Dream big.  There are thousands of ways to say it.  “It is better to fall short of a high mark than to reach a low one.”

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Patience is defined as “good-natured tolerance of delay or incompetence.” They say patience is a virtue. In the business world I would say that patience can be replaced with forget it or replace it. I find in the business world that I am waiting on things and trying to be patient. Me rushing people helps nothing. Me worrying also does not help things. Banks are slow, realtors are slow, everyone is slow. People generally do things when they benefit from them.

So recently I have just been saying forget it. It has worked out for me well in a few cases. I will leave people alone and they end up getting lonely and begging for business. They come up with better offers and better deals. You also give them time to do whatever it was that they needed to get done before your tasks.

A lot of people like to play games in business. I say forget them and their bs. You can not do this in all cases because there are things you have to get done. Do those. For other things try to have multiple options. Be loyal to those that are loyal to you. Evaluate your business and recognize where you are wasting resources. If you are having to wait on people too often maybe it is time to stop being patient. 

“Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.”  Abraham Lincoln

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I stumbled across these pictures today and was motivated.  This is the type of thing I really like and would love to have as an escape on a hundred acres outside of the city.  This was on Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects site, check the site out for more pics of this cabin and others.

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I have read about a few auctions in the last few weeks.  There was an auction in Panama City last week where 67 units were up for auction (27 guaranteed to be sold).  The prior week 39 condos were auctioned off in Cali.  These had starting bid prices at roughly 50% the previous selling price.  These could be deals for some that were looking for condos in these areas.  I think the market is getting closer to realistic in some areas, but not exactly deals yet. 

Locally I have seen people trying to get rid of land as opposed to developing it.  I have not seen great prices, but previously these types of deals would have never hit the market.  These would have been things sold to those in the know.  So times are a changing.  The areas that I really would like to get into are not seeing a decline in prices.  They are only continuing to grow.  I am not sure yet if they will be hit at all or if they will be hit at the end of the downward trend. 

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I had heard about the guy on Craigslist trying to hustle a paper clip.  His goal was to trade up to a house.  The idea was to see if he could start with a paper clip and trade with enough people, until he ended up with a house.  This is a crazy hustle that he was actually able to pull off.  This video shows a bit of the story.  If you hustle with a strategy there is not much you can’t do…

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I just saw this video clip of the purchase and upgrade of the Rolls Royce Phantom Droptop.  Rolls Royce, Black Card, Ferrari 430 spyder trade in, things are good.  The video says it all…  This was covered in a photo album in the last issue of Heavy Hitters Magazine.  Now check out the video…

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If you have not read the 48 Laws of Power I highly recommend it.  The book is highly recommended from all walks of life.  Below is a chapter break down of the book. I could talk about the book for ages, and really get not do it justice.

The 48 Laws of Power

by Robert Greene and Joost Elffers

Law 1

Never Outshine the Master

Always make those above you feel comfortably superior.  In your desire to please or impress them, do not go too far in displaying your talents or you might accomplish the opposite – inspire fear and insecurity.  Make your masters appear more brilliant than they are and you will attain the heights of power.

Law 2

Never put too Much Trust in Friends, Learn how to use Enemies

Be wary of friends-they will betray you more quickly, for they are easily aroused to envy.  They also become spoiled and tyrannical. But hire a former enemy and he will be more loyal than a friend, because he has more to prove.  In fact, you have more to fear from friends than from enemies.  If you have no enemies, find a way to make them.

 Law 3 Conceal your Intentions

Keep people off-balance and in the dark by never revealing the purpose behind your actions.  If they have no clue what you are up to, they cannot prepare a defense.  Guide them far enough down the wrong path, envelope them in enough smoke, and by the time they realize your intentions, it will be too late.

 

Read the rest of this entry »

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Wyclef seems to be slipping.  He is not up on his jewerly bills from 2002-2006.  He has Jacob the Jeweler (or Jacob the Washer) taking him to court for unpaid bills of over $300,000 in jewelry.  He had bought around $765,000 and was just defunct on the rest of the bills… 

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You got to love when people are anal about things. I had an inspection done this week on a house I am selling. The buyer had it done before buying the house. I had an inspection done before I bought the home and fixed everything that needed to be fixed. So to make it worth this guys time, he had to put some items in the report that I couldn’t help but laugh at.

“There is a 2nd grounding rod that has been abandoned (right side of the house) and represents a trip hazard. The top of the rod should be removed and the hole filled to grade.”

This type of thing could stress a dude out if they didn’t know how to handle things. I also have gutter pads around the house that present a “tripping hazard.”

There was also a complaint about the A/C not cooling the house in an hour. It was 95 degrees the day of the inspection and the A/C had not been cut on for a month. It only got down to 78 in an hour and needs to have further review…

I need to replace a piece of siding, replace a light bulb, replace boiler element in oven… and a few other small things.

The last inspection I had done for a house, came back looking right, the house had piping that was recalled, roof needed replacing, cracked fireplace, siding was rotting, the bonus room the owner added did not come close to passing inspection, A/C handling unit had rotted out, hot water holding tank was leaking, and a few other things. So to know that when I sell a house the biggest problem is a tripping hazard I feel good.  Anyhow I am going to breathe and relax…

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One of the biggest lessons I have learned and been reminded of over the past year is that of location.  Location is key in any investment.  There are a record number of foreclosures in the US right now.  Living beside foreclosures devalues your property.  Buy a foreclosure can bring forth an opportunity, though if 50% of all the houses in the same subdivision later fall prey to foreclosure you could be out of luck. 

I had brought a home in a decent subdivision this past year.  It was the second foreclosure in the 100+ home subdivision.  It was a great deal.  Since my purchase 10 other homes have gone into foreclosure.  The neighborhood has not changed, but its reputation has.  Realtors are avoiding the area.  To say it honestly I messed up.  Could I have seen this happening?

 The subdivision was built by a national builder.  What I found out later was that Country Wide secured 90% of the loans and most of the loans were subprime.  If I would have done a little more research before I had bought I would have been in a better situation as the buyer. 

I was talking with a local builder that also helped drill location into my head.  He has the option to buy two pieces of property.  Both are 3 acres.  One is $50,000 and the other is $100,000.  He can invest $200,000 into a home on both pieces of property.  Afterwards the house built on the $50,000 lot would be worth $250,000.  The house built on the $100,000 lot would be worth over $400,000.  The difference is location.  You are not always looking for the cheapest deal.  You have to look for the best opportunity.  Location can help guide that search. 

In looking forward this year I will be concentrating on the 3 l’s.  Location, location, location.  There are some neighborhoods in Raleigh that are seeing increasing prices while all you read about in the news is the decline.  There are foreclosed houses in Raleigh that are going for $300+ a square foot.  That is what is going on. 

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