California Business Minute™

Hi, I am Tim Johnson and welcome to the California Business Minute.

New study illustrates that more than one-third of all California small business
owners took out risky or toxic mortgages such as Alt-A, Alt-A ARMs, Option ARMs,
Interest-Only, and Subprime, etc. to get cash for business expenses during the
peak of their home values from 2004 to 2007.

The California Small Business Toxic Mortgage Survey is the first to provide
compelling evidence of California's small business involvement in the toxic
mortgage crisis, foreclosures, and job loss.  The report was commission by
the Los Altos based Merchant Circle a social network comprised of over 750,000
members.

The survey determined that a significant number of California small business owners
are at-risk of losing their homes to foreclosure and their businesses to failure at
the resetting of their toxic mortgages.

Highlights

• 34.9 % (1,173,900* At-Risk) CA Small Business Owners used risky or
        Toxic Mortgages or refinancing to get cash for business expenses.
        These mortgages are at-risk of default at reset

• 29.9 % (1,005,700* At-Risk) CA Small Business Owners are "very worried"
        about their monthly mortgage payment due at reset. They are at-risk of
        "Payment Shock."

• 28.7 % (965,300* At-Risk) CA Small Business Owners are At-Risk of "Payment
        Shock". They do not know the monthly mortgage payment that they will be
        required to pay at reset.

• 17.9 % (602,100* are at Immediate Risk of Default) CA Small Business Owners
        are delinquent, having missed 1 to 3 or more monthly mortgage payments at
        this date. More delinquencies are expected in the upcoming resets in 2009
        to 2012

I am Tim Johnson and this has been the California Business Minute.

For further information see. www.MerchantCircle.com