He would see little of that, however, because he's already seen so much. Over the years he has taken out $190,000 in cash through refinancings.
Hertzberg's home equity paid off his credit cards, financed trips around the world that allowed him to indulge his passion for photography, bought a $32,000 Toyota Avalon and enabled some lousy investments. He bought dot-com stocks and lost money. To recoup those losses, he bought commodities — and lost money faster.
"Free money always has the unfortunate effect of making people go overboard," said Hertzberg, whose living room is strewn with financial publications including American Cash Flow Journal and Donald Trump's "How to Get Rich." "You'd be surprised how fast $190,000 can go."
...Last fall, he went to a mortgage broker and refinanced again to make his payments easier to bear. He thought he would have a five-year window before the principal started coming due.
But the day of reckoning is arriving early. By paying the minimum, Hertzberg has increased the size of his loan in a little over a year from $320,000 to $332,616.
..."I'm waiting for a 100-year loan," [Hertzberg] said. "My heirs can worry about paying it off."
As I was reading this, I first thought the guy was just an Idiot. By the time I was through the piece, I decided that he is a con artist who has been gaming the system in order to get cheap rent & never had any intention of paying down the principle.
It may also be a convenient way to reduce his apparent ability to pay alimony to his two ex-wives while continuing to travel and enjoy life.