Crisis Investing and Entrepreneuring (10 Innovative Strategies to Help You Achieve Financial Success and Solvency in a Down Economy) [Paperback]

Occasionally I come across rare books that reveal solutions to our societies biggest problems. "Crisis Investing and Entrepreneuring" offers real-life solutions and advice you can trust. William L. Seavey has a wealth of experience and has survived past recessions. He knows what it means to come out ahead while others are unable to beat the system.

In this book William L. Seavey brings a new understanding to the current recession. He explains how you should invest in gold and store it in Zurich and presents a good plan for paying off a 30-year loan in 20 years. I thought his idea about reverse mortgages would be especially beneficial to those who have retired.

Each chapter is filled with helpful advice and at the end of each chapter there is a section to assist you in further research on the topics discussed. I especially liked the chapter on where to live to save money and I've lived in one of the locations discussed and it was a place where you can easily afford to own a house, which I did.

While you may not feel you can trust your stockbroker, William L. Seavey explains how you can still make money in the stock market. He explores the possibilities of buying houses to rent out which I can say has brought one of my relatives financial security in uncertain times. If you are still interested in buying real estate there is a chapter on how you can buy low and sell high.

So if you are dreaming about making more money, interested in discovering some new ideas for investing or planning on creating a new life for yourself even during a recession then I can recommend this book to you. You may be surprised by the advice to start your own business but if you look at history some of the most popular companies today were started during a recession or depression.

~The Rebecca Review

For years there has been a market for books that promote investing for a crisis. Usually these books have a discernable right wing bent (in part because the authors know the effects of government intervention into markets) but this book is pleasantly different. Seavey is a small town investor with a "green" agenda who nonetheless offers some decent thoughts about where to put your money today. I disagreed with some of his ideas, agreed with others, and generally found that I could have a thoughtful dialogue with the text, which always makes for an interesting read.

Starting with my disagreement with Seavey: in chapter one he recommends hard currency investing and in chapter two discusses collectables. I am in an awkward position to criticise Seavey on these topics: I personally own a lot of precious metals and collectable coins and have done very well with my holdings in this area. But I purchased the bulk of my investment in this area in the late 1990s, when gold was between $275 and $325 an ounce, silver was about $4 an ounce, and financial advisors uniformly panned precious metals as having any value in a modern portfolio. After all, inflation was permanently under control and taxes would be low into the forseeable future. Cue 2009 and gold suddenly looks, well, golden, but I think a bubble could easily develop here and in related collectables markets as investors try to find some sort of safe haven. The time to invest in gold was when it was out of favor, and that time has clearly past. Seavey offers some informed opinion that gold could easily double or triple from its present price, and he could be right, but I think of gold as speculative at present. That does not mean inflation and higher taxes are not on the way: they clearly are, but gold may not be the best diversification to prepare for them at this point.

But I was pleasantly surprised by some of Seavey's other recommendations: move to small towns and live cheap. This is advice I have actually followed. Rural life is often less expensive than in big cities, and fewer regulations make it easier to build and renovate cheaply. He correctly notes that surveys dealing with quality of life find more people satisfied with rural than urban areas. That said, I think a few caveats are in order. First, readers should know that rural prices did not, at least in California where both the author and I live, fall as much as urban home and lot prices. Second, energy costs may soon increase dramatically, and while Seavey is correct in noting that it is easier to create a "green" home in a rural community, one may still experience a net increase in cost of living if and when cap and trade or similar "energy" bills pass. Still, I live without air conditioning or TV, in part because I live in a locale where these items, so necessary in the rest of California, are truly optional.

I particularly liked some of Seavey's other suggestions: start your own small business, rent space to others, and his comments on socially responsible investing (SRI). Of course, that term means different things to different people, but in general, SRI investors tend to be more aware of trends in certain types of companies and do very well. I strongly agree with some of his mutual fund recommendations in this area, particularly Pax World. Here again, however, I would caution investors to not simply look at what the current administration is choosing to fund. Governments have a particularly poor track record when it comes to picking the next innovative energy technologies, while private citizens familiar with small firms on the cutting edge will do much better. Be sure when investing with any SRI goals, from alternative energy to Catholic values, that you do your research.

On the whole, I found this book refreshingly different from most of the "crisis investing" literature I have read. The author has a vaguely counterculture "Whole Earth Catalog" outlook which informs his investing decisions and he has done reasonable well by himself. I found his open admission of his mistakes in investing and personal experiences relatively unique in this genre. There is not a lot of specific advice, but some thoughtful ideas by someone who is trying to rethink how we will invest in the future, and I enjoyed the relatively unique approach.

The big buzz of "downturn of economy" is everywhere - in the news, on the radio, in newspapers, at dinner tables. It's so easy to get wrapped up in the buzz that we can't look past our own noses to see what part we play in it, and what part needs to be changed. Change can only happen if we make a decision to change ourselves and that's exactly what "Crisis Investing and Entrepreneuring" by William L. Seavey does.

Seavey comes from his own personal experience and shares strategies of how he was able to turn around his situation and come out on the top. Is it easy? No. But, it is doable if we are committed to make the change and not "go down" with the nay sayers. One way is told in his chapter "Finding Collectables Cash in your Attic." How much "stuff" do we really have that we don't need and don't use, yet it sits in our attics or basements collecting dust? Yes, it may have been in the family for several generations, however, does the next generation really want it? Ask, and you will probably find they are very simplistic and have no interest in the "stuff." Seavey says to sell those things and use the money to invest.

Another strategy Seavey gives is "Moving to a Cheaper Small City or Town." This may give an immediate reaction of "No Way!" but by doing some research that town could be only a short distance from where you live now.

Seavey gives good, reasonable, and doable strategies. Even using one or two of these strategies will make a difference financially. We don't have to get wallowed by the buzz, we can create our own reality. Buy the book - it may be the best investment you've made.