RANT!! The Bank is Throwing A Party But You Are Not Invited? Our Friends at Associated Bank Are Planning a Party -

This story, RANTshould bring it right home for the good people of Wisconsin - I am quite sure that this is happening all over this great land. This is a personal opinion from a professional mortgage planner who is tired of the snide comments and back lashing we have endured over the course of the past 12 months. I am a professional and have practiced ethically and with my client's best interest in mind. No one is throwing a party for me and my colleagues. And by the way . . . where is my reward for being good and showing a profit? - wheeeew - now I feel better:)

Oh Not So Fast - More RANT- We have been thrown in the pit to defend our industry and our livelihoods as the result of the bad loans originated in the minds of the greedy sitting in Ivory Towers. I did not dream that our local trusted Bank (so highly respected with in the Community) would act so foolishly. After all this is the conservative Mid-West, or is it simply a case of monkey see, monkey do?

Now perhaps the trips were planned prior to this hitting the air waves, but what concerns me is that they took the money even though they do not need it with no plan to stimulate the local economy that supports them. How about extending a line of credit to Mr. Local Business. After all they have been a loyal customer who has always paid their bills for many years now.

OK - I am done RANTING now - Here are the links to the story - They are asking for comments, so please endulge - I am done....

Hot Off The Press Are Two Local Articles

"Associated Bank plans its own fiesta after bailout party" - Posted: Feb. 11, 2009 by Daniel Bice - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Associated Bank is moving from the welfare line to the conga line.

Just three months ago, the state's second-largest bank joined scores of other troubled lenders when it cashed a check for $525 million from the federal government to prop up its bottom line.

Today, Associated is preparing to drop tens of thousands of dollars - and maybe more - to send about 100 employees to a posh Puerto Rican resort as a reward for a job well done.

Making the trip will be everyone from backroom workers to the CEO, Paul Beideman.

CLICK HERE for the rest of the story!!

Associated Bank takes $525M in bailout money, plans Caribbean trip for 100 by reporter Nathan Phelps - Green Bay Press Gazette .

Wisconsin's second-largest bank is sending about 100 employees to a Puerto Rican resort, nearly three months after its parent company accepted more than half a billion dollars in taxpayer bailout money.

Top employees at Associated Bank have earned the trip, chief executive Paul Beideman said, particularly because the bank is profitable and accepted bailout funds only as a precaution, not as a result of mismanagement.

"How are our associates going to react to it if we willy-nilly cancel the trip because of some issues people are having with other companies," he told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Wednesday. "Given the set of facts that we have, canceling the trip and disappointing these high performers really just wasn't warranted."

CLICK HERE for the rest of the story

Thanks for letting me ramble! Wow I went from fun to furry!

Gwenn Tanvas is a Certified Mortgage Planning Specialists who specializes in Government Programs such as FHA, State and Federal VA and USDA Rural Housing Loans. Visit her website for more information, on-line calculators and a secure on-line application. She is able to assist with transaction throughout the state of Wisconsin. Her offices are located in Appleton, Oshkosh and Green Bay and offers the convenience of one-stop shopping. http://www.WisconsinLoanTips.com or http://www.MortgageProsOfWisconsin.com she can also be reached for comment or to answer questions via email at gwennt@centurytel.net