I AM SO BORED, but had an exciting day..

[ImcLoud]

So, when we first got back I had soooo much stuff to do, I was running around like a mad man, the kids were getting read for school, my wife had a scheduled foot surgery, I had a couple business items to deal with, etc, etc, etc, etc...

BUT now, I caught up, my wife is back on her feet the kids are in school, my office manager doesn't want to even see me hanging around, I am bored...

So this week I look at some property that I got a tip on, I called my office manager and told her, she actually said to me "I will look into it, call you later, in a meeting"!!!!!! I hung up with my jaw on my chest... What the f#$% is happening? So thats not the worst of it, she calls me back and says "the property looks good, if you want to move on it let me know the contact information and I will take care of it", so I explained it to her 'more better' , I want to deal with the "deal" portion and I plan on clearing it myself, taking my time, doing it with the kids, etc...

Her reply was that I am out of my mind, lol... Its how it used to work, I still own the equipment, I have a 2014' volvo skidsteer sitting in my home garage that I use around the yard like a wheel barrow, lol...

So I explained it a better to her, and she got it, I am going to move on the property, and have a little development project, its 60+ acres, in a 3 acre minimum zone, I should get 14-16 lots with out having to put in a street since its between 2 streets and borders 3, surveyor is meeting me there tomorrow, Ill know in a week how many lots.

I made them an offer, their agent told me they would never take the offer and I told her "its either that offer, or or no offer because that is all I will pay and I can close Monday if they could (impossible for them of course but a week inst out of the question when no banks are involved)." She called me back 15 minutes later and said "they countered, I didn't even wait for the amount I said, "thanks, I guess you were right, they won't sell it to me" and before the end of the conversation I hinted that I had another property I was looking at and wanted to go and call that offer in before it got too late...
SHE CALLED BACK 95 seconds later!!!! "OK, they will take it, lets put it in writing"!!!!

So I call back my OM and tell her, she couldn't believe the price, and I got it done on a sunday after church and before dinner. So now I am sitting here thinking, what did I just do, now I am giong to have to work, lol.. I am going to take my time with it though. I will try to get it logged before deep freeze, 60 acres sounds like a lot of work but its really flat, and the actual clearing portion is much much less, figure about 20 acres cleared total max... Then I will go back in the spring and level, make driveways, etc.. then I will have the office sell them, thats the part that takes the longest...

ANYWAY, everyone thinks I am crazy, but its going to be a fun project, and it will turn a profit, each house lot is worth $80K cleared and perc'd, if I get 15 thats 1.2m, granted just the surveying is going to be $25K, then perc soil/site is another 10K, but I am getting the property for $3K an acre!!! SO it should prove profitable... I am excited just for the work portion... I think I hung it up too soon, my sons are ready to learn and now I am teaching them how to hang out all day and listen to music..

BAD NEWS IS, I told me wife about it and of course her first words were "that didn't last long", insert rainstorm....

 

[Chu Gai]

You should consider being a general manager for a baseball team.

 

[Adam]

Congrats, man! Retirement is only good if you enjoy it...and this is what you seem to love doing. Maybe work a few less hours per week on this one, though.

 

[ImcLoud]

I don't think I would EVER want to go back to how I was working before, I probably won't live much longer, if I did that, and my marriage would be non existent, because my wife would leave me...

I ma worried my kids won't know what work is, they are just to the age where they can really be productive and helpful with out me worrying too much about them getting hurt, my 15 year old runs an excavator as well as some of my old employees did, my oldest is almost 17 years old and he has been better than most of my old guys for a while.

So my plan is to give another company the wood if they remove it, (thats a normal order of events around here), then I will go in with a 3 machines and my 2 sons and dig all the stumps out, bring in some fill and and level everything out, 3" minus and make some driveways, etc... I am figuring between weekends, after school some days, holidays, and me doing it while they are at school with my brother helping, We should have all the lots ready for sale by the time we go to italy for next summer.

That is what my wife is worried about, she has no problem with the kids learning the trade, but she doesn't want me to get too carried away, she said that this property will lead to more, and she knows me very well because last night I was looking online for others, lol. Its a weird time, you can still buy large unmassaged lots for short money but the prices of ready to build sites has gone up a good amount do to people starting to build. Her exact words were "You will buy this land, split it, and prep it, BUT you won't stop, then you will be putting foundations, then you will be putting septic systems and wells, then you will be building the houses, we will be tied here for 3 years"...

I promised I won't go that far, I will prep them and sell them as build able lots. Before I used to get the septic systems, and wells done and the foundations installed because when I called a form company to do 1 foundation that wanted $10K, but when I do 15 of them at once they do them for $5K each!!! Same thing with wells, I call a driller he gets $6K a well, I get 15 done and he does all 15 for $35K!!! I do septic installs myself and its the same thing, if I buy 1 tank and field components its a lot more money than if I buy 15 of them.

