Open Mike

Id like to thank you for checking out the very first posting I am publishing here on the Patch network. A little about me.. Im a happily married father of 2 beautiful girls. My oldest is 3, youngest is 6 months. I grew up in Massapequa and was educated in Catholic school. I graduated Chaminade High School and attended Villanova University. I also pursued my education right here at good ol' Stony Brook where I am also an alumni. I live out here now and though I was born a Nassau boy, I'm long sold on the Suffolk way of life.  
As my title cleverly suggests, my name is Mike and my intention with this blog is to take some of the experience, training, knowledge, and education I have accumulated over the better part of a 15 year career and relay it to the everyday person. There are not a lot of places for the people on Main Street to turn for sound advice these days.
If you have a lot of money, the banks and financial advisors of the world want to create a fancy plan for you that most do not fully grasp. Ultimately they rely on the notion that you do not want to look silly and ask too many questions, so they put together a plan that is difficult to understand that makes big promises. It gives you great fodder to brag about at your next family barbecue, or down at the little league fields with all the other parents who pretend their financial house is in order. 
If you do not have a lot of money, they would prefer to push you off to a call center, or encourage you to make decisions on your own at discount prices. You are left to your own devices, which has gotten you exactly where you are today. 
Who is speaking to the blue collar guy? Who is helping the retail manager? Who is offering guidance to the single mom trying to make ends meet, while saving for college, while trying to remember to put money away for retirement, while trying to put a healthy meal on the table tonight, while they relearn algebra to help with homework?
This is my sweet spot, people. Over the course of my career I have managed in a collection agency advising on rebuilding credit. I have managed mortgage banks, retail banks, and can now call myself the proud owner of a State Farm Agency.  I have helped countless families and individuals get on track, stay on track, and achieve all sorts of financial hopes and dreams. In the most basic of terms, I help people save money and make money. Not just through traditional methods, but by helping people realize obscure ways of saving like couponing or changing service providers. I proudly maintain a Property and Casualty license, a Life, Health, and Accident license, and maintain both a Series 6 and 63 license. I am well versed in almost every arena of personal and family finance.
I have seen people earning $40k a year preparing well for retirement,  and people earning $250k+ move in with their parents to get back on their feet. My ultimate hope with this blog is that I am able to help even one person with an idea or concept that puts them back on, or further down, the path to achieving a dream. 
So, in true Open Mic fashion... the floor is yours. What do you want to hear about? How can I help? Before jumping into anything too complex, I think next week we will start by discussing ways to make sure you dont get taken advantage of when financing a car.
Thanks again for giving me a read and stay tuned. I promise to deliver solid value to you.

Feel free to contact me directly at any time as well.
631 849 6900
www.facebook.com/sfrpt
www.quoteny.com