Author Archives: Aunty

About Aunty

Aunty is a new senior citizen and loving this phase of her life. Less responsibilities, less fear of being weird, able to do more of the things that I want to do! Older, yes, slower, yes, but life is even more wonderful in my golden years and I look forward to even goldener ones.

Ozzie Jurock on investing

Posted on by
Reply

Here is a summary of Raymond Aaron’s interview with Ozzie Jurock.  Ozzie Jurock is a great international teacher that has built up his own investment portfolio of real estate.  He is an investor adviser with a LOT of great credentials.  I suggest you listen to it yourself, but if not, here are my aunty notes:

Real estate empowers you to have passive income.

Find out who you are.  Shark (grave dancer, going for tax sales, foreclosures, auctions, can do deal anywhere, finding the deals), Flipper (can do deal anywhere, short term transactions, always concerned with the deal.  Bird dogs, wholesalers, full service buys/rehabs/sells), Investor (interested in creating passive income, liberates because is long term strategy).

A financial crisis is not an economic crisis.  High cost of things is the result of the debasement of all currencies today.

Look at 5 things when investing in real estate:

1.  Inflationary or Deflationary environment – currently we are creating money out of thin air.  Although the government is saying we are only in a 2% inflation rate, real world prices are much higher.  Inflation increases all things up in value.  Shifting hard assets (i.e. real estate) during inflation.

2.  Inward Migration – people moving in.

3.  Affordability – price you can pay, rental income that can make your payments.

4.  Interest rate – low is great, making leverage excellent.  Never ever speculate the length of term you hold your mortgage more than 5 years.

5.  Demand and Supply – if demand is coming down and supply going up, adjust.  Want demand and supply in balance.

Local conditions:  employment rate, diversified industries, new ideas, new highways, vacancy rate, expense to income ratio.

Best deals come in bad markets where everyone is running from them.

1% rule – the rent is 1% of the purchase price.  This rule will ensure all the mortgages, bills are paid.

Walmart rule – follow Walmart – if they open a store, good place to buy since they have already done the market research.

Property management needs to be treated like a business.  Need full contact management – face to face between tenants and manager, between you and manager.  Check credit report, references.  Understand tenant has right of enjoyment, but you have the right to get the house back as it was.  Be creative (2 months free but in the 12th and 24th month), create good environment.

Nothing Down deals – find the deals first, money comes easily after that.  Find a good mortgage broker, whatever the interest rate is in the “window”, it can always be beat by 1 1/2%, must be able to haggle.  Commercial lending is more difficult right now, but there are mortgage brokers that provide funding.  Mortgage brokers are one of the pillars of your investing plan.

Long term investing for cash flow, find joint venture partners – share in the profits and portfolio.

Doesn’t matter what the market is.  Boom of retirees is moving toward the west coast.  Interesting thoughts about some specific US markets, some of the info is old so will not summarize here.

Buy the A & B properties, not the C or lower properties.  Must look at the property to get the complete picture.

Markets have dual income retiree with accumulated wealth.

When property values go up too much, they also go down too much.

realestatetalks.com worldwide site for discussions between other likeminded investors.

ozziejurock.com about Ozzie

for more content, search “ozzie real estate” on you tube for videos.

Action steps:

1.  Pick an area, do research, become familiar, get realtor from that area, assemble your pillars – attorney, accountant, mortgage broker, realtor, property manager.

2.  Start now.  Understanding is not learning.  Usually just 5% actually do something – the way to truly learning is to do something.  Commit, perform, measure, analyze and adjust, measure again.

3.  Success is unnatural, achieved by the minority of people.  Dream big, have written goals, put deadlines on your goals.  Keys for success are  Enthusiasm (Greek word for the god within),  Focus (not just positive thinking, write major points), Learning, Discipline, Accountability (people don’t do what you expect, but they do what you inspect).

4.  Have action steps that you control and will follow.

Organizing tips

Posted on by
Reply

For anyone who knows me and been to our house, the title of this subject would have them chuckling.  I live my life in chaos.  My workroom has dozens of incomplete projects, my floor covered with paper stacks, and it is usually panic time when company is over and I have to clear space and present a parlor in order.

However, I am on a mission to clear the clutter from my life, as well as prepare to move one day in the future to a smaller house, which means consolidate and remove.  Here is the journal of my journey into an organized life.  It will take a while because I have so many interests and so much stuff.  I also have less time the older I get, so I am getting cracking at it NOW.  Read more <here>.

Although I love my computer (Apple, yum yum), I am a computer intermediate illiterate.  I still like columnar pads and handwritten notes, and PowerPoint and spreadsheets are foreign to me.

My accountant asked me to learn QuickBooks to organize our finances.  I have begun the journey – and entered into the domain of QuickBooks for Macs.  Scary.  Very scary.  Looks something like Greek in cartoon font.  However, even though most reviewers bash the Mac version of QuickBooks, it is pretty powerful stuff for organizing one’s finances.  Tara Decker over at Diane Sandlin’s office is setting up my accounts and classes, and I go home and do the homework of inputting credit card, checking, and all that good stuff.  I love it!!!  Already I can see the light and with the push of a keyboard key, I can get reports and a finger on the pulse instead of guessing at the estimate. [update:  My personal, business, portfolio accounts are ALL easily accessible now, thanks to Tara and QuickBooks.  I have little “QB” with checks on all the statements from credit cards and checking accounts that can now be filed away and later destroyed.  With a touch of my finger, I can pull up profit and loss reports by property or class or business for whatever quarter, month, or year I desire.  It is bliss.  Taxes will be a breeze from now on.]

Barry of Wilco was generous enough to share how he tracks his assets, liabilities, and projections using simple flow charts on his wall, and post it notes that can be changed very easily as the numbers change.  How brilliant is that!  For people like Uncle and I who are visually oriented, a chart in front of us will give us the picture of the day in a format that we can understand.  I’ll see if I can do a video soon and post it here at a later date.  One tip he showed me was his folder of business cards.  Barry puts all the business cards he collects from fellow investors, wannabe investors, rehabbers, financial people, etc. in those clear plastic pages with sleeves.  That way he just flips through pages instead of stacks of cards.  Thanks for the tip Barry!

One of the key ingredients to be organized is to have your goals in a system that push you to achieve what it is you need to do to get where you want to be.  Than Merrill of Flip This House did a great video on how he organizes his weekly goals.  See it <here.>

If any of you trade stocks and options, have a daily journal.  The reason I say this is because that is what I was told by an instructor.  Prior to doing a daily journal, I used to just gather the confirmation notices and sort of file them away.  It was clueless and so one day I started a daily stock journal.  Now I use a composition book – one of my favorite note taking tools, and put the date, then start listing the stocks and options of stocks that I am watching, holding, or buying/selling.  If I want to know what the price of the stock or option was last week, I just flip back a few pages.  To keep track of what I currently have, I put the acquisition date, stock or option, price acquired on a little post it note.  These little post it notes are attached to an index card that “moves” along as each day progresses.  When the stock or option is sold, it comes off the index card marker.  So far, this is working out for me pretty good.  Now if I can just figure out how to only pick the winners, I’ll be one happy aunty.

