My part of the zoning hearings on the 22nd started later than usual because I had a conflict with an early case. I arrived at City Hall a bit later than normal, giving me some time to observe the hearing process as another citizen in the crowd. It only took a minute to identify the […]
Archive for the ‘real estate’ Category
Do teachers really teach you what you need to know?
Many years ago I read a science fiction story about a boy who was a prodigy on the piano. In this futuristic society, he was forbidden from listening to any of the old masters, like Bach or Mozart or Brahms or anyone else. Why? Because his teachers wanted his gift to be pure; they didn’t […]
Why I love Java (NOT!)
In about 2006, I installed some cameras at our place at the lake. These are Trendnet IP cameras, and they are a little wireless internet server with a CMOS camera sensor in them, and they take a snapshot every 5 minutes or so, and upload the image to a server so we can see a […]
Arizona’s HOA Rules Just Got Improved!
Great news for AZ landlords! The legislature passed a bill that cracks down on HOAs (HomeOwner Associations): HOAs; Rental Property • Asserts that a unit or property owner may use their unit or property as a rental property in accordance with the declaration’s rental time period restrictions, unless it is prohibited in the declaration. • […]
The Tatshenshini
A long time ago, before I was involved in real estate, I took some time off working in technology to go on a 4 day river trip in the Grand Canyon. I was hooked… I arranged to leave my job with GTE at the time, and signed on to be a boatman, rowing for Colorado […]
A lengthy post about terrorism
Do you ask yourself sometimes, “What could they have been thinking?” Sometimes this happens when the other person is just in a different place. I recall a conversation I had with a friend who was a businessman, and another who was a whitewater river guide / college student. We were talking about how deforestation in […]
To Rent or to Buy? A Historical Perspective.
I am a member of a Facebook group of real estate agents. We talk about all sorts of stuff, and lately, there has been lots of talk about how most Millenials are renters rather than buyers. There are many reasons for this, but a big one is that they grew up during the housing crash […]
Landscape Lighting
There are a few inexpensive things that we can do to make our homes look nice. Recently, I bought a set of landscape lights from Amazon. I got the cheaper ones. They are nice, they have four bulbs, and they use regular old incandescent lamps. The lamps look like this: These are bright, and they […]
The Dodd Frank Act – or the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act – Questions
Now that more of the rules of this Act have taken effect (January 10th, 2014 was the magic day), we all have questions about seller financing. Aside from the draconian rules implemented to damage the weak housing market further (see previous post) , some rules went into effect regarding seller financing of residential properties. I […]
Drones in the Hive
I’ve been thinking a bit about all the ramifications of the recent revelations that Amazon and UPS are talking about “smart” drone package delivery to a consumer’s doorstep. Presumably, autonomous unmanned aircraft are not far behind. I love technology. Still, in thinking about these aircraft in densely urbanized locations, my head starts to spin. UAVs […]