I have talked at length with the hard money lender. They are very interested in funding the deal at this point. I still need to give them an itemized cost scope of work. I’ll get them one when all my bids are in. I want a better idea myself.

I have now gotten 1 property under contract with the PM. The vacant rental was left in pretty good shape. Some minor damage, but considering 5 kids lived there, this is pretty good. The new PM will be cleaning it and getting it rent ready very soon. 75% 1 months rent for lease up and 10% Pm fee. A bit steep, but it will work for now. Denver PM fees average 10% btw.

I got word that the 2nd lender will be reviewing the file for our personal home within the next week. It seems they are moving quicker then normal. Not sure why. I am sure they will likely counter us, but we will play that card when we get to it.

For now, I will leave you with this quote “Success always comes when preparation meets opportunity” Henry Hartman

My current property will rent for $1000/mo. The mortgage will be $585. I’m looking at positive cash flow of $50-$100/mo. My combined cash flow will be around $400/mo. Those of you doing the math in your head will realize that I am currently break even. That is correct. I have learned a great deal over the last 18 months. I payed to much and my interest rate was to high on one property. Live and Learn.

I had a very busy day yesterday looking at two properties. Unfortunately the bank will not budge below 99k. I won’t budge above 89k. I can wait them out. The other property is off one of my probate letters. Its a 1929 brick bungalow. He wants 150-200 and has a few other offers. Depending on the repairs done to the property, ARV is 275-330k. Big range. This is in one of the top 10 desirable areas on Denver. Half of a new duplex down the street sold for 500k. This is one of the smaller houses in the area, but can be very good with some work. I’ll be talking to my coach tonight and hashing over some ideas.

I think I built a good relation with the seller and will hopefully help me out if I am close in price. The gentleman was very business savvy guy and had a ton of good things to talk about. I enjoyed my conversation with him. His concern is anyone scraping the house that has been in his family since 1958. I can understand that. I actually want to keep the structure intact. I love these old brick homes. I wouldn’t want to take something like that down. Hopefully this deal can work out for the both of us.

That’s all for now. I leave you with this quote, “Knowing is not enough; we must apply.
Willing is not enough; we must do” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Now that I’m recharged, its time to focus on what needs to happen going forward. Begin my mailer to vacant properties. I have a list of 23 vacant or rundown homes from my daily driving. The goal is 100 with a mailer going out near the end of each month until they tell me to stop or I buy the house. Next I will use the MLS to get my list of properties for each day. I will look at my criteria in my farm area each morning. I will look at some of those homes in the evenings. The goal is 5 bids per week. My Realtor has been great so far, but we need to work together to streamline the process. I’m not getting the bids out fast enough. I’ll continue talking to my coach regularly and keep the momentum up.

These last two weeks remind me why I pushing forward. I want to create my own destiny, not have it stymied by my current job.

Fear is a damned thing. I’m not afraid of phone calls, making offers, buying or selling houses. Its a fear of not knowing every bend in front of me. I am a very analytical person. I need to know all the facts. Try going to a museum with me, it takes me 2 hours to get out of the front lobby. Of all the facts out there, the one I should concentrate on is the fact that there is and will always be unknown elements. I simply need to push the ball down the hill. This is my self ass kicking to get it going. Keep moving forward! Mush!

Thats out of the way. I have gotten a bunch done. I viewed a few more MLS properties. Making an offer tomorrow on one tomorrow. 30k below list. We’ll see how they respond. The other property agent told me not to bother offering below 60k. 53k is as high as I’ll go, so I’ll wait them out. I have my vacant house letter and tracking sheet ready. My coach and I had a good call this week covering a variety of topics, I took care of an old tax issue (I hope, bloody IRS better not lose the paperwork for the 4th time), and I nearly completed my landscaping on my home. Pictures coming.

My big goal for the next week is to use those errant 15 minute blocks to my advantage. I will be in hurry up and wait mode all week as we do final wedding preps. The wedding preps take absolute priority, but there will be plenty of downtime I can get things done. I will have 25 letters prepped and ready for mail when I get back from the honeymoon. I do not want to get calls these next two weeks. That is the reason for the delay. I don’t want any distractions and my phone will be off. Nothing in real estate is that damn important.

I shall leave you with a quote that I have posted next to my computer.

“This is the beginning of a new day. I have been given this day to use as I will. I can waste it… or use it for good. But what I do today is important, because I am exchanging a day of my life for it! When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever, leaving in its place something I have traded for it. I want it to be a gain, and not a loss; good and not evil; success and not failure; in order that I shall not regret the price i have paid for it.” — Author unknown.

I have been doing my coaching items whenever I can fit them in. Life simply took hold and did not give me any free time what so ever.

