RanchUpdate_CreditUnion_FinancingWaters Ranch infographic highlighting the new ranch vision, business plan update, accountability fight, Scripture, and NWPhotoVideo LLC.

The Ranch Plan Has Changed, But the Vision Has Not

NWPhotoVideo LLC has officially re-drafted its business plan and pro forma as we move forward with the Small Business Development Center. We are now working with someone who has already proven to be an incredible resource, and we believe this person will be an amazing coach for us moving forward.

That is a major step for our company.

After the loss of the ranch property we had been preparing to pursue, we had to take a hard look at the plan, the numbers, the structure, and the path ahead. While that property represented a dream we would have loved to bring to life, the future ahead is still very bright.

In many ways, this setback may give us more freedom.

Instead of being locked into someone else’s layout, acreage limitations, existing structures, and surrounding property boundaries, we are now restructuring the plan around acquiring a new property and building our ranch concept from the ground up. That means the design can be more intentional, more expandable, and more fully aligned with the long-term vision we have been building.

The updated plan will still include many of the same core ideas from the previous ranch concept, but with improvements. We intend to mimic much of what inspired us from the prior property while redesigning it in a way that better serves the specified purposes of the business, production work, community use, education, events, music, agriculture, and long-term growth.

We also plan to contact the builder involved with the previous barn, stables, and arena so they can potentially help head up the new project and assist with designing our own custom barn. The goal is not just to rebuild the dream somewhere else. The goal is to build it better.

This new direction allows us to think bigger, spread out more effectively, and create a property that is not boxed in by surrounding parcels or limitations we could not control. The ranch vision remains alive, but now it has room to become something even stronger.

At the same time, we are also moving forward on another major front.

We potentially have a new attorney reviewing the severe financial damage we believe was caused by the credit union, and we are waiting to hear back. At this stage, it looks very promising, and we are praying that this is the right legal path forward.

Our credit score was once over 800. After everything that has happened, meaningful access to financing has been severely damaged. We believe that damage was caused by the credit union’s own actions, including restricting access to our funds, blocking our ability to make payments on loans and credit cards using those funds, then reporting those accounts as late, and ultimately allowing defaults to appear from circumstances we believe they created.

That is not acceptable.

We believe their conduct harmed our company, our family, our reputation, our growth, and our ability to move forward with opportunities we worked very hard to build. We believe these issues may implicate several federal and Florida laws, and we are seeking proper legal review so the facts, records, timelines, communications, payment history, account restrictions, credit reporting, and damages can be evaluated fully.

Potential legal issues include the Fair Credit Reporting Act, particularly the duties of furnishers of credit information under 15 U.S.C. § 1681s-2. That law addresses responsibilities connected to the accuracy and completeness of information furnished to consumer reporting agencies. After a proper dispute through the credit bureaus, furnishers can have duties to investigate, review relevant information, report results, and correct information that is inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable. The FCRA also includes civil liability provisions for willful and negligent noncompliance under 15 U.S.C. §§ 1681n and 1681o. (Legal Information Institute)

We also believe the facts may raise serious questions under Dodd-Frank’s UDAAP protections, including 12 U.S.C. §§ 5531 and 5536, which address unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices connected to consumer financial products or services. Federal regulators recognize that UDAAP conduct can cause significant financial injury to consumers, erode confidence, and undermine the financial marketplace. (U.S. Code)

If electronic transfers, payment processing, account errors, or payment failures were involved, the matter may also require review under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and Regulation E, including 12 C.F.R. § 1005.11, which requires financial institutions to promptly investigate reported electronic fund transfer errors, report results, and correct confirmed errors within regulatory timeframes. (eCFR)

If deposited funds were held, delayed, restricted, or made unavailable in a way that damaged our ability to operate or pay obligations, the issue may also require review under Regulation CC, 12 C.F.R. Part 229, which governs funds availability and check collection rules. Regulation CC includes timing rules for when certain deposited funds and electronic payments must be made available. (eCFR)

Under Florida law, the conduct may also implicate the Florida Uniform Commercial Code, including Fla. Stat. § 671.203, which states that every contract or duty within the code imposes an obligation of good faith in performance and enforcement. (Florida Legislature)

If payments were wrongfully dishonored or refused despite funds being available or properly payable, the issue may also implicate Fla. Stat. § 674.402, which addresses a payor bank’s liability to its customer for damages proximately caused by wrongful dishonor of an item. (Florida Legislature)

Depending on the exact facts, the conduct may also raise issues under the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act, including Fla. Stat. § 559.72, which prohibits certain collection practices, and Fla. Stat. § 559.77, which provides a civil action for violations of that section. (Florida Legislature)

The conduct may also raise questions under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, including Fla. Stat. § 501.204, which declares unfair methods of competition, unconscionable acts, and unfair or deceptive acts or practices in trade or commerce unlawful. An attorney will need to evaluate applicability, exemptions, preemption, and how those laws apply to a credit union, but these issues deserve serious legal review. (Florida Legislature)

Case law also matters.

