Many people of Aunty’s age have paid off their home mortgage.  Those are the smart and sensible ones.  I, on the other hand, have kept on refinancing and will be 90 years old by the time my mortgages are paid off.

Aunty’s real estate investment in the Ala Moana Hotel isn’t doing so hot because tourism has dried up to a trickle and may drop to even less than that if our State’s newest thinking of putting ankle bracelets on all incoming visitors to monitor their movements comes to pass.  Meanwhile, tenants can’t pay their rents if their livelihood is based on tourism.

Dismal 

Ahhhhh.  For sure.

Financial gurus are screaming about safe havens and putting your money in gold IF you were smart enough to pull your money out of the stock market in time.  Aunty almost always makes the wrong decisions in the stock market and is a forever optimist who gets smashed.

However, because of the current virus pandemic and disruption to all things financial, unprecedented opportunities are being offered to offset the worse case scenario of defaults, bankruptcies, and homelessness.  Small business can apply for loans that may be forgiven if funds are used to pay payroll, rent, etc.  The government is sending out free money to individuals and married couples.  Unemployment benefits will get a boost of $600 per week – which means you might even get more being unemployed rather than while you were employed.

Silver lining for Aunty

My mortgage lender is Provident Funding.  It is a a no-frills lender with easy log in.  I can view my loans all in one place and get as much info on them that I need.  Recently, they added COVID-19 financial assistance relief applications to their website.  I read their FAQs, and then clicked on the application link.  It was a super simple form asking if I wanted temporary (6 months) or permanent relief, and the reason for any hardship.  Click and submit.  That was last night, and this morning, I got a notice to check the status online.

I got a “Forebearance Plan Offer – Suspended payment for 6 months” for my loans!  This can be rescinded at anytime by me.  The only negatives are that it will hit my credit score and that I will be 90 and a half years old when it is all paid off.  A small price to pay for a current 6 months of freedom from the biggest bill each month.

Everyone is helping

I have 2 friends who are totally in the stay-at-home mode.  I call them the Rapunzels.  They have adjusted to this well because their sons do all their grocery shopping and errands for them and maintain the 6 feet rule and stay out of their house.

There seems to be more kindness going around nowadays.  At first, young people seemed angry and big trucks would swoosh by Aunty’s car as if they were pissed at me, a little old lady who caused their lives to change.

Recently though, people are more patient and considerate, and I think they are smiling but hard to say because we all have masks on.

It is such a strange and defining moment in our lives the way 9-11 was.  Maybe we will all be better for it after it is over and learn to value the simpler and slower way of living.  I needed this in my previously hectic helter skelter life of incomplete projects and too many things to do.  I wake up without looking at a clock and read the newspaper from cover to cover daily.  When the all clear is given I hope to continue this peaceful stressless lifestyle.

And, for 6 months, I can pretend that I was wise enough to pay off my mortgage already.