn't happen always of course but mom or dad
took out something in their name and they didn't know about it or Uncle Joey or whatever.
And so those can be a little awkward, but it's important for the students to review their credit and see what's actually out there and have a better understanding.
So that's, so tell me about, you know, how built, rebuilding credit, building credit, you know, the use of some of these other companies.
So let me, let me speak to some of the, there's a, there's a ton of apps out there that you can monitor your credit and you should have one, especially the free one.
You don't need a paid version of anything.
Okay, so credit karma is free.
There's two different credit.
And you like
credit karma, right?
It seems like you've recommended that.
You recommended that to me, so
I hope you still like it.
No, I do.
It's free.
It's easy.
There's two different... There's Echofax and TransUnion in there, so that gives you a couple of different credit bureaus to look at.
Experian's also free, okay?
So you can do that.
Now, Experian has a FICO score, which is what the banks have and what they pull, although there's about six different versions of FICO scores that...
Consumers get a little confused about you know what I mean, but but then over on the credit karma They have vantage 3.0 scores.
There's credit wise.
There's credit hero.
There's all sort there's tons of things Okay, but it is important to have one and you don't need to pay for one.
That's my opinion But so that way you can see hey, maybe some did pop on my credit report That's not good and you could deal with it right away rather than figuring out a year and a half later that this is here I had never really thought about this before but
Maybe one of the reasons it's important to have one is that it's more important to be looking at the direction of where that one number, whatever one you pick, is going.
If it's going up, that's good.
If it's going down, oh, maybe something happened that I need to investigate further.
Is that part of the reason like one is good?
Because really, it's meaningless still.
This one says I'm a 640, and this one says I'm a 655, and this one says I'm whatever, and some of these numbers are...
kind of meaningless unless you go to the real deal the one you're talking about you know at least with the apps or .coms
At least it's a fair indication of where your score is.
Although I will promise, I've seen a hundred points swing both always with credit karma scores.
So I'm not always, I do like credit karma.
I'm not always in love with their scores all the time.
Right.
Their data.
Yeah.
It's always on point.
They update more often than any app that I've noticed.
And so you can rely on the data.
And of course, that's what I like to look at, of course.
But no, it's important to monitor your credit for sure.
Absolutely.
What recommendations do you have for people that either are rebuild
building or building?
I don't know if there's a big difference between rebuilding versus building.
Maybe you can speak to that.
Well, so everybody, every consumer that wants a decent credit score, you have to use credit to have a credit score.
So that doesn't mean you have to have 10 credit cards, a mortgage, an auto loan, a motorcycle loan.
You don't need all of that.
But at the bare minimum, you probably need a little secured credit card.
You know, if you're young or something, you're trying to establish credit.
You can go to your bank right now, ask them about their secured card program.
You might need a cough up, you know.
Do they almost all have secured credit cards?
Most of them do.
Yeah, you can go online too and do some stuff with some of that.
But a credit card on a report is better than, let's say, you go get an installment loan at the bank.
Because installment loan at the bank, the only thing you could do with it is
pay the payment once a month and it does generate score.
But with a little credit card or a big credit card for that matter, it's revolving.
You can pay it down.
You can add to it.
You can pay it down.
That's what makes it revolving.
And the balance to limit ratios play in 30% of a credit score.
So if you use credit cards properly, it really helps your credit.
It's kind of the best way to do it rather than getting a thousand dollar loan at the bank to help you build credit, although that will work too.
And the longer you have
That line of credit established and being paid, the higher your score goes.
Okay, so 15% of credit scoring has to do with how long has your payment history been good?
Okay, so think about it this way.
If you go get a loan from a bank or even a car loan, and it's 48 months term, it's over in four years.
The car loans helped you for four years, helped generate something with your score, fine.
If you go get a credit card and it never closes, like my wife and I,
Wow, okay.
So we got a credit card before we were even married.
So 30 years ago, we have a we have a discover card that's 30 years old.
Nobody has that.
Not a lot of people have that.
Okay.
And so we have great credit for that reason.
It's never been closed.
You can't do that with a car loan.
You can't do you can't even hardly do it with a mortgage because even if you get a 30 year mortgage, you still sell it or you refinance it.
And that starts it all over if you follow me.
So I should tell that story about
Erica on that with relationship to that card and how you can help a young person if you're in that situation build up their credit pretty quickly.
Yeah, so even without going into debt.