I subscribe to Raymond Aaron’s program.  He recently had a daily minute (I get these every day) about wasting time by doing things that really don’t get me anywhere.  Instead, do 3 big things a day.  Avoid overwhelm and decide what 3 things you should focus on.

One day soon, I will be organized.  I have used the excused of being disorganized for far too long.  Uncle will be super happy when I reach the point of non-clutter.  So will I, but this is a process in process right now.  All the things that I thought were treasures are now considered excess, and I will use eBay and Amazon.com to sell things, and Craigslist.org to give away or sell the big stuff that I don’t want to ship.  My beads, supplies, and art things will go on Artfire to be sold.

Will update as I get better at it.

Get started on eBay!

Posted on by
Reply

One of the best teachers to stop me from buying stuff I really don’t need (doodads) is selling those unused items on eBay.  Rarely will you get what you bought – though sometimes you get pleasantly surprised – a Louis Vuitton bag that was bought for $800 actually sold for $800 on eBay with heavy bidding at the end!  Most things we have laying around will sell, but not for retail.

Here’s how I sell – it’s not as hard as it used to be.  Please give it a go.  It seems daunting, but once you’ve started, it’s easy peasy.

First, gather your items, at least 6 or more.  Reason to do this is to do bulk steps which cuts down on time spent on editing photos.  It helps if they are the same type of things, i.e. clothing, or pictures, but it doesn’t have to be.

Next, find a good uncluttered spot on your lanai, lawn, entrance, or nice floor (no patterned rugs) and take pictures – the better you can with the best lighting.  This is kind of a pain, but well worth the effort.  Pictures sell, period.  Take front, back, side, details, and especially take a good picture of the flaws or damages.

BIG NOTE UPDATE:  eBay now has an app for your iPhone.  This makes is super duper easy to put an item up for sale and take your pictures on your iPhone without having to go through the photo uploading the old way.  Fantastic stuff!!!

If you have an iPhone or smart phone with camera capabilities,  go to your iTunes account and download the free eBay app.  Name the item, choose the category, shoot the pictures, select the shipping and other options, do a brief description, and either save or post.  After that has been done, then use your computer to sign into your eBay account, and edit the item that you just posted with your iPhone.  It is easier to edit and add to the description from your computer but be sure to do it before anyone places a bid on your item (otherwise you are more limited in editing).

The following in bracket and italics is if you DON’T use your smart phone and the eBay app to load an eBay item that you want to sell.

[I have a Mac, so the following is how I upload and edit my pictures.  Using the cord that connects the camera (I use a Kodak EasyShare Z210 which is an average digital camera), connect to USB port of computer and the camera.  Turn the camera on.  iPhoto automatically opens, the camera icon appears on the menu bar of iPhoto, and it asks if I want to download all pictures.

I usually say yes, and if I have old pictures that I have saved on my camera, iPhoto will ask if I want to also download duplicates, which I say no.

After the (newer) pictures are downloaded, iPhoto will ask if I want the pictures that have been downloaded to be deleted from the camera.  I usually say yes, but if you are just getting started with editing and such, you might want to say no for now, just in case you need to download the same photos again in case of disaster.

Eject the camera icon, then turn off camera and disconnect cable from both computer and camera ports.

The recent photos are now in the newest event folder.  I open the folder and “select all” of the photos.  Using iPhoto, I crop each one – just to tidy up each photo – eliminating background space or whatever doesn’t need to be in the picture, and advance to the next photo using the forward arrow on the screen.  I also “delete” the photos that I don’t think I will need or if they are really poor shots.  At this point you will know if you have a bunch of good pictures, or if you really need to shoot the items again in better light, better background, better focus.

Next, I create a folder on my desktop, and name it “ebay [today’s date] photos” (you can name it anything you want).  Going back to iPhoto, I choose the recent event of eBay shots, “select all”, then drag all of those nicely cropped photos into the folder of “ebay photos” on my desktop.  You many have to put the “ebay photos” folder near an edge of your computer so you can see it outside of the iPhoto window.

All of your pictures should now be in the desktop “ebay photos” folder.  Open the folder.  All of the photos will be listed with a bunch of goobly gook numbers.jpg.  These all need to be named so you can identify which picture is for what item.

Single click on the goobly gook number of the first item on the list.  Give it an identifying name – i.e. if it is an Ann Taylor blouse, name it “annfront” if it is the front of the blouse, “annback” if it is the back, etc, etc.  Keep it simple but keep the first part of the identifying name the same – “ann”.  Each time you do this, the item on the list moves down, and the next goobly gook number jpg is at the top of the list.  Go through the entire list and name all photos.  The “.jpg” will remain as part of the identification, so leave that alone.

After all the photos in the list have been named (you should see a pattern of all the same items being grouped together because of how you have identified them), pat yourself on the back.  (I usually have my cheetos and coke at this time.)

Now, “select all” the photos in the list and double click to open.  With the Mac computer, the photos open in “Preview”.  I love this part and how easy it is to size the photos, with options to edit if needed.

All your pictures are open, but you will just see one at a time, with a vertical slide show on the side of what is next.  From the top menu bar, select “Tools” and choose “adjust size”.  I usually enter 1000 pixels in the first box (for width), and because the default is set to “size proportionately”, the height dimension will change automatically.

Go to next, and do the same for the next picture, entering 1000 in the width box.  Continue for all pictures.  You can also edit the color, saturation, exposure for each picture if you want, but if you have taken good pictures in good light, you won’t need to mess with that.

Close out the window, and it will ask if you want to save changes.  YES!  You’ve done all that work, you really should save it.  If for some reason you are really unhappy with the editing you have done and you have saved all changes, you can always delete and go back to the originals in iPhoto and go through the process of naming, editing and sizing until you are happy.

That was the hardest part – taking pictures, and formatting them for eBay.] 

Now, open up eBay.  Go to eBay.com, the greatest auction site on the planet.  If you don’t have an account yet, open one.  It is free.  The hardest part is choosing a name.  This is how you will be identified, so choose a good one.

You will also open a PayPal account (eBay owns PayPal) from which you will get paid.  Ebay and PayPal will make money from fees that are charged to you automatically.  People grumble about that, but it is way cheaper than a booth at a craft fair or renting a store front.  And we get to sell our junk as well as our treasure.

