Opportunities In An "Economic Pearl Harbor"

In Omaha, Neb. today, billionaire investor Warren Buffett said the nation has been hit with an “economic Pearl Harbor,” and the government must respond quickly.

Mr. Buffett talked about the nation's ongoing financial woes in an appearance on the The Charlie Rose Show that aired Wednesday night on PBS stations.

“This really is an economic Pearl Harbor,” Mr. Buffett said. “That sounds melodramatic, but I've never used that phrase before. And this really is one.”

He went on to state that in his opinion the nation's economic problems are already starting to be felt by furniture and jewellery stores such as the ones owned by his company, Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

The billionaire predicts that the rest of the Main Street economy will start to have problems if the government's financial bailout plan doesn't pass Congress soon.

“In my adult lifetime, I don't think I've ever seen people as fearful economically as they are now,” the 78-year-old Mr. Buffett said.

The fear in the marketplace has allowed Mr. Buffett to make several sizable investments over the past month in proven companies that needed cash quickly. And Berkshire, which had $31.2-billion (U.S.) cash on hand at the end of June, was ready to invest because, as Mr. Buffett says, he always tries to be greedy when others are fearful.

Following Berkshire's purchase last week of $5-billion in preferred Goldman Sachs shares, Berkshire announced it would be purchasing $3-billion of preferred share of General Electric Co.
Mr. Buffett said he was approached about the GE investment Wednesday morning by someone at Goldman. And Mr. Buffett quickly decided to invest in GE because he's familiar with the company and confident in its long-term prospects.

This goes to show us that capitalism is alive and well in the US. Prudent investors looking for long term real estate investments can capitalize on todays markets and build their portfolios for the future. As crazy as it may sound to some, now is the time to be purchasing discounted real estate using long term strategies for buy and hold.

Mortgage rates are on the rise again making now the time to lock in your investment financing at attractive rates.

Warmly,

Mary Wozny