Well, so I have three kids, the oldest two are daughters, so Alexis 26, Erica's 23, and then there's old Parker.
But so both my daughters, they're in their 20s, but both of them have a 30 year old credit card on their credit report.
which
is great older
than them and here's older than them that is a little seems like a loophole really but no yeah totally you know what and it's so you add them on as an authorized user which is different than a joint applicant if they're a joint applicant they're also responsible for uh the balance yeah okay so yeah so you are a hundred percent right on the hook but yet it's showing up
favorable on their credit score.
Even though they're 23 years old at the 30 year old credit card.
It shows up.
And now, as we've been talking, and Erica's by the house right now, she's 23, she has one thing on her credit report.
And
that's in
my credit card.
And she's buying a house.
Otherwise she's
lived a debt-free life.
She doesn't have student loans.
She doesn't have other things, a car loan and
so
forth.
So, you know, that's kind of the fastest way to do
that.
In
her particular case, her credit score would be zero.
Like, it wouldn't show
if
she wouldn't have had that thing.
So really, that's a really interesting case that that's the sole reason.
And she had a good score, good enough to buy a house, even though she's never taken on debt before.
Right.
Personally.
So it's definitely an ace in the hole.
It's a trick in the bag, whatever you might want to call
it.
So you heard it here first on the Faith in Economics podcast that he's uncovered a loophole, maybe.
They'll try to close if they listen.
I've
uncovered a lot of tricks with credit and finance.
I suppose.
Yeah, they're out there.
Oh, he is.
Yeah, sure.
When it's such a mess like that with the way they're designed.
That's right.
All right.
Well, this has been a production of the Gorton Institute here at Ottawa University.
I'd like to thank you all for listening.
Five Star Reading helps other people find us, otherwise pass this along to friends and family that might like to take a listen.
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It's where Iowa comes to talk.
News Talk 1540 KXEL.
Well, here we are.
It's spring time.
It's such a great time of year.
We're just celebrating Easter Resurrection Sunday.
Joy here now one week into that as we are arcing toward the end of tax season.
Everybody gets another spring in their step.
And speaking of spring, it's not getting dark now till almost eight o'clock.
I love it.
John Jacobson here with Sean Torres in studio and our bonus.
segment on Hames Homes the Homes people welcome back to the show the great Clint Hames one of the trifecta of excellence we always rotate between Barbara Hames Bryant and Clint Hames and Curtis Hames you heard Curtis on earlier and boy do you have it going on right now it looks beautiful in Southwest Sea Rapids Clint Hames both in summit view
and at Grandview, not just manufactured homes, but manufactured homes that are safe, clean, affordable, and beautiful on these pristine lots.
The grass is green, the landscaping looks great, the lights are new, the roads are in pristine condition.
Talk about these beautiful communities and welcome back to the program, Clint.
Thank you.
I'm glad to be back and appreciate you talking to y'all.
Yeah, you kind of really hit the nail on the head.
We've got beautiful communities out here, beautiful homes.
We're two managers in each community taking care of things.
It's about mowing season, so we'll start cleaning up the green grass out here and we're ready for everyone to come out and start shopping.
Yeah, guys, it doesn't do it justice if you don't go out there physically.
It's beautiful this time of year.
It almost looks like Augusta Country Club.
about their Augusta National.
It's so green and you know, it's what impresses me.
Like you said, you've got dual managers at both sites.
These are wonderful neighborhoods.
And Clint, what I love about it is you're five minutes away from everything, meaning universities, hospitals,
Cedar Rapids there, or Iowa City, a little bit farther, about 15 minutes, but in Cedar Rapids, you're five minutes from hospitals and schools there like Co, Kirkwood.
You've got, though, this, and five minutes from the airport, basically, five to 10 to the airport, but Clint, even though you're five minutes away from, let's say, Minards or wherever, you're still got that backdrop of that pastoral ag landscape.
You got the best...
of both an urban and rural visage, don't you?
Yeah, we certainly do.
I mean, we're on the very edge of Southwest Cedar Rapids, kind of close to Fairfax.
So we don't have, you know, there's, we're close to the stores.
close to the hospitals, downtown, all the things you mentioned, but ultimately being on the edge of town, it's really quiet out here and low crime, it's very peaceful.
You know, here with Clint Haymes from the Great Haymes Homes, the homeless people, affordability is always an issue in this day and age, but Clint, I'm looking at these nice three bed, two bath homes, one after another here.
