Owl Chrysler Jeep Closed, Honesdale (California, Industry: sales, real estate, good credit)

[Summering]

Well, it just came on the local channel that Owl Chrysler Jeep closed abruptly. The building is empty. This was a brand new building from what I hear, up in Honesdale.
So, just thinking about this financial mess out there and how the banks are not giving out loans........Will this be the first of many in the area?

[Summering]

Owl Chrysler closes its doors - Honesdale, PA - Wayne Independent (http://www.wayneindependent.com/news/x466665841/Owl-Chrysler-closes-its-doors - broken link)
Here is the article today on this.........A long time business of the area.

[KarenRice]

Does anyone else think that this is a case of several years of financial problems building up?

Could it be a case of too much expansion without the solid numbers to justify it, and this current economical crisis was the final nail?

How long has it been "difficult" to get a loan? A few months maybe?

I was talking with one of the employees at Burne Honda a few weeks ago and he told me that the dealership could probably survive for a year without a single sale...because they're financially stable...

Could it be - the economy coupled with management? Are we ever going to blame management, rather than the big bad "economy?"

I am not an economist, but it seems to me that this fallout is from the build up of a couple years worth of problems?

Or maybe they just cut out while they were ahead, looking at what's looming ahead. Who knows?

[poconosmama]

Yes that building in Honesdale is only a year or two old, and very nice! What a shame, I always hate to see local people go out of business, no matter what kind of business.

[wanneroo]

You will see more of this. 16 million car sales to 11 million this year.

I was at one dealership(high end import) in California on business this year that was built in one of those areas that over expanded. Imagine a town with a mall, endless number of strip mall stores, restaurants and some car dealerships and it's a ghost town. This dealership had a full lot of cars, no business and had let go of most of it's staff. I suspect if I went back there today, the place would be closed.

[cowboyxjon]

It's a shame to hear that this happened.

I'm curious, however, to know if anyone actually tried to get a car loan and was denied. I keep hearing about how apparently 'nobody' is lending right now, yet I don't know anyone who has been denied. I also bought a Jeep last month and had no problem securing financing through a credit union at a great rate.

I didn't buy a house I couldn't afford, pay my bills on time, and I have a great credit score, but seriously, it didn't seem like any of the other people at the dealership were having a hard time. I keep hearing about how people with good credit are being denied.

Thoughts?

[greentown]

I was rather surprised to hear that Owl went out of business, however, I also can't think of one person that I know that has ever bought a car from them and I have lived in Wayne/Pike Counties for my entire life. I seems like when a business just closes its doors so abruptly, there's something going on with the management and/or owners.

[greentown]

Originally Posted by cowboyxjon

It's a shame to hear that this happened.

I'm curious, however, to know if anyone actually tried to get a car loan and was denied. I keep hearing about how apparently 'nobody' is lending right now, yet I don't know anyone who has been denied. I also bought a Jeep last month and had no problem securing financing through a credit union at a great rate.

I didn't buy a house I couldn't afford, pay my bills on time, and I have a great credit score, but seriously, it didn't seem like any of the other people at the dealership were having a hard time. I keep hearing about how people with good credit are being denied.

Thoughts?

You make a great point in your post. It seems if you watch much of the morning news programs (like Good Morning America) you'll hear all these scary statistics, such as "many Americans can't get loans", when in reality it just isn't true for ninety-five percent of the population. The best one was when they revealed that "many people plan on spending less this holiday season". Is there ever a holiday season when people say "Hell, I think I'm going to spend double this year!". I'm not sure what to believe anymore regarding the economy. I can say that I was at the mall yesterday, traffic was heavy and there were lines at the registers. It really doesn't seem to be any different than other years.

[Chefkey]

The Auto Industry going under is a direct result of overlending practices by the banks in Real Estate which has hurt credit approvals across the board. Many Auto dealers who relied on credit aren't getting approvals anymore, hence the drop in profit and the stalling of their business.

I am sure we also have the fear factor to blame as no one wants a big ticket item like a new car right now.

As Greentown said though, people are still spending but it is for that HDTV for $800 or DVD player for $100 not the 30,000 Hummer.

[wanneroo]

What is going to happen is loans are going back to the old days where you have to make decent income and actually pay your bills. Most of reason we are in this mess now is banks and financial companies giving loans to people that cannot afford them. The system has been an enabler of people that continuously overspend and now it's time for everyone to pay up. There was only so long we could continue to give $500,000 loans and new cars to people that never paid their bills to begin with and didn't make the income.

It's going to take years for this economy to completely right itself even if we have GDP growth next year. 2007-08 was the shock and awe panic, 2009+ is going to be a long road of getting back to basics and common sense and actually paying our bills and loans. The past two decades was giving almost everyone a new home and/or a new car, the next two decades are going to be paying for them. Time for everyone to stop equating debt=income.