I find that eBay has been very slow in opening up to sign in, but hopefully they fix that soon.  Be patient, it will be worth it.

From the eBay top menu bar, choose “Sell”.  A big blue arrow will point to “List your item”.  Put a brief description in the “What’s it worth?” box (i.e. “Ann Taylor blouse”), click the “look it up” tab and the program will show you a range of past prices.  Pretty cool stuff.

Or, just bypass that and click on “List your item”.  This will bring you to the sign in page (if you haven’t already signed in). You can also register this way if you haven’t ever registered yet.

Enter keywords for your item, and a bunch of categories will be displayed.  Choose the category that best fits your item.  For now, just choose one category or else your fees will be more.  Click “continue”.

Now you are on the real page of your listing, and your adventure is at the starting gate.  Put the title of your item, and make it sound good.  List the condition, and specifics.

About half way through, you will add pictures.  The first picture is free, subsequent ones are 15¢ each.  Sometimes eBay has promotions with free listings and free pictures.  Put your best pictures that show the best to wow the buyers, but make sure you also have good pictures of the flaws and drawbacks so they know what to expect.

This is where you will be so happy that you have named your photos and already edited, cropped, and sized for ebay.  Click on “add pictures” and you will need to find your folder on your desktop that you named earlier “ebay pictures”.  Select “Browse”.  Choose “Desktop” and then choose your “ebay pictures” folder.

The “ebay pictures” folder will open a list to display all of the photos you have.  Click on a picture for the item you are listing, and “open”.  The photo will appear in the add pictures box.  You can continue to add more photos by clicking on “Browse”.  You can add up to 12 photos this way (but remember usually on the first one is free).  After you have selected the photos for your item, click on “Upload”.  It will take a little while to upload all photos.

The pictures will be displayed, and you will have the option of moving the photos in different orders, or deleting.  The first picture in the queue is the one that is going to be seen foremost, so make sure that is the best one that represents the item.

Next, describe the item – and do your best!  Take measurements, gush about the item, how wonderful it looks, feels, etc.  Just don’t over sell and over promise because the buyer on the receiving end will get ticked off if they get a frog when they were expecting a princess.

eBay has a lot of options that you can choose from for listing your items.  I like to choose free shipping because I think that appeals to everyone and helps sell my items.  I also try to list items on Friday for a 7 day auction so it ends on Friday.  Just make sure the time of day that you list is a good time for people on the Mainland.  I once listed some killer stuff on eBay and worked through the night.  Most of the later items got posted late at night, which was in the wee hours of the morning for the Midwest and East Coast.  Not good – I didn’t do well on that bunch at all because there was no frenzy at the end of the auction.  Everyone was asleep.

To compensate for this, eBay has an option to set your start date and time for a fee of 10¢.  Well worth it, I think.  I have used the option to start all my auctions at the same time and on the same day.

Choose your shipping options and method of payment (I use PayPal).

After going through the options, press “continue” and you will be on the final page, where you will see a brief picture of what this listing will be like, as well as a display of the fees owed for posting your auction item.

Click on “List your item” and you are live!!!

After your listing is live, you can go back to your iPhoto library and delete all those ebay photos, because you don’t need to store them there anymore, and you will save some space.

When your item does sell, eBay will send you a message, and you will use that to email your winning bidder.

After they pay (very easy through PayPal) print a shipping receipt, put it in a box or bag (learn about the Forever stamp, rates using priority mail, and other mailing options), and mail it out.

I like to inform my customers that the package has been shipped out.

PayPal will automatically collect your money for you.  You can leave feedback for each person that bought something from you, or you can wait until they leave feedback for you before you decide what rating to give them.  I usually give them all 5 stars.

That’s it – very briefly!  There are courses and books on how to sell better on eBay.  I do have Chris Bowers’ program, but haven’t used it – and I should.

Good luck on your eBay sales.  Make some money, clear out the clutter from you home, and have fun!

Home Declutter

Posted on by
Reply

Aunty’s house is de house of clutter, so if there is an expert in de-cluttering, it will be me one day.  Something like the way to catch a thief is to learn from a thief, or something like that.

First, take a picture of your house, room, entrance, kitchen, dining table, wherever you feel is a mess.  To feel better as you view the pictures, it really does look worse in the photo than it does in real life.  Also, what the photo will do is make you see your spaces the way others see it, and that alone may give you incentive to clear and clean it up.  It also can be a great “before” picture for the “after” you will have.

Chose a spot or a room, and start to go through.  You can do it superficially at first, but when you are serious, do a thorough job of sifting through everything, and either keep, toss, donate, or Scarlett O’hara it (think about it tomorrow).  Clean as you go so the bugs don’t have a place to party.

Make sure you are setting aside a reasonable amount of time and you tackle a reasonable size of problem area.  You must be successful.  I have decided to do 3 feet of stuff at a time – so I just did the shoes/sports shelf behind our front door.  It feels great! and the door can now nestle back to where it is supposed to be, the area is organized and even smells good.  It took me 1 hour, and I think I shall reward myself with cheetos and coke (chose your own reward).

Very important:  do what you intend with what you have decided immediately.  If you decide to throw some stuff away, toss it in the outside rubbish bin.  If you are donating some things, put it in box(es)or bag(s) and get it to Goodwill asap.  If a pile of stuff belongs in another room or to someone else, get it there.  If you are going to give items to friends or sell it on eBay, label it and make sure you do that within the week.  For the stuff you aren’t sure about (the Scarlett stuff), put it in a box, and get it out of sight for now.  One day you will go through that box and either squeal with delight or scratch your head wondering why you kept it.

At the rate I am going, 3 sq ft of decluttering per day in a 2800 sq ft house, will take me 700 days to a totally decluttered house.  Sounds horribly long, but I have a feeling it will be less time than that.  Even if it does take 700 days, the reward of a clean, clear, organized house will make me happy and full of cheetos and coke, and it will make Uncle really happy.  Happy Uncle = happy home.

Investing in Las Vegas

Posted on by
2

welcome to VegasLas Vegas Real Estate – 9th Island of Opportunity

Okay, if I had to choose between other mainland cities or Las Vegas, I’d bet my stack of chips on Vegas.  It really does feel like home, only hotter, colder, drier, and busier.  My favorite airline goes there non-stop and since I have their VISA card, I use my Hawaiian Miles to upgrade to first class whenever I can – THAT is truly the way to fly!

In Vegas, the California Hotel is like a class reunion – more people I know and bump into there than at Ala Moana Center!  There might be better real estate markets out there such as Indiana, Texas, Ohio, Florida, Memphis, etc., but Vegas [*! see update at bottom of page] is my favorite market to shop and buy.  Yes, Paul and Co. (Realestate-Extreme), it is emotion not primarily the numbers dictating that strategy, but women are supposed to be emotional.  And Uncle doesn’t mind.