And there are, you know, 1,300 square feet homes, 1,600 square feet homes.
Talk about price competitive.
47.5 for the one in Grandview, 54.9 for the one there at 25.18 Scottsdale, and 79.9.
for the one on Decatur Street.
These are all three bed, two baths, spacious, and I'm looking at their lawns.
They all look beautiful and green.
Yeah, you're absolutely right.
I mean, we try to give as much value on our homes as we can.
We've got a service crew that reconditions pre-owned homes when we buy those.
And we sell our homes with a warranty, so we give you some coverage there.
And not only that, when we do our reconditioning, we're replacing carpet, paint, any of your cosmetic stuff.
But we're also going underneath the home or checking the water lines or checking the electrical.
If the home needs a new roof or get a new roof, if it needs a new furnace, it's going to get a new furnace.
We just we want to give people the best start that they possibly can.
And we want everyone to have a really positive experience when they buy a home from Curtis or I,
you know, this is so true.
And we repeat things because some people listen to the second half hour that maybe didn't join us for the first half hour.
They heard that great vintage classic TV.
commercial, which reminds us of the great work done by the forefather and the foremother, Kurt and Norma Hames, the great.
Clint, can you just take us on a quick reminder?
Financing is easy.
Insurance is easy.
Working through you guys.
Talk about that real briefly.
Yeah, I mean, we're a one-stop shop, so we do the initial financing applications here at our office.
Not every bank offers mobile home loans, so we're going to look at your credit, your income, your down payment, and then we're going to guide you on whether it's a local bank to work with or if it's someone off-site that Curtis and I are going to filter the paperwork back and forth.
Either way, we'll find something that works.
And then insurance, I'm a licensed insurance agent.
I work with foremost insurance, so I can get you a quote right here on the spot.
and just set
you up with a really good policy.
Right, right.
I mean, we, you know, this time of year is, we start to approach storm season and I think it's important for people to know that we have two storm shelters in each community.
Anytime the weather turns, we're unlocking both storm shelters and making those available to folks.
And then we've got a dog park, we've got playgrounds for kids to play at, walking trail, disc golf, we've got a little bit of everything.
There's also some local city-owned parks nearby here that are within walking distance that you could visit as well.
You guys have a tremendous, I'll call it a shotgun approach to dispersal covering every age and demographic group.
You've got
housing and homes for young families, for downsizers, and for 55 plus.
Literally, you've got multi-generations living in your neighborhoods.
Yeah, we really do.
I mean, it's, yeah, I mean, we've got a little bit of everything.
We've got homes for folks that are downsizing, and then we have homes for people that are just getting their family started.
Yeah, here with the great Clint Hames from Hames, the homeless people, manufactured homes there in Southwest Cedar Rapids.
Clint.
tell us how we can find you physically, how they drive through, how they find you on social media, how they pick up that great legacy Marion phone number and get ahold of you guys that
way.
Right, and I'll start with that.
It's 319-377-4863.
We've got a website, HamesHomes.com.
Our Facebook page is also just under Hames Homes.
Our website lists all of our homes, information about the communities.
I mean, there's just
all kinds of resources out there, including our blog.
And then, physically, you can meet us here at our office.
We're on the corner of West Post Road and Wilson Avenue, Southwest.
Our address is 5410 Wabash Street, Southwest.
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52404.
Here with Clint Ames.
Clint, we've read some testimonials earlier.
Here's some new ones from Clarence and Marjorie.
All in all, we have never dealt with more considerate people.
than those in the Hame's office.
And from Julie, Summit View is still one of the best places in Cedar Rapids to live.
And from Daryl and Linda, Grand View is a model park and Mr. Hame's, with all his employees, are what it takes to keep the park the way it is.
Jim says, I've received nothing but great help and advice from Kelly and Becky.
You can tell they love their jobs.
Clint, they love you guys.
Well, thank you.
We love them and we want to take good care of the folks that work with us and the folks that live here.
Guys, I'm looking forward to a live remote this late spring or summer out there on Saturday morning here, KXEL.
at the Hames site, or maybe even a weekday remote, even better.
So stay tuned for that.
Clint, I know you'll be part of that when we hook up the mics and set up our mini studio outdoors.
We'd love to have you out here.
Can't wait.
And give our best to Curtis and to Barbara.
Guys, these are the real deal.
A multi-generational family that have been worthy custodians and stewards, providing safe, affordable, beautiful homes for families.
No greater business vocation than to provide
to provide hearth and home for families.