With the help from my folks and brother-in-law I completely redid the landscaping on our yard. Its almost done. Bought 2 dozen plants and 3 tons of mulch. Added a new brick border wall up front, removed those three bushes, removed several trash cans of trash and rose bushes, had the front step mudjacked, added solar landscape lights, put in a 3×8 foot vegetable garden, built a temporary fence to keep the dog out, seeded and edged the lawn. Phew. To be honest though, I loved every bit of it. Still have a dozen plants to put into the ground, but its great.

My fiancés folks had their 50th wedding anniversary last weekend. That was very cool. Think about it. How many times in your life do you get to see a 50th anniversary. 3 maybe four times at most.

The next day I completed a bucket list item.

As far as real estate goes. I have dropped probate for now. I will be focusing on REO’s and abandoned houses. My goal is to make 5 offers per week.

My Realtor and I spend 6 hours one evening going over the MLS and offer contracts. I learned a ton of information. He’s a very good guy. He even asked if I want to be on his radio show. How cool is that. I have worked a deal with him to get a form of MLS access. All the same info on a time limited bases. Its a very good thing. Now I just need to squeeze out 5 minutes to make it happen.

Everything is starting to happen. I’m tired of sitting on the sidelines. Its time to take action. I love how busy I am at the moment. It means I’m living life to the fullest and not letting a moment slip by.

I am still waiting on the probate house. The owner is still hesitant of selling just yet. The wholesaler is confident that it will happen soon. He doesn’t know it, but I am in no hurry. I will keep working all my other deal paths in the mean time.

I looked at a house on Thursday. The owner is asking 120k now originally 150k. FMV is 120. Their agent is uninformed. I wouldn’t pay more then 50k for the home with the amount of work it needs, its location and a host of other factors. Even if they took that low, I would have to throw an asbestos contingency into the contract. They have some funky tile on the ceiling that I honestly don’t know about. The home is owned outright, so I may throw in an offer and see what happens. I wouldn’t want to do the work, but I can certainly wholesale it. I can also have a buddy at work check the asbestos content.

I want 200/leads per month. With probate costs per lead, that is somewhat cost restrictive atm. I am think of other options to add to that list. Driving for dollars, making low bids on reo’s, and possibly searching melissa data for homes without mortgages. I also like Nick’s subject2 course. I’m trying not to get distracted with 100 ideas, but the real idea is to buy and sell homes. Any one of those things are ways to find the homes, with little extra time and cash.

Some ideas, I’ll have to toy with. I’ve been time mapping my days to improve my efficiency. Mondays are pure work day, Tuesdays are errands and mastermind., etc etc. It has helped somewhat. I’ll have to stick with it. Weeks like this don’t help though. I’m not complaining mind you, but I get frustrated when I can’t get what I want done, because of outside influences. Small update, but thats it for now.

As I write these goals, I sit back and think about last week’s mastermind meeting. A simple question was proposed. Are you the employee or CEO of your life?

An employee completes tasks, a CEO works towards a vision of where he or she want to take their company. Employees see in the now, CEO’s handle the now with the future in mind. Employees get caught up in useless items that have no benefit to the company. CEOs always have the company in mind. How can I take this philosophy as I setup my future. Be the CEO of my life.

Nick Johnson over at Subject2.com touched on the subject with his posts on exceeding 500k per year. He focused only on items that would help him reach his goals. I need to do that this year. My priority in tasks will be to accomplish the items that work towards my goals, towards my vision. The others tasks need to be held under a microscope. Do they work towards my goal? If not, are they that important? If so why? If not, should it be abandoned? This should help my SOS (shiny object syndrome), my employee mindset. I will direct the rudder, not paddle the boat. I will focus more this year by becoming the CEO of my life.

21. How may I re-budget my time, and change my habits so I will be more efficient in the upcoming year?
I think the best thing I can do is start work immediately. I shouldn’t put something off till tomorrow that I should have done last week. When I get home from work I will start immediately on this 2nd job and work faithfully at it until my tasks are complete. Then I can kick back a bit. As a perk I notice my relaxation time is for more enjoyable when I don’t have tasks hanging over my head.\

22. Have I been guilty of and conduct that was not approved my conscience?
No, I haven’t done anything like that this year. I certainly would know because it would hang over my head for awhile.

23. In what way have I rendered more service and better service then I was paid?
I have many tasks at work that I complete at a competency level above mine. In that regards I have done more then I was paid, but my compensation is just at work for the time being. I have far to much time that hasn’t been used to the best of my employer. I feel I need to work harder for my company and allow now level to slack off. If I do, it will only transfer to my personal business. That would be a tragedy.

24. Have I been unfair to anyone, if so, in what way?
No. I try to treat everyone the way I feel I should be treated. You have to give respect before you can earn it.

25. If I would have been the purchaser of my own services this year, would I have satisfied with my services?
Yes and no. At work, yes. Even though I haven’t been up to my standards, I am usually better then the average worker. In the rentals, no. That’s part of the reason I fired myself. I wasn’t a very good property manager. I didn’t have the time to manage the properties to my liking. My current property manager fills the role very nicely.

