The weather pendulum was swinging on the warm side again today, but the humidity level was so high, it felt far colder than it was, and wouldn’t you know, I had to be standing out in it for about a half hour this morning while visiting with a contractor outside a home. In spite of the wind being from the south, it was still cold and damp.
The first on my real estate list this morning, was to get all the numbers prepared and emailed out to the respective parties on a closing that’ll be coming up on Thursday afternoon. I was pretty certain I had everything they needed, but of course not an hour or so later, I got an email from the selling agent questioning an address that was placed on one of the not-so-vital documents, and since that agent was making a bigger than necessary deal about it, I contacted the attorney who prepared it and asked that it be changed. Since I know what’s done with that form, all I would’ve asked, is that a line be drawn thru it, and then place the correct address next to it. Talk about nit-pickers. Ugh.
Having some free time, I busied myself with paying the bills that’d already come in since I last sat down and paid them. There’s no question we’re feeling the effects of higher gas and electric prices, and what’s got me the most concerned, are those who’re on strict budgets, and especially our elderly. I heard our Social Security recipients are getting a 5+% increase in their monthly checks, but I don’t think that’s going to be enough to cover these across the board increases in goods and services. I won’t be a bit surprised if more people from here on out will be installing solar panels if they should have the reserves to pay for their purchase and installation. I do know many of the European countries are pushing more of their homeowners to get them installed, and especially now when Putin’s trying to put the squeeze on the EU by raising Russia’s natural gas prices. I just wish he would step down and go very far away because the Russian people deserve better than what they’re getting from him. Back when Winston Churchill was Prime Minister of Great Britain, he once said, “Russia is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.” Even today, how very true his words were.
The reason I’m posting the above photo, is because another one of my listings has recently gone under contract, and now focused on getting 683 – 16th St. SE here in Mason City sold more sooner than later. It’s priced at $98,500 but my seller recently told me to put it out there that he’s willing to consider all offers. The only reason I think it hasn’t yet sold, is because it’s in need of some fresh paint and decorating. Other than that, it’s ready to go for anyone looking for a three bedroom ranch in our popular southeast side of Mason City. Each time I’ve been there, I’ve marveled at the quality of construction, and especially its poured foundation which doesn’t have a crack in it. I thought for sure I’d have it sold to a buyer I’ve been working with, but unfortunately she fell in “like” with another home, and for sure don’t ask me why because I’m still scratching my head in dis-belief. Without a doubt, that home is one of the very few under $100K three bedrooms homes we have available in our market. Please put the word out because I know there’s gotta be a buyer who can look past those cosmetics.
Hopefully in about a month, I’ll be getting a very roomy one bedroom home listed which if it’s priced right, will sell quickly because it has features which one would normally never find in a one bedroom. The owner stopped by today to say she’s working on getting some things cleared out before placing it on the market. She has taken extremely good care of it over the years and it shows.
I’ll be getting several other under $100K homes listed these coming weeks, so hopefully my dwindling inventory will get replenished. There really hasn’t been much coming on the market since Christmas was over, and if it keeps up like this, we may be entering another level of shortages we haven’t seen in many decades. I’ve already been getting calls for rentals which are basically non-existent, and the only thing I can do, is give those callers another agency that works more with units for rent. Just this past year, I’ve had at least a half dozen calls from people asking if I would manage their rentals for them, and my answer is always, “No, I’m sorry we’re not taking on any more clients.” I don’t know what’s up with these out-of-town and out-of-State investors wanting to be absentee landlords because that’s when the real problems begin. About 12 years ago, I walked away from helping our office manage those 230+ rental units, and only because they were becoming all the more difficult to manage. At the time, I did offer to take over only the management of the West View Apartments here in Mason City, but the out-of-State owner had different ideas. I still wonder if he’s getting the bang for the buck he was expecting from the company he went with. I’d never ask because his foolish pride wouldn’t be telling me the truth.
I had to have some work done on my vehicle, and when the owner of the company called today to come pick it up, I took along a nice little package of black walnut divinity which was the last of it. Since he always does a good job for me, I thought he’d like it, and when I handed it to him while saying what it was, he immediately said how much he always liked it and how long it’s been since he’s had it. I don’t think there’s many folks who’d turn down divinity, but I’m sure they are those few. I’m glad I managed to get it out of my sight because I was eating far too much of it. You’re likely wondering what I did with those other four pounds of nuts I had left. Well, I placed them in vacuum-sealed bags and sent them to my freezer for future use. I only placed one cup per bag, just in case future recipes call for only one cup. I still can’t believe I managed to crack that many nuts in such a short period of time.
Tonight’s One-liner is: Too often the strong, silent man is silent only because he does not know what to say, and is reputed strong only because he has remained silent.
