Real Estate Issues

I will begin with how I became interested in Real Estate Issues and then how it had become such an important part of how I made a living.  At this point in time, I am like a Senior in high school in that I have waited a long time for graduation and can hardly get through the final days until freedom.  Only until one looks back after reaching their goal can they really appreciate all the work that got them there.  In less than two years I will be retired from a career in real estate that actually began in 1981.

I believe I first developed an appreciation for real estate as young as three years of age when I remember going with my father on his Saturday work deliveries.  He sold Fuller Brushes door-to-door and his territory was Old Downtown Alexandria and Mount Vernon in Virginia.  I didn't go as often as my older brothers but the times I did go were very special and I will always remember.  The houses in this area were very impressive and I was more interested in the buildings than the people in them.  Same with the historic buildings in Washington D.C. where my father took me many Sunday afternoons.  In my neighborhood, most families fit into one of three categories - military families that stayed 2-4 years, government families that couldn't talk about what they did since they worked at the Pentagon or FBI or CIA, and then the families like us who serviced the area.  Many of these families moved a lot so I knew the houses better than the people in them.  The area grew so fast that school districts changed and classes became very large.  Property values increased rapidly especially after the Beltway was built around Washington D.C. and we were on the inside with more construction and population closing in.  The building growth was exciting and I loved seeing all the construction and activity.  The increase in population...not so much.  I had an opportunity to finish high school in Iowa; so I did.

The first real estate I owned with my husband was a little one bedroom house in Onawa.  The payment was less than the rent and the landlord/seller, Bud York, lived a few doors down.  He had several similar houses on our street that he bought up after WWII.  He was very generous and we were very prompt with our payment in person each month.  After about 6 months of rent, he allowed us to put that rent towards purchase and didn't ask for any down payment. We paid ahead and avoided any interest.  I'm not sure Bud meant for that to happen but we were deeded the property in just 4 years.  We fixed it up a little and rented it out when we moved to Missouri in 1978.  We sold it and then it burned down and the new owner rebuilt.  I believe we doubled our money when we sold and had the rent money on top of than for a couple years.  It was a $10,000 house when we sold it.

The next real estate we bought was 50 acres of land near Elkton with a no value log cabin, large barn and an 8'x40' trailer on it with a pond but no well or lagoon.  It was $20,000.  We bought it from the Walkers with $5,000 down and $200/month.  We torn down the log cabin, built a 24'x24' building attached to the trailer, 400' well and a lagoon.  We fenced the perimeter.  Before we sold it, we removed the trailer and converted the attached room into a garage.  We sold it in 1986 for $30,000 with at least 10 years of interest before payoff.  The Ferris' bought it and put a new double wide mobile home on it and dozed much of the beautiful trees for open pasture which was a mistake because it was in trees because it was rocky ground and couldn't grow good grass.  The profit went toward our new home.

It was during this time that I was given a lot in West Palm Beach, Florida from my grandmother.  The intent was for each of her grandchildren and my father to build and enjoy the warm weather near where she lived.  We all keep the lots until shortly after her death in 1986.  My lot sold for $15,000 after keeping it for about 10 years.  It was a $5,000 lot to begin.  The profit went into bonds for my children's higher education.

In 1986, Keith and I bought our current house in Missouri.  We paid $50,000 with no down payment using Veteran's Benefit for a first time home buyer.  The loan started out as 15-year but we refinanced a few years later and extended it to 20 years for a lower monthly payment and interest rate.  The last payment was made in 2006.  There are no plans to purchase anymore real estate.

My career in real estate began while we we living on the 50 acres.  I applied for a temporary job as a Data Collector for Hickory County during the Reassessment that began in 1981.  That job gave me enough experience to apply for a state position in 1984.  The state position was with the Ratio Study which monitored the Assessor's Offices.  It was the increase in my salary from this state job that enabled us to purchase a house.  It was a beautiful house to become a Home Office and raise a family.  Keith's workplace and the children's school were only a mile away.  It was an ideal situation where we grew and prospered until changes began in the summer of 2001.

Because of these changes, I realized I must secure my position in real estate outside of the State Tax Commission.  I hired a lawyer and became my own Limited Liability Company in January 2003.  I worked very hard attending all the required classes and documenting all the required appraisal work to became a General Certified Appraiser by August 2005.  I attend the required 28 hours biannually of Continuing Education to maintain my license.  The real estate world has changed greatly since I began in 1981 and I have changed with it.  I do not like the direction it is going and am looking forward to moving on to other interests. Of course, I cannot discuss anything related to my work directly while I'm still employed by the State Tax Commission of Missouri. I can make sources available to help others find answers to their real estate questions and also show the path to certification. I will try to collect my thoughts on the Real Estate Issues I am involved in and have an opinion about and keep reporting in this Intuitive Value blog even in my retirement.  I hope it will be therapeutic.