You guys do it the right way.
They're stand-up folks.
I recommend them with every fiber of my being.
Clint Hames honored again to be with you again today.
Thank you.
I appreciate your time and thank you for having me back on.
Hames, the homeless people.
Life is worth living with Father Kenneth Clem, the Reverend Kenneth Clem, pastor.
of Sacred Heart, Catholic Parish, and school here in Ottawa.
Happy Easter, Father
Clam.
Beautiful to be here on this side of length here, as everything we've been building for and preparing for is here today.
That it is that as we've been talking these last couple of weeks about this Holy Week experience, we have this
all of these last 40 days of Lent have been leading us up to here of this moment now and then especially over this this last week of Holy Week beginning as we talked with Palm Sunday and our Lord's entrance there into Jerusalem and then throughout and of this this week in those those moments of occurring there throughout this this last week of being crowned there with and of our our Lord's
Last supper that institution of the Eucharist that institution of the priesthood and then him his beginning of that that sacrifice The sacrifice that would be to reach its fullness there on go to Friday as he would Go walk his his passion and die there on the cross for for all of humanity for the whole of the world this great tin of reality of why it was he had come here to earth
to die for humanity to be that salvation for souls.
And then at the end of that Good Friday, we kind of spent then that time of waiting, of with the apostles, waiting with Mary, waiting in that just time of waiting, because it is that everything that our Lord had been building to and leading to had been
Was there it had reached this this point of fullness and even not quite fully understood that just yet But this most amazing reality that our Lord was not even finished that this tremendous thing that our Lord the end of that offering himself as that That redemption as that salvation for souls was not even there that fullness of what he desired to do that grandest of graces was not
Even that the the fold is of what our Lord wanted to do Because then after those three days in the tomb as we celebrate today at Easter our Lord rose from the dead We celebrate here today that that are that the tomb is empty that our Lord has risen that truly he has risen Yeah, and amen, and then it is that is that bear that that grand reality that we
of celebrate today and it is this great and grand celebration that we begin because it is that as our Lord has risen from the grave that what we see is in the scripture readings for Easter morning is that they don't quite understand what this means that they
Definitely did not understand the crucifixion.
They hear especially is now the tomb is empty.
They don't they know this is amazing They know this is something tremendous, but they don't quite know what this means and That just as we've spent these last 40 days kind of leading up to this moment and to getting ready for our Lord's suffering and death and now here's his resurrection Then we will now spend these next 50 days of Unpacking what on earth this means
We spend these next 50 days in this great celebration of joy of walking and of with our Lord as he appears to the apostles as he appears to his disciples and Allowing them this opportunity to encounter the resurrection as he will over these next 50 days guide them and show them why it is that all of this has taken place Reveal to them that reality that he has come to that he had came to die for our sins but that
In rising from the dead this conquering of sin and death that he invites us to follow him They're not only in this this holy way of life, but to follow him there into this joy of the resurrection and this Beautiful thing that we'll see over these in the next 50 days is that our Lord is not just showing and of his disciples like oh look at this neat cool thing I did and then
No more But this tremendous reality this as he is revealing this and as he was enlightening them as he is Preparing them that it is just that that he is preparing them He is getting them ready for this reality that he is now handing to them this mission that he will hand that this mission that he is getting ready to hand them This tremendous reality that will celebrate them of at the end of Easter at the feast of Pentecost That our Lord is is getting ready to send out his church
that he is not finished.
He was not finished at the Last Supper.
He was not finished even as he hung upon the cross.
And this most amazing reality that we'll see is that he is not even finished here as he rises from the dead.
This beautiful reality that our Lord is active at work, that our Lord is alive, that he has risen, that he is alive.
It is not that he was alive, that he is alive and that he is active at work here today.
And then he calls us to come to rest here with him, to spend this time here with him, this beautiful thing that even when it is like the apostles, even when it is like Peter, James, John, Mary, Magdalene, and that Easter morning as we see the empty tomb, we're not exactly sure what this means for us.
We're not exactly sure enough how this is supposed to impact our life here today that we still have to get up and go go to work tomorrow.
What does this mean for us?
Like how does this affect me today and this beautiful reality that we get to sit now with the apostles just as we sat with them there these last couple days in waiting for what on earth was going to happen that now that our Lord has risen from the tomb that we get to walk here with them as our Lord will reveal
not only to them, but reveal to us, reveal to our hearts how it is, where it is that he is calling us today, how it is that he is active at work now and this beautiful reality that he has not yet finished.