BUT the payoff is, NO ONE does that and when a potential buyer comes and looks at a lot with a foundation (I do all the same foot prints, its almost rectangle with a few keyholes, and the size matches the neighborhood, with a poured garage on the driveway side, easy enough to add on to but there to start), a septic, a well, and the electrical already trenched in from the pole, they figure that is $30K of extras, when in reality it cost me under $10K. They also figure the build time is greatly reduced as is 95% of the red tape, stress, and "questions"...

So for a lot that is worth $75K I get $110K....

BUT, we wil find out today, I am going to sign a purchase agreement and meet with the surveyor today.... wish me luck..

 

[slipperybidness]

Hey, if you can do something that you obviously like to do, and turn a profit at the same time, it's win-win!

 

[KenM10759]

Best of luck with the whole thing! It's a GREAT time to be doing this as the housing market is on a steady warming cycle and as long as you are patient the lots will sell.

I assume it's up in the northeast corner of CT near where you state you are now, and that area (30 miles south of me) is growing again in many ways.

 

[ImcLoud]

Yes Ken, we are in NE CT, not long ago this are was considered "THE WOODS", but being in this business for a bit and paying attention to what happens in time, playing the long money, I learned a few things.

People come and then the stores come, then MORE PEOPLE come and property values increase, and MORE people come, and after a while too many people come and ruin it all... BUT if you can buy before the stores come and sell after its all here, you will do well.. Hope that makes sense. lol..

So now we have target, walmart (wish we didnt have that one), lowes, homedepot, 5 super markets, marshalls, tjmax, and tons of restaurants, etc etc etc all either 2 exits up or 2 exits down, so I buy property by the high way but far enough away not to hear it, the school system is still good (that will go down with more people), but there is a 10 year bubble between all the phases, lol..

BUT it is a patient mans game, I will sell 2 lots the first year, and thats it, they will be the two cheapest lots, and I will make sure they build nice houses, SO then after them houses are in and the neighborhood gets a bit more established, now I will sell as many as I can, probably 3-5 per year. Now I used to take the corner lot or first lot you see and build a model home on it right away, before the other lots are even cleared, I do everything, foundation to phone lines, and sell the rest of the lots build to suit... BUT my wife will divorce me if I do that again, lol.

Hard to argue with the profits though, making $60K a lot is nice, BUT making $250K a lot is much nicer, problem is building a home takes a lot more of my time than clearing a lot and packing a few driveways in.

I am thinking maybe by the time my oldest is 20 and my youngest is 18 I may have a handful of lots left and they can cut their teeth in the business, building 5 houses at once will make men out of them lol, dealing with sub contractors and working until midnight with genny lights humming behind you will teach you a lot about life... lol, you learn how to deal with upset neighbors, cops, angry customers, lying sub contractors, crooked town officials, Department of environmental services, local utilities, I learned a lot in my first development!!!!

 

[KenM10759]

Sounds like the "greater Putnam" area. My daughter and (now ex) husband had a home there. I ride my British motorbike down to the Vanilla Bean Café in Pomfret often for meetup with friends and if I've had a recent disbursement from some unspecified trust fund, a breakfast.

 

[ImcLoud]

The vanilla bean is a great little spot, we know it well, in the warmer months before we started taking off to italy for the summers, me and my wife would stop there coming or going for the occasional motorcycle run, Barry the owner and his entire family are just great people... I always get 2 begals, one with egg, cheese, and sausage, the other with egg cheese and double bacon, I alternate bites between the 2... But its like $20, lol, so I know what you mean about the trust fund allotment.... I took my sons football team there a few times, you ever see a $750 breakfast bill, lol? My wife posted a pic of it on facebook one time and it started a bunch of trouble, someone said we should be ashamed, lol...

BUT You hit the nail on the head!!!! I am in pomfret area, we are right near brian denehey (and renee zellweger for the people who are into that sort of thing, lol), Funny when I told my father I seen Brian Denehey while I was bopping around town he said "the sheriff?", now in my defense I was 2 years old in 1982 when first blood came out, so I reply "No, hes an actor, this isnt texas we don't have sheriffs, he was the father in tommy boy", my father just shook his head and walked away.
Then my wife runs into renee zellweger at a local farmers market, so she comes home and tells me as soon as she walked in the house "RENEE ZELLWEGER", and I said "ga bless you"...

It is gorgeous here, I have to say, a lot of older residents, but everyone is so nice, the land is beautiful, we have been here a while now and its obviously home, but some times I wake up look out the glass french doors off of our balcony and wont dare pinch myself on the off chance I wake up in our first 2 bedroom apartment sized home, lol...

 

[KenM10759]

Interesting stuff, for sure. One Sunday a number of years ago when Paul Newman was still around, we bumped into Liam Neeson @ "the Bean" and he was there with friends and kids. I took note because unlike everyone today playing with their iPhones, he and his crew were passing around a Super 8 film camera.