I believe in picking the best strategy for our situation, and go for it.  Believe me, there are different paths to take, different markets to seek, and more advice than I would like about not doing what we are doing.  We aren’t going in blind and deaf – we do listen to advice and continue to learn.  However, I believe one of the most important hallmarks of success is commitment.  We are not letting other people’s beliefs stop us in our tracks or veer us from our chosen path, as long as our plan is working.

Our strategy is to buy the bargains in Vegas, rent and hold for a few years, then sell and buy closer to home using 1031 exchanges (or not) – in Hawaii, cash flowing all the while.  This is banking on a few things – that we could rent for positive rental income in Vegas, prices in Vegas appreciate in a few years, and prices in Hawaii remain the same or come down a couple years out from now.  We will also keep our options open.  For now, we are getting decent rental income from the properties we do have in Vegas, and if that is how it remains, we will be fine.

Buying in Vegas is not a problem.  It is on sale.  Houses that were $400,000 or more a few years ago can be purchased for under $200,000 today.   Formerly $240,000 4 bedroom 3 bath homes are now available for $80,000 to $100,000 in some areas – fee simple, 5 years old, central heating and air conditioning, nice looking, 2 car garage, with or without pool, etc.!  Million dollar homes, gorgeous million dollar homes are $400,000!  [note update:  as of May 2013, prices in Vegas have risen – the market is heated up with a lot more cash buyer investors and less properties on the market.  As a result of this, rental rates have gone down because there are now more investor owned rental units available.]

Homeowners association fees are rather low, property taxes are similar to Hawaii, and insurance is very low since they don’t have hurricanes there.  If you run your rental business as a Nevada entity (see BOSS Business Services for info and support), open a business checking/savings account in Nevada (I use Wells Fargo), and use a Nevada property management company to manage your rentals, you can take advantage of Nevada’s business friendly laws.  Use a Nevada LLC if you are conducting real estate business in Nevada.  (Use a Hawaii LLC if you are conducting business in Hawaii.  It is possible to file as an alien, but for me it is not worth the hassle.)  I currently used BOSS to file my corporate taxes in the past, and now use Diane Sandlin for our business and personal taxes that have flow throw LLCs.  Diane is an excellent CPA and tax advisor knowledgeable in real estate investing and the reason we switched was because of the time difference communication lag that was occurring between Vegas and us here in Hawaii.

One of the advantages of investing in Vegas is that I am able to write off the expenses (air, hotel, car, food) to Vegas because I am doing business transactions in Vegas as long as I spend at least 4 hours in a day transacting business, i.e. looking at properties, meeting with our property manager, etc.  Sweet!

If you have some time, please read a piece on commitment.  Once we committed to building up our nest chicken, things started falling into place.  After stumbling through a couple of counter productive Nevada real estate agents, we found the best real estate agent in the world (or at least in Vegas) for our strategy, Martin Fajardo.  Young, energetic, honest, hard working, smart, and a great family man.  Investment minded, pushy when necessary, attention to detail, and totally knowledgeable about Las Vegas, its market, and its pitfalls.

The first house I fell in love with was a 4bedroom/3bath  house on the MLS on Bella Camrosa Drive.  OMG, it had a drop dead gorgeous kitchen and an asking price of $191,900.  We offered $175,000 and were rejected – twice.  I was so sad.  This was in August 2009.  My first love and first rejection.

That was a year ago from the time I have begun this info site.  Since then, we have acquired and rehabbed 7 properties in Vegas, and sold 1.  Within 3 weeks or less from rehab completion, properties have been put under lease contract with qualified tenants.  There is a rental market in Vegas – many of our tenants are former homeowners who lost their homes in foreclosure proceedings.  Rent prices are a bit soft, but prices are so low, and it cash flows nicely.  To me, it is an ideal time to be buying in this fast flashy city.  There is even a seller’s market, just not as good as a buyer’s one.

Here’s a audio file from a very astute investor/trainer talking about Vegas investing.  I don’t know how long this file will be available so please listen to it if you are even just thinking about investing.  Thank you dear friend for sending this to me!

I couldn’t have done this without Martin.  I wouldn’t have taken my first step without Rich Dad.  I continue to learn from people like Paul, JT, Michael & Gavin and talking story with new found investor friends.  Having Uncle in step and supporting this new venture of taking charge of our financial future makes it just fine and most important to success.  The combination of all these blessings gives me great odds, far better than betting my favorite numbers of 6 and hard 8’s.

Speaking of 6’s and 8’s, here’s a page on my theory of craps and real estate.  Thank you to my craps mentor, Chang, for putting up with all my questions and allowing me to tag along.

I just bought ANOTHER program, lol.  But really, this one I had to get because I was dying of curiosity about the Las Vegas market.  It is Ken Wade’s Housing Alert program.  He is a graph/numbers/trend cruncher, and a master reader of the candlestick chart theory.  He uses red dots for bad, yellow for neutral, and green for good, using almost the same kind of parameters as stock market indicators (MACDs, pricing, etc.) to determine an upward or downward move/trend in specific cities.  Well, I can’t legally show you the picture, but currently as of March 2011, Las Vegas is moving from previous quarters of all red to the current quarter of 4 greens (2 each in the short and intermediate terms) and 2 reds (in the long term).  The long term rating will be much slower to change because it is still accounting for that rapid downward slide in prices and stability over the last few years.  It always lags the current and intermediate market because of the time frame it measures.  Check out Aunty’s review of Ken Wades’s Housing Alert program.

What this means is that Aunty is happy.  The bad stage is turning into a good stage.  Buying is smart, and when the market’s indicators start to turn yellow, it will be time to sell.

Click < here > for a more detailed page on the steps involved in buying real estate in Vegas.

How Aunty buys in Vegas

Posted on by
Reply

I do things the easy way, but I try to do them well.  One of the secrets to that is to find good people that help.  I have been blessed with good luck in finding great people.

My realtor, Martin Fajardo (martin@rarealty.net) is the number one key element in my Vegas real estate ventures.  Smart, young, awesome.  His motto is to under promise and over deliver.  That he does, time after time.

It does help to do your own homework.  Before you decide to invest in Vegas real estate, think about what your end plan is, what your finances are, and what you want – i.e. cash flowing rental properties, buy low and sell properties, or joint ventures where the decisions are out of your hands and you just make profit and/or cash flow.

We did buy one property and sell it a few months later in Vegas last year – just to see and also to get our cash back out.  It was a break even sale after the rehab and closing costs.  This taught me not to listen to the news and the naysayers with their one sided pessimism about Vegas real estate.  There is both a buyer and seller market right now, granted the buyers do have the upper hand.  It’s also not a market where you get stuck holding onto real estate in case you want to sell.  Some people are successful in making money doing flips (buy low, fix, sell higher) but it really is a better market for buy and hold – to cash flow.

