A Week in Review

I just spent a week in Birmingham, putting out fires, looking at homes and talking to lawyers. A typical visit. However, I thought this visit I would have plenty of down-time, a luxury I have yet to experience in Birmingham. This trip, like all the others was one big treadmill run.

I did have some free time Friday night around 8 p.m. to find Zaxby's Chicken--the South's answer to Kentucky Fried Chicken. Except better. Actually, I have an infinity for their wings and mushrooms.

My time was taken up by two main activities: looking for a home to buy and fixing up my vacant home.

Shopping for homes with my agent is always an interesting experience. Jack is also a business partner. He likes to look at everything. Even those I have dismissed from the get-go. And, he (and I) feel that anything is worth buying at the right price. That is kind of a dangerous, as there isn't always a voice of reason between the two of us. Once there was one house that really piqued our interest. It was missing just about everything, had serious termite damage and a dangerous mold issue worse than I had ever seen. But, they only wanted $40,000. How bad could it be? Eventually sanity won out, or there was an offer from someone stupider than us. I forget which. This time we found two that met our basic criteria. Nothing has been done with either property just yet.

My other big activity was taking care of the house I kicked the woman out of last month. Sometimes there is money to handle these things. Sometimes there is time. This time money lost. The house was in reasonable condition considering the woman who lived there was adverse to cleaning. There was junk left behind, and we (my trusted tenant/property manager and I) brought over a rake one day to gather up the bits of Battleship pieces, trash and a variety of miscellaneous odds and ends that people probably don't really need but can be found in every home. Then there was the five dozen eggs left in the refrigerator...

Sadly, there was also magic marker on the walls and with the 15 foot walls, it was a bit of maneuvering to get this done. We left the nautical blue bathroom. And we left the lemon yellow hallway. But the laundry room had to be painted. We had more lemon yellow paint than anything else, so the laundry room is a lovely lemony color now. The master bedroom, which had the brunt of the magic marker, is now the color of chocolate milk. Only because after the laundry room, we didn't have any more yellow. We had Ovaltine brown.

We finished the house in what I calculate to be 30 man-hours. Which is amazing because we did it in 2 and a half days. There were other appointments scattered in there. I met with two attorneys. Took care of an insanely stupid issue at the Alabaster Alabama post office, met with an agent who might be willing to help me out with renting the vacant house with the yellow laundry room, went house hunting with Jack and, and, and....


As an interesting cultural notation, being from Arizona I noticed a few things. I heard "Sweet Home Alabama" EVERY day I was there. And, it wasn't on the same radio station. I heard a tornado warning for the first time in my life. Missed the tornado though. Also, I drove in rain so dense I couldn't see past the hood of my car. And, I got to see a beautiful green spring time--something I don't see living in the desert.



The latest rental house, now picked up and ready for a tidy tenant who is willing to pay rent on time.



The sitting room of the Ovaltine bedroom.

It's Not What You Know

It is no secret that those who have my back are some of the best and brightest. I am blessed to have them on my side. My company is small--but they treat what I do as something valuable. And, for that, I am grateful. Those I work with have become friends. They mostly came through networking, until I found the right ones. I am grateful I can call on them. I am even more grateful they answer when I call.

My primary attorney came from a former loan officer, who told me he was the best in the business. He is. He also knows just about everyone in Birmingham. Or, if he doesn't know them, they know him. Everything he touches makes my company a little bit better.

My secondary attorney was a referral from the primary attorney. She and I have developed a nice rapport. She understands landlord-tenant law. Her advice isn't cheap. But, I have looked around Birmingham, and I cannot find anyone better versed in what she does.

My current loan officer came from my primary attorney. He is a straight-shooter. He works well with my agent and more than once he has found better deals for me, without letting me know he was shopping.

My agent came from... you guess it! I couldn't ask for a more savvy person to work with. He understands business growth. He understands the big picture of what I am looking to accomplish. And, he has told me wants to help me grow it.

I have a trusted tenant who runs errands, gets my rent and takes care of miscellaneous tasks I would do I if I lived there. But, he is also a friend who will--and has--gone to bat for me.

My CPA came from my former bookkeeper (the former bookkeeper had a few moral issues, like she didn't have any morals). This man is one of the most genuinely wonderful people I have had the pleasure of knowing. He has become a great ally when things are tough.

But, holding me together, helping with my sanity and acting as my sounding block--all while reading my mind, deciphering my circular zen e-mails with the patience of a patron saint and balancing my books--is my bookkeeper. She and I have been friends 20 years and she still tolerates me. She is great at keeping me in reality--especially when I would rather cave. I can leave her to her own devices and she will have it all done. I can throw extra projects on her and she never complains. I have the utmost respect for how she handles her company and especially how she lives her life. I could replace the rest of the people above--after all, there are always other attorneys out there... But, I cannot replace her.