In Hinkle v. Midland Credit Management, Inc., the Eleventh Circuit reversed in part on FCRA furnisher claims, recognizing that a furnisher’s investigation after a credit dispute must be reasonable under the circumstances. (Justia Law)

In Johnson v. MBNA America Bank, N.A., the Fourth Circuit affirmed judgment for a consumer who alleged that a bank failed to conduct a reasonable investigation under the FCRA after a disputed account appeared on her credit report. (EPIC)

In Saunders v. Branch Banking & Trust Co., the Fourth Circuit addressed FCRA furnisher liability where the consumer alleged the bank’s conduct contributed to credit-reporting harm, and the case included punitive damages issues under the FCRA. While not binding Florida law, it is persuasive authority showing how serious inaccurate or misleading credit reporting can become when a financial institution’s own conduct is part of the dispute. (Justia Law)

Florida law also recognizes claims for tortious interference with business relationships. In Tamiami Trail Tours, Inc. v. Cotton, the Florida Supreme Court identified elements of tortious interference, including the existence of a business relationship, knowledge of that relationship, intentional and unjustified interference, and resulting damages. That matters here because the harm has not been limited to account balances or credit reports. We believe it has affected financing, property acquisition, hiring, partnerships, vendor relationships, website development, advertising, growth, and momentum. (Justia Law)

The damage has reached far beyond a number on a credit report.

It has interfered with our ability to secure funding, purchase property, obtain a location, build inventory, hire staff, launch partnerships, move forward with our website, advertise properly, and operate at the level we had prepared for. It has also caused reputational harm and placed unnecessary strain on business relationships we worked very hard to build.

That kind of damage cannot be ignored.

We are not asking for special treatment. We are asking for accountability. When a financial institution’s own actions create the conditions for late payments or default, then reports the customer as the problem, that must be challenged. No small business should be financially crippled by conduct outside of its control and then forced to carry the blame for damage it did not create.

This is about more than NWPhotoVideo LLC. It is about whether small businesses can trust the institutions holding their money, managing their accounts, controlling access to their funds, processing their payments, and reporting their credit history.

But even in the middle of this, our foundation is not fear. It is faith in Christ.

Micah 6:8 says, “He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”

That verse matters here because justice and humility are not enemies. Seeking accountability does not mean acting out of hatred. It means asking that what is wrong be brought into the light, that what was damaged be made right, and that others not be harmed the same way.

Proverbs 11:1 says, “A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight.”

In context, this speaks to honesty, fairness, and integrity in dealings. That principle applies far beyond ancient scales and marketplaces. When institutions hold power over people’s money, credit, accounts, loans, records, and financial future, there must be fairness, truth, and accountability.

Romans 8:31 says, “If God be for us, who can be against us?”

That verse is not a promise that life will be easy or that every battle will be painless. In context, Romans 8 speaks to suffering, endurance, hope, intercession, and the assurance that those who belong to Christ are not abandoned in hardship. It reminds us that no opposition, no institution, no financial setback, no false report, and no closed door is greater than God.

Psalm 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

That is where our confidence comes from. Not from the credit union. Not from a lender. Not from a property. Not from a business plan. Not even from an attorney, although we are praying that the right attorney steps in. Our confidence comes from knowing that God is present even when the battle is heavy.

Isaiah 54:17 says, “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper...”

In context, that passage speaks to God’s protection, restoration, and vindication over His people. We do not take that lightly, and we do not use it carelessly. But we do believe that when harm, obstruction, falsehood, and destruction rise against what God has placed in motion, He is still able to defend, restore, and turn what was meant for harm into something greater.

That is why we are still moving forward.

We are not fighting only for money. We are fighting for truth. We are fighting for accountability. We are fighting for the future of our company, our family, our mission, and the community impact this work was always meant to create.

The business plan has been re-drafted. The pro forma has been restructured. We are now working with the Small Business Development Center. We have a strong new coach helping us refine the path ahead. The ranch plan has changed, but the vision has not.

The property may have been lost, but the mission was not.

What happened may have delayed us, damaged us, and cost us opportunities, but it has not destroyed the vision.

By the grace of God, we are still here. We are still building. We are still believing. And we are still moving forward.