So how do we buy?  I let my realtor Martin know what and where we are looking for.  Las Vegas is broken into MLS areas with numbers.  Areas 101 & 103 are up north, Henderson has several areas such as 606, 605 (my favorite) and Summerlin is 403, etc.  People don’t go around saying “I live in area 103,” but will give out the area name, like Summerlin, South West, etc.  Kind of like how we say Manoa, Ewa Beach, etc.

It helps to limit the area searches or you might get hundreds of listings with your overly broad criteria.  I usually ask for 3+ bedrooms, 2+ bathrooms, single family homes, at least 1600 sq ft, under $180,000 in my favorite areas.  For cash flow, 5+ bedrooms are awesome, thought your search would have to include more areas.  Once you start getting the daily lists from your realtor, you can adjust your search if you are getting too few or too many.  Figure out what you want, and ask your realtor to find all of them online.

When Martin sends me the search results of my criteria, the first email list from him is usually quite big – because it is all the properties that are in the system that I have never been sent (since it is a new search).  Subsequent email lists are much smaller – sometimes only 1 or 2 properties, depending on how much I have narrowed the search.  If I get too few properties to look at, I broaden the search by increasing neighborhoods, maximum price, or dropping the number of bedrooms or square footage of land and/or building.

I look at each property sheet on the list and determine if it is something I might like.  After awhile you will be able to “judge” the property but at first EVERYTHING looks good.  That’s the honeymoon phase, and it is quite wonderful.  Las Vegas real estate shopping is like being in a candy store.  It comes down to figuring out which is your favorite areas or what your focus will be – higher cash flow, or potential of higher capital appreciation.  You will find both components in all areas, but you will probably not find one with both the highest cash flow and highest capital appreciation potential.  In general, homes in the North Las Vegas area will cash flow beautifully well because the homes are new, large, and inexpensive.  Homes in the more desirable neighborhoods with the higher price tags such as Seven Hills, Anthem, Southern Highlands will not cash flow as beautifully ( they still cash flow nicely) but the upside potential in these gorgeous neighborhoods with lots of trees (I like trees) is potentially fantastic.

When you find a property on the MLS listings that you like, click on the “printer friendly this page” at the top right corner, and the print.  If you don’t do that, the page will be printed with a dark grey background making it harder to read and also using up a lot of your ink.

Circle the things you like about the property (i.e. large lot size, number of bedrooms, gated, pool, area, etc.) and also the things that concern you (i.e. high monthly HOA fees, notes on condition, age of house, etc.)

Sometime the listing will have a “click here for map view”.  It helps to have maps of Las Vegas handy.  One map will show the areas by numbers (101 – 606) which correspond to the sub-areas within the broader areas such as Henderson, North LV, Summerlin, etc.  Another map I have is one with zip codes – this helps me narrow down the area within the area in which the house or property is located.  The third map(s) I have are from AAA (free with membership) on the Las Vegas areas.  Currently, AAA has 3 maps for Vegas – one for Central Las Vegas (North, Downtown, Strip), Western Las Vegas (SouthWest, Summerlin), and Henderson (showing the South part of Vegas).

I also like to “look” at the property, and either go to Trulia.com, type in the property address and zip code, and see a map and other information.  Or, I type the property address into the Google search window, and if the Google truck was on the street, I see the property, its neighbors, and the streets around.

(to be continued – have errands to run, people to see, etc….)

Financing in Las Vegas

Posted on by
Reply

I use Wells Fargo in Las Vegas for our Nevada real estate entity.  Their online ease of use and level of customer service are exceptional.  My personal banker is Giovanni Anacta of the business banking division.  Giovanni helped me set up my business checking account and introduced me to a commercial lending officer as well as a mortgage loan officer.  I felt like the red carpet was rolled out for us.  Contact info: giovanni.l.anacta@wellsfargo.com  (702) 382-8722.  801 South Rancho Lane C-3, Las Vegas, NV  89106.  [Wells Fargo has now extended our business entity a business line of credit and credit cards!  Maybe that doesn’t sound exciting, but it really is a great program for building business credit and potential funds for investing needs.]

One avenue that I have yet to check out is Aloha Pacific Credit Union.  Big banks are very limiting to investors like me.  I have been told to try small community banks instead.  Aloha Pacific now has a branch in Vegas so I plan to open an account at a branch here in Hawaii and start establishing a relationship so they will be happy to lend me money in Vegas for properties in Vegas.

Our realtor Martin Fajardo wears many hats and has renewed his mortgage broker license!  Martin is our all-in-one in Vegas.  Of course he takes care of Uncle and me because we are mutually beneficial for each other, but more than that, Martin is the best of the best.  I am almost hesitant to leave his contact info because he is so good at what he does, and is always busy for his good clients.  (Okay, okay, I am being selfish..)  His email is martin@rarealty.net – he might not respond to you right away, or at all since he doesn’t know you, but if you are serious about investing in Las Vegas, keep trying or contact Aunty.

Vegas is still very much a “cash is king” place when it comes to buying deals.  Getting financing is tough, but do-able.  Getting a 70-75% LTV (loan to value) loan is ideal.  Also, most banks won’t lend you money if you have 4 or more outstanding loans.  Getting a 70-75% LTV loan after you’ve paid cash for a property is really tough.  One way around this is to purchase the property in cash, then get a HELOC on it.  I have done this but run into very stingy banks, and the LTV was only 55%.  Still, 55% is better than having to maintain 100% of the equity and tie up your cash.

[In 2010, it got pretty tough to get loans from conventional sources such as banks.  However, my first choice for financing would still be banks because they have the lowest rates, though also the most hoops, and it takes longer to get qualified – unless you have very little debt and stellar credit ratings (not me).]

Many financial celebrities will tell you to pay off all your debts with whatever cash you have so you can have a debt-free life.  That is Grandpa economics (from Jeff Brown of BawldGuyTalking).  What worked for Grandpa doesn’t work anymore.  Robert and Kim Kiyosaki talk about knowing the difference between good debt and bad debt.  Pay off your bad debt, grab as much good debt as you can.

If you can’t get a loan from the bank, you need to get creative.  Aunty is not in the creative stage of the game yet.  Instead, I am still like the turtle, plodding along, slow but steady.  There are many mentors out there that can teach the no money down, creative financing deals – and if you are more like the rabbit, that may be the path you might want to consider.  Just be sure to run the numbers, and have an exit strategy just in case.

Playing Craps the Smart Way

Posted on by
Reply

Uncle doesn’t gamble – which is good, because I love to.  When I go to Vegas, I don’t play the slot machines because it has an inflated reputation of paying out big time with the reality of a fast way to lose money.  It is hope without much odds, but it makes for a fun way to sit and have free drinks.