He has not yet finished with the world that he has not yet finished here with us and this beautiful reality that he desires and invites us asks us to come and to share in this mission here with him and that it all begins.
Here it all begins today here as we stand with the apostles gazing at the empty tomb here in this great and glorious joy that now it is that we've spent these 40 days and in penance and prayer and preparation now we get to spend these 50 days in this longer period in celebration and joy and this great kind of just uh Indeed just that that celebration this joy this reveling therein
This this wonder that our Lord has brought about even when it is that we still are unpacking even as it is We still not do not yet fully understand what this means that we like the apostles can Can run here with joy there to share this this good news that has begun Here in our hearts and that our Lord is not yet finished with and that our Lord desires to continue to unpack to continue to work and to continue To amaze here in our lives today
What a most excellent
reflection and I love the Catholic masses as they unfold in these next 50 days as we recount these beautiful resurrection stories.
It's just magnificent to take that walk through the scriptures.
It is and it's one of my favorite things is that last night at the Easter vigil the largest and grandest of the masses throughout the year is a big long mass that stretches from like 8 30 in the evening now.
almost till midnight that it is this beautiful celebrating of the moment of the resurrection as we wait there in darkness we know that at some point in the night our Lord rose from the dead we don't know the exact hour we all that we know is that in the morning they found the empty tomb and so in the night we celebrate this long mass where we know at some point at some moment here that that this light has it has has has broke that this light has
Shown here into this world in this most amazing way and that it's at that mass where we celebrate the The welcoming of adults into the faith through those who are receiving baptism as well as one of those who are kind of receiving that full communion in the Catholic Church and that it is this beautiful thing that we see kind of walking with these New Catholics that it is this this day that they begin none of that.
Oh
the full communion there in the church, but that it is, it is this beginning for them, and that it's not the end of their journey, but the beginning of their Catholic faith journey, and that we walk this way with them, and that we get to witness here this beginning there in their lives, but this beautiful reality that this Easter is, is beginning again here for all of us.
This beginning again here in this life of faith, and this beautiful reality that it is, this most important celebration.
of our year and this that reality of every Sunday every time we come to a Sunday Mass that we celebrate a little little participation in this grandest of celebrations of Easter this little Easter that we participate in every Sunday and this beautiful reality of the here is as we pick up as we get ready to journey here through these
these coming Easter days, a season of Easter, these 50 days that are to come, that we do.
We have many brothers and sisters through here in our parishes as well throughout the world that are truly beginning their faith journey.
And that we get to walk this way with them and to unpack here alongside them the wonders that our Lord desires to show not only to them, but
here to us.
Jesus Christ, the Lord of time and history itself, as we measure time anodomony in the year of our Lord, the greatest time of year, the greatest story ever told.
Father, would you conclude us with a closing benediction prayer this evening?
Lord be with you.
With
your
spirit.
Father, we thank you for the gift of this most tremendous and most joyful and most celebratory of days.
We're here.
We see that your son has conquered the grave.
He has conquered sin, He has conquered death, and that He has invited us to come and to share in that victory with Him.
This beautiful reality that He has not just hand us a medal of watching and of what He has done, but instead inviting us to come to participate to share in this mission.
And this beautiful thing that He allows us to walk with, to slowly unpack, to slowly come to see how aware it is that He is calling us in this...
our life in this world here today and this beautiful thing that he has not sent us to go to hear this way alone but desires to go this way now with us to fill us here with his grace and as we will see that tremendous feast of Pentecost to fill us here with his Holy Spirit that we might go here this way not alone but with him.
Dear Father we ask that you bless here all of those listening this evening to allow them to encounter that Easter joy to know that our Lord has not only died for them but now lives here in them and desires
to be brought there into the world there through them.
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
May Almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Thank you, Father Clem, the Reverend Kenneth Clem, pastor of Sacred Heart Catholic Church, parish and school here in Ottawa.
On Life is Worth Living and we'll continue to celebrate the Easter season next Sunday again with Father Clem.
Tell your friends about the podcast KXEL.com slash Jacobson J-A-C-O-B-S-E-N.
In the meantime, listen all the wisdom of Jeff Stein during his weekday news and commentary.
And folks, always remember and never forget to be safe, be smart, be good, be strong, love Jesus Christ, and God blesses everyone.
Till we meet again, have a great weekend and bye-bye.