26. Am I in the right vocation, and if not, why not?
At work, I am not. It doesn’t stimulate my brain the way I want. I do not feel the same level of accomplishment I do working for myself. In Real Estate, still no. My current level of real estate investing is not where I want to be. When I can pay cash for a building, fix it to how I like and rent it out, that will be where I want to be. I wish to improve neighborhoods in my own little way. I absolutely love taking eyesore homes and making them into gems. I can walk away from a project like that with my head held high.

27. Has the purchaser of my services been satisfied?
Yes, I think so. I have good reviews at work and my tenants seem pleased so far.

28. What is my present rating on the fundamental principles of success?
I would say I am in the very early stages of this mindset. I’m just learning how to walk. I am crawling now, but watch the places I can go when I learn to walk. It’s happening as we speak. My mindset has changed in the last few years and I have a much better understanding on success in life then I ever had. Now it’s just a matter of making it happen.

I have a newsflash for you, your absolutely wrong. How in the hell can you be expected to handle more money, and time when you can’t handle it now? Do you really think you can accomplish your goals when you don’t complete them now. Heck you probably don’t even have concise goals now.

“Ah, but if I were rich and wealthy I would have time to do what I want.”
“With more money, I would finally get caught up on my bills.”
Would you? I highly doubt it. Wanna know why?

You haven’t spent the energy to calibrate yourself now. Lets play some poker where money is involved. Lets say you tend to always fold to a bluff. At the $1/$2 table who cares. Pot sizes rarely exceed $50. You only lose a few bucks. You can always make more at your job. But you want to play with the big boys. You want to play at the $100/$200. That simple mistake you never corrected before can now cost you a $5000 pot. How bout them apples. Think that mistake is small now?

“No problem, I’ll just fix that mistake when I move up.”

Do you really want to think about such trivial things as balance and how to shift your motorcycle when your on the highway (or jumping cars for you extreme types). Hell no, you want that to all be natural, to almost be instinctual.

“What do I do then?”

Fix all the little things. Take a hard long look in the mirror. See all those item you need to fix. Be hard on yourself. Look for those things that need fixing. If you can’t manage money, then set your budget and stick to it. Start working down your debt. Make keeping a budget so natural it requires little thought or effort. Set exact goals and work everyday on completing them. Break the big goals in to little bit size goals and make it happen.

Budget your time. Learn to be more efficient with your tasks. For god sake turn off the latest idol, survivor, drudgereport, facebook, twitter, PS3, wii, fastlane forum (yes you read that right) timesink. Get your tasks done then reward yourself. Never ever put off anything till tomorrow. Make it a habit of finishing it now. Complete the task before it gets added to the bottom of that ever growing to do list. You will never get where you want by putting even the smallest thing off. Get it done. Look at all the successful folks out there. Don’t be the guy/gal that is working late because you had that 20 minute chat at the water cooler.

When money and life matter, make it count now. Fix yourself now, while the mistakes don’t cost you as much. That way when you move up in life, you don’t have to think about the trivial.

Look folks very few people learn to do this on their own. Some really good authors have put together some good material on this subject. If you need help, consult them. Napoleon Hill, Zig Zigler, Brian Tracy, Tony Robbins, etc etc etc. Now is the time to get yourself prepared. DO everything the right way now, when your put to the test later it will be much much easier to handle.

11. Has my relationship with my associates in work been pleasant or unpleasant?
I get along with nearly all my coworkers. The workers at my plant are a fairly tight nit group.

12. Have I dissipated any of my energy through lack of concentration of effort?
Yes, I am easily distracted. I have gone to starting my real estate work as soon as I get home rather then wind down and start. This has helped me stay focused to complete more tasks. Dessert after vegetables.

13. Have I been open-minded and tolerant in connection with all subjects?
This is one aspect I pride myself in. I may disagree with folks on many subjects, but I am always willing to listen to their side. (As long as they make rational arguments.)

14. In what way have I improved my ability to render service?
I had to think about this one, but I think focusing on my tasks with to do lists has helped tremendously this year. It has allowed me to be far more productive for others.

15. Have I been intemperate in any of my habits?
No, I take all things in moderation. I am well past those crazy Navy days.

16. Have I expressed, either openly or secretly, any form of egotism?
Yes, and I do so frequently. Not in the aspect that I feel I am better then anyone else, but I am confident I can do anything I want to. I don’t believe everyone can say that or have the self confidence to say that. If that is a fault, then I’ll gladly have it.

17. Has my conduct toward my associates been such that it has induced them to respect me?
I treat my fellow employees with respect and do my best to set the example with my work practices. I work hard to be dependable.

18. Have my opinions and decisions been based upon guesswork, or accuracy of analysis and thought?
I use my knowledge to rationally come to most conclusions. I am far from perfect in this manner and chide myself when I do jump to quick conclusions when unwarranted. This is certainly something I can