I like to play poker, especially when I get good hands.  Of course that is the only time I raise the bets and jubilantly call out “All in!”  If you are smart, you won’t call me…

The game I love is craps.  I don’t always play, but I do always watch.  It is not the roll of the dice that fascinates me (unless I am in active play and betting on my sixes and hard eights), but the behavior and methods of the players.

Good friend Chang is my craps mentor, but I still don’t play like him because he is quite aggressive.  He usually walks away with money, or loses his allowance for the night.  I play more chicken craps, and usually walk away with money, or lose just part of my allowance.  I think Chang and I play craps the smart way.

Each person develops their own method of playing craps.  You can see it on the same table, where the chips are stacked high and dense on one side, and sparse and few on the other.  Different strategies, different pockets, different levels of risk.

The hot tables are the most educational and fun.  The rolls are long, the excitement is high, the chips fall on the felt with accelerated vigor.  I’ll get my sixes and eights paid off and pull it from the table and sometimes take more risk with numbers outside of my comfort zone (with higher payoffs), or double up on some bets.  My rack (the chips in front of me) grows slowly because I always pull at first instead of letting the bets ride.  Chang will pull back or let it ride to his piles on the table, and sometimes pulls from his rack to open up a new combination if the roller is hot.  We both like to put in a few chips for the dealer bet (giving back seems to help us win).

Some people, especially the loud rollers, like to put whatever they get paid on back on the table.  It increases their potential win by the powers of 2, and it seems like all the planets are in alignment and the numbers go on and on – each roll increasing their chips on the table, every number raking in more chips.  When a number shows up that they do not have a bet on, they toss out their racked chips to play the rolled number for the future.  Many of these high rollers have nothing in front of them on their rack and thousands of dollars on the table, growing with each roll.  Then, number 7 shows up.

Number 7 (called craps) has the highest possible odds of turning up over any other number.  One of the guarantees on the craps table and life is that the number 7 will turn up.  The unknown is when.  If it shows up on the very first rolls (come out rolls), everyone wins if they are playing on the Pass Line.  If it shows up anytime after that, it is crap.  All the money on the table is wiped off the board and into the House’s hands.  The only ones still in the game are the ones with chips on their rack in front of them, or the ones that bet on the “no pass” positions.

There is no right or wrong way to play craps.  I think there is a smart and fools way to play.  I play chicken craps and don’t make as much as I might, but I don’t lose as much either.  Chang plays smart craps but sometimes I seem smarter than him when the rolls are unlucky.  The ones who play like roosters and act like they can’t lose are playing fools craps and will lose everything, big time, unless they know when to walk away, or pull some chips off the table.

Correlating craps behavior to real estate is comparing rent and hold real estate to flipping real estate, and, when the guaranteed number 7 (market downturn) shows up, the walk away results are dramatically different.

Rent and holders put the money on the table to purchase cash flowing properties from rental income.  The rental income goes onto the “rack”.  When there is enough accumulating on the rack, the money is put down on the table for another property.  This will increase the velocity of the rental income, and more rental income goes onto the rack.  It will then take less time to accumulate enough on the rack to purchase another place, which will again increase the velocity of the rental income.  If the real estate market tanks, the value of the properties decreases, but they are still generating income, every month, as long as they are rented.

The flippers put all or most of their money on the table and purchase a property.  If the price they pay is at a discount to fair market value, it can be sold to someone else for a profit.  The property is taken off the table, and their rack is flush with profit.  As often and as high as possible, another property is purchased, and sold for a profit.  This can go on for a long time – like a high roller with a long ride.  When the market drops or gets stale, the profit disappears and can even run negative.  Timing is critical for this strategy.  You can make a lot of money flipping properties, just be smart when the market turns.

Robert Kiyosaki’s real estate strategy is rent and hold.  He rarely flips.  It is a slower way to wealth and not as exciting as buy low and sell higher, but it is a strategy I like.  It matches my chicken crap strategy.  If you are a high roller, please be a smart high roller.

Disclaimer:  Gambling is not recommended by Aunty.  If you do gamble, only play with what you can afford to lose, i.e. your Starbucks allowance.

Investing in Hawaii

Posted on by
4

2013-05-04_14-55-39Hawaii is not the easiest place to invest, although there are ways to buy, rehab, and flip properties for a few thousand dollars profit.  With home prices in the half million and up range, there is little cash flow in buying and holding unless you are as smart and wise as Bill Harvey (now has a website! and will be able to meet him at almost any real estate meeting).  Maui has been hit pretty bad with foreclosures but I do not know the Maui market well enough to invest in it yet.  If you know of a great Maui realtor or of some great deal on oceanfront or close to oceanfront fishing grounds (for Uncle), let me know please!

One of the best ways to get your mindset into investing is to play the Cashflow Game by Rich Dad founder, Robert Kiyosaki.  There are several places around the islands that meet regularly.  This is a very nice group of people with the good intention of enhancing your investing education.  Go to RichDadHawaii.com for places and times.  They even sponsor Paniolo Exchanges once a month – a really neat way to trade something you have and don’t want or need for something someone else has that you want or need.  I’ve walked away with an awesome collection of “Blade” episodes in exchange for a handmade necklace art piece!

My Rich Dad coach (very expensive program ~$6,000!) gave me a good push into real estate investing.  One of the best pieces of advice he gave was to join a local real estate investing club.  What?! I said, Hawaii doesn’t have a club like that!  Well, my bad, after google searching I found one – Hawaii Real Estate Investors.  Annual dues are $120 and you get a nice embroidered polo shirt!  Meetings are held on the first Thursday of every month and is a great way to meet fellow investors and contacts.  Through this group I have met some fine people willing to share and teach me the ins and outs, the do’s and don’ts, and am seriously considering investing in Indianapolis (!)  My girlfriend Patricia calls it Indian-no-place – she didn’t much care for it in the 60’s, but I think part of the reason was because Patricia is a rebel and an artist, and Indian-no-place was no place for her.

Paul Xavier and co., the organizers of the Hawaii Real Estate Investors Club also run some free monthly meetings, check out the calendar at HiREI.org.  The first Thursday of every month are the standard Investor meetings ($15 fee charged at the door or free with $120 annual membership, $5 parking at JCCH), and throughout the month, you have the opportunity to learn from others as well as Paul or Randy.  The 2nd Tuesday of every month are free RX Inner Circle meeting, very informal, sit in chairs and ask questions.  The 3rd Tuesday is for the “Gold Inner Circle”, at $97/mo. you get a catered dinner and people who are actively investing share what they are doing.  I get shot down almost all the time about my investing in Vegas by Paul, but I can take it.  [Update:  Paul has now expanded his real estate buying tours to include Las Vegas!  Yeehaw and goodie!!  Check out HiREI.org for dates and details.]  It’s my strategy and it’s been good for us.  On the 3rd Wednesday of every month, HiWire – Hawaii Women Investors meet (see 4th paragraph below).

