Who Is The DIY Homeowner I have often wondered what the typical Do-It-Yourself homeowner is like. If it is you, what do you know how to do or expect from your self-directed efforts? What percentage of you know how to make nice fitting trim joints?? How many homeowners can’t afford to hire someone else to do a job and windup taking on the task themselves? I started life as a homeowner who had no experience as a contractor or as a fix-it-myself aficionado. But I was a […]

What’s An Ugly Wall? I bought a house with ugly walls. One bedroom has screws showing in the ceiling and drywall joint tape peeling off the walls. It has no drywall in the closet and studs showing. For the time being, it has been turned into the bird room where my wife keeps her 2 Conjures (Parrot-like birds). The house originally had the pathetic looking laundry room right next to the master bedroom. The texture finish on the walls was awful and the ceiling was just as […]

California Heyday During the late 80’s, I was involved in a couple of partnerships. They were set up to buy real estate properties in California during one of the boom times in that state. House prices were increasing at the rate of 2 to 5% per month in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas. It was a crazy time that seemed to go on forever. Great for selling but really difficult for those who wanted to buy. Especially when many people were losing their ability to […]

Inspiration Veterans Administration (VA) foreclosed homes were part of a world I knew nothing about. At least while living in the Phoenix, Arizona metro area in the early 70’s. We were living in an apartment, and were desperately trying to make ends meet. One day I answered an ad placed by a real estate broker who specialized in managing, repairing, and selling homes foreclosed on by the VA Real Estate Owned (REO) department. It was a fortuitous meeting since the economy was starting a slow downturn. Being […]