Yeah, Barry's a gem and keeps the place real, though I miss their big dog that was always plopping down at your feet.

 

[ImcLoud]

Very cool, I never seen liam in there, lol... Its funny seeing people with there dogs in the bean, not many places let you bring pets in, but the don't care, I think their motto is "if you don't like it, take your food to go" ...lol.... I have brought my wiem in there on a few occasions, a long morning hunting and we would stop in there, he loves english muffins, I like seeing peoples faces when I order a begal with bacon and an english muffin with eggs and sausage, and then give him the english muffin, ...

I love this area, to me its one of the last few places of peace in the north east, south of new hampshire...

 

[KenM10759]

>>some times I wake up look out the glass french doors off of our balcony and wont dare pinch myself on the off chance I wake up in our first 2 bedroom apartment sized home, lol...

Like I do now?

Not ashamed. Been in this house 28 years and lead a modest lifestyle. I don't begrudge anyone who's done better, many of my friends have, and I don't long for better. Someone's got to pick up the slack at the end of the line. It's me.

 

[ImcLoud]

28 years is a good run, I think it is a generational thing, my generation moves around, my fathers seems to stay put, my father will NEVER move from his house, me on the other hand, I plan the next move.
I love where we are, I built this house and love everything about it, BUT when the kids are on their own in say 5-6 years, I wouldn't be able to justify staying here with just me and my wife, its honestly way too much for a family of 4 so for a couple it is just silly to live in a 4500 sq ft house with 4 ful baths, 3 parlors, 5 bedrooms, etc etc etc, plus the upkeep is a lot of work here, right now the kids help out, when they are gone and I am older I wont want to do it and there will be no reason to...

We are going to move into our lake house full time after the kids take off and I will sell this place, it will hurt a bit, but hopefully someone else can raise their family here and love it as much as we do. It will mean downsizing my audio systems, though, lol. our current home has 3 parlors so I have a system in each of them.. We plan on living between the lake house and italy, and doing a lot of traveling, although my wife says she can't count on any of my plans because I change them all the time.

I told her yesterday that I want to work at a restaurant as a waiter or bar tender, I said I am going to apply for a part time job at apple bees, she just shook her head and said she should have listened to her mother.. I dont know what that means, I thought her mother loved me ....

But anyway we are only here a short time, live life and enjoy it, if you are happy that is about all that matters. The house someone lives in and the cars they drive have nothing to do with how "well" in life they did, a good friend of mine who I would consider one of the best guys I know, lives in an apartment (he is one of my tenants, thats how I met him), he had 4 daughters before he was 24 years old, he paid to send them all too really good schools and bought them brand new volvos when they went they left for school, he paid for an international vacation for each when they graduated college, he paid for all of their weddings, and he did it working for UPS, his wife passed away when his oldest daughter was 12 years old!!!
I met his entire family, they came here one year for Easter dinner and the are perfect, the girls appreciate everything he did, they al have great families, they all are very smart and well educated, he did a great job, he still works for UPS, and is about the happiest guy I know, he lives in an apartment, he drives a 10 year old car, he just bought his first motorcycle that he wanted his entire life... JUST THE HAPPIEST GUY ON THE PLANET, lives modest, honest, happy, and clean.

I think of it this way, its easy for a guy like me to give his kids a really comfortable life, because its overflow, BUT for someone to go with out to make sure his kids have it all, is rare, he was bought his kids all brand new cars, he said at one time he had 3 car payments at once, while he was driving a car that he bought for $1500!!! But him knowing his kids were in a nice reliable safe car was more important then him having to call AAA a few times a ear, lol.. I am impressed by that. Same thing with the weddings, he just married off the last one, he had the money saved, and wouldnt buy himself a motorcycle until he paid for her wedding, I used to let him use one of my bikes, and I could see how happy he was riding, but he wouldnt dare spend his savings until he knew she was all set.. pretty cool, so you can not judge people by what they have, because if you ask me he has a lot more than anyone else I know...

 

[KenM10759]

Well said, ImcLoud! I'm not that guy but there are similarities. I'm a LOT like my own dad (now gone) in that I'm much more inclined to do for others than myself because when I get old there will be people there for me. Just as I and countless others were there for my dad as his health failed.

I have three children. The youngest is 25 and just got engaged, right after he & his betrothed bought my mom & dad's home where I grew up. Very proud of all of them, for different reasons. Like you say, we're here a relatively short time, and the important thing to do is find your own form of happiness. We're both there, just in differing ways.

 

[GO-NAD!]

If I had so much time on my hands that I could type all those long-a$$ posts, I'd be bored too...

J/K!

 

[ImcLoud]

I type really fast...

 

[ImcLoud]

Closed on the property today, well no loan so more of a quit claim deed signing, pretty simple with out the bureaucracy of a financial institution... Now I gotta get ta work...