[Another financial/real estate group that meets regularly in Honolulu is the Wealth Clubs of America, Hawaii division that Gavin Tsuda and Michael Mazzella run.  Their meetings are held on the first Tuesday of every month.  Excellent presentations and great information, and food!  One of the regular exercises they have at each meeting is networking.  This is a great place to bring a stack of your business cards and make new potential business partners or solutions to your choices.]* no longer have meetings – will update if meetings begin happening again.

An awesome and controversal link to Hawaii real estate is OahuRe.com.  Every day I get listings and new updates on properties fitting my criteria.  Thanks to Bryn Kauffman for providing this terrific free service.  One day we will find the ideal property – large lot, lots of parking, beachfront, off shore winds, wood floors, big front lanai, etc. and we will probably see it first on this site since the access is as easy as ebay.

Although I have heard about them at the Hawaii Real Estate Investor Club meetings, I never attended the women’s meeting – HiWire (Hawaii Women Real Estate Investors) until just recently.  At the last meeting, Gail and Shelli shared their strategy of buying tax liens from Yuma County (used as an example).  The easy going style of the group meeting as well as valuable content is wonderful.  I look forward to attending more meetings and meet more women that are active investors.  We speak the same language, and we all put down the toilet seat.

In Hawaii, it always come down to who you know.  Sometimes that can be very frustrating, and other time it opens doors and opportunities galore.  Through a dear friend of mine who I call Wandaful, I met a investment minded local realtor, Kevin Kekona who is currently an agent with Prudential.  Young, energetic, smart.  I just know Kevin will be key to our finding our best Hawaii cash flowing deals.  I’ll see if he has a website and link to it.

Hawaii is home, and will always be home for us.  As a real estate investor, I am waiting but keeping my eyes and ears open for the occasional deals that are available.  One fact that makes me want to hold the majority of our real estate in Hawaii (eventually) is that we are very very limited in being able to expand.  Because we are an island state, the Pacific Ocean defines our borders.  Thus, there are only so many homes and buildings that can be built here.  Land is gold here.  And living here is paradise.

After meeting the fine group at Real Deals Hawaii, our strategy has changed.  We will use some of the cash we have available to buy into a joint venture, rehab, and sell for quick profit.  After we do a few of those deals, we will have enough to buy cash flowing property in Vegas, and yes, maybe even Indiana, and possibly even Hawaii if the deal makes sense.  That’s the plan for now and we’re sticking to it!  In fact, one of my favorite investment websites just had a blog about using both buy and flip and buy and hold strategies together to build wealth.  Jeffrey Brown of BawldGuyTalking.com said it very well in his post, “Investing in your future, on purpose, with a plan”.

Here’s a page on financing in Hawaii.  Hope it helps.  It is only what I have come across that works for us so far.  There is more available – I am learning as I go.

Rehabbing in Hawaii

Posted on by
Reply

One thing about Hawaii is we feel more secure in knowing someone who knows someone they used rather than just calling a company from the yellow pages.  It isn’t always true that the one with the biggest and best ad is the best company.  I rather use tried and true, and if we have had good results at a fair price from one person or company, we will use them again.  I also trust in the recommendations of friends who have had good experiences.

On this page, I will share some of those with you.  ** Update:  please see note at the end of this page regarding using recommendations based on people’s friends.

Lowe’s has 10% off coupons on RealtyTrac and you can also get them from the US Post Offices if you ask them for a change of address packet.  Good way to save money on your rehab or repair projects.  While you are there, stock up on incandescent light bulbs.

Craigslist.org is a great free website that can be used whether you are buying or selling just about anything.  I like to post free stuff – beats throwing things away when someone else can make use of it.  Good place to search for building materials.

Re-Use Hawaii is a non-profit recycling company that has stuff nobody else has.  Old stuff as well as newer stuff.  I am still looking for 5′ redwood fencing material, and if I keep checking often, I am sure they will have it.  They also accept donations of materials and even come pick up if it is a big load.  Hard to find and easy to miss.  Head makai (towards the ocean) from the old Comp USA.  It is Ewa of the UH Medical school.

My pal Wanda has the most beautiful master bath counter that I have ever seen.  It looks like a 4″ thick block of celadon clear jade with inclusions.  Drop dead gorgeous, no seam in sight or touch, a work of art.  On the pricey side, but worth every penny.  Nice young man who used to do marble/tile/stone work for homes in Beverly Hills – Jason Carroll.  Phone #(808) 478-8453, email HawaiiKaiCustomStone.yahoo.com.   He will be installing a slab and a half of a different kind of onyx in our bathroom – a mysterious looking jade-like stone with yummy splotches of burgundy and wine.  I just have to get down and dirty and redo the flooring, walls, and bring in a vintage looking console for the slab counter top.  It will be beautiful!  Maybe even more beautiful than Wanda’s!

Tile suppliers and showroom:  In my quest to have a 4″ hole cut in the middle of a piece of porcelain tile, I missed International Tile Inc. and I kind of got lost near the Nimitz area.  I headed back to town and saw a big sign “Pacific Stone Center, Inc.” 140 Puuhale Road (808) 847-3412 and buzzed in hoping that they could cut the hole.  Florence Fernandez helped me at the desk, and unfortunately they did not cut porcelain tiles.  However, on the wall were the most gorgeous natural stone samples – one had me drooling – some kind of Picasso marble or stone that looked like it had fossilized leaves in colors and layers of unreal beauty.  I rank this company A+ in customer service because of the way they treat anyone who walks in.  She did give me directions to International Tile on 2223A Hoonee Place.

International Tile Inc. moved from their former location years ago.  The president of the company, Richard Thompson took a look at the tile, said they could cut it, and I was so pleased that here is another company with excellent customer service and the willingness to help me with a small dinky little job.  When we re-do our bathroom, I will look to these guys first.  They are not as convenient as Home Depot or Lowes, but the level of expertise and workmanship, along with such excellent people in place deserve my future business.  They also have MUCH more choices to choose from.  Delightful dilemma.

Plumbers:

C&W Plumbing – good work, very reputable.  Clyde Watanabe is the man.  Shop is located in Kalihi, phone number is 842-0222.

Electricians:

Mike Wall of Haleiwa Electric, 226-7617.   Mike is usually busy because he is always in demand because he is a terrific electrician.  One of the most reliable and “correct” contractors out there.  He follows codes – they are there for your safety and important to pay attention to.  Such a hard worker, and reasonable prices for top quality work.

Cary of Power Wise Electric.  Good work, mostly for commercial jobs, also makes fantastic seasoned pork strips.  He is another busy electrician – most of the good ones always are.

Framing, carpentry:

Gary Iwane, 864-1911.  Gary was referred to us by Alvin Arasato, the best house painter around.  Gary does beautiful neat work and leaves the workplace clean and tidy.  This is a true craftsman at a fair price.  Almost makes me wish I had more things needing to be renovated.

House Painter:

Arasato & Sons.  737-2419. Alvin’s sons don’t work for him anymore, one is a world class boxer and the others have gone on to excellence in other fields.  If you want a cheap paint job, don’t call this company.  However, if you want the best for a reasonable price, Arasato & Sons will fit the bill.  The hardest and longest process of painting an old house is the preparation – extensive sanding, filling in, removing of old to prepare for primer and however many coats of paint necessary.  Use the best paint if you want the best results.  What I like most about Alvin is that he not only has a wonderful sense of color, he also appreciates and values good construction.  He has an eye for making everything look its best, i.e. trimming out doorways and details, giving suggestions on problem areas, figuring out how to get those old stuck cabinets to work better.  He is like an encyclopedia of good taste and high quality.  He also has great references for plumbers, woodworkers, etc. that will work with him on the job.  After Alvin is done, the house looks brand new and gorgeous.  [Aunty has heard that Alvin has retired from the business, boo hoo.]

Wood floor installation and refinishing:

Nishimura Floor Service 737-4721.  Peter will come to your place, look around, measure, and jot a number down on the back of his business card.  That’s the price he will do your job for, and he does it very well with employees that have been with him for years.  Beautiful quality work, your wood floors deserve him, and his price is so very reasonable!  Pricing that will fit on a business card.

Vinyl/alternative flooring:

Call Mike Tai See from Homeowners Design Center on Kohou Street in Kalihi.  Phone 847-0216 or email him at mikets@homeownersdesign.com.  He knows his flooring and if you tell him what you want, he helps narrow down your choices by looks, budget, and application.  We found the most wonderful vinyl sheet with great texture, warranty, and appearance at a reasonable price with installation.  If I had a company that sold things, I would definitely want Mike on my team.  He was even an AYSO bronze team soccer coach in Waipahu when his girls were younger – that shows real character in my soccer book.

Driveway contractor:

Darryl Imai 772-2769.  We had several estimates for a huge driveway.  Lots of problems with big big rocks that needed to be busted and removed, a slope down towards the house which could result in a river of water hitting the front door, and tree roots everywhere.  Darryl gave us the best price without hesitation or delay, and then began work coordinating dumpster, excavator rental, operator, concrete pour and finish.  We now have a beautiful smooth driveway with a gentle imperceptible rounding in the center that diverts the water flow away from the house and off to the side.  He and his crew sometimes have pau hana hour after the job each day, so just be sure to let him know if you don’t want them hanging around after hours having a few beers.  On the very last day we bought a catered menu feast from Gina’s BBQ, 2 cases of beer and some poke´as the local way to say mahalo for a job well done.  My reward was a hug and “Tanks Aunty!”  Almost makes me wish we had another driveway to pour – the end result is beautiful and perfect.

Grass supplier:

Quality Turfgrass in Waimanalo, phone 259-8191.  Don’t limit yourself to those trays of grass at Home Depot, Lowes, and the like.  When I want “fresh” healthy grass, I call Gumi  of Quality Turfgrass and ask them to bag up rolls of grass that can be cut into 2’x4′ sheets.  Not that much of a price difference from the trays, but you do save a little and tend to get more.  The quality is great, and a good excuse for a lovely drive into Waimanalo’s beautiful valley.  Prepare your ground with good dirt and sand, then lay the sheets down.  Keep dogs and people off until it takes, water at least twice/day for the first 2 weeks.  I also cut them (use those small branch trimmers) into plugs and plant them that way when I feel cheap, lol.

Tree Trimmer:

Tai 372-7660.  One day Uncle and I were feebly trying to cut a limb off of a mango tree up front.  It was taking a very long time partially with a dinky home electric chain saw, and then with a saw blade on a pole.  Along comes T in his truck and asks if we want him to cut the tree for us.  After a bit of macho maneuvering on Uncle’s part, a fair price was struck – well actually, T gave a very reasonable price and Uncle said “okay”.  Then T hops up on the tree and starts trimming from the bushy to the branches to close to the stump with his gas chain saw.  Very impressive.  The next day he returned to remove all the rubbish.  A man walking by with his 2 dogs commented about the bolohead tree and said he had the same thing done.  Uncle told him what a good price we had it done for – $250, and the dog walker said his tree was bigger and he got it done for $280.  “Samoan guy”, he says.  “Yup” says Uncle.  Turns out T had also cut the dog walker’s tree too!  Small world, small neighborhood.  If you need your tree trimmed/cut, call Tai.  He decided not to relocate to Reno and came by the other day to let us know that, as well as ask if we needed any stone wall built.  We didn’t, but we are glad he is back to cut trees again as needed.

Stone wall builder

Tai again.  372-7660.  We had a stacked rock back yard wall holding back 5′ of dirt height erode after a big rain and we were in a pickle because at least half of it was inaccessible due to the back neighbor’s home made shed.  Tai to the rescue, and in a few days, a new stone wall with new pipe posts was put up for a super reasonable price.  He also cut off a few huge limbs of the mango tree again.  Very happy.  Now Aunty has a new redwood fence that replaced the ugly weedy chain link fence on top of a brand new retaining stone wall!

General contractor:

If you have worked with a general contractor that you have had great results from, please leave a comment below.  Aunty usually works with sub-contractors, but it is good to know someone who does it all.

*if I don’t have the contact info or phone number, etc. for any of these contractors, write to me at Aunty@hawaii.rr.com and I’ll give you the info.  I am still in the process of checking with them if I can put their phone numbers on my website.

**Uncle and I are in the process of rehabbing a property here and have been very pleased with the great work of the people we have hired.  The transformation of the house has been wonderful and neighbors walking by love to comment and get tours of the inside.  The only glitch so far has been our gutters.  Rather than go with an established gutter company with a good reputation, we went with someone’s recommendation of a friend.

Lesson learned:  make sure the craftsman knows exactly what you want (i.e. cover up the ugly stuff and keep the integrity of the style) and be there at the beginning and at the end of the job for final approval.  Also, the recommendation that “my friend does gutters” is not good enough.  “This person did my house and it came out really really well” is a much better recommendation than friendship.  We will get this re-done, maybe not by the moonlighting gutter man since he was already paid (big mistake), but this eyesore will be taken care of one way or another, and we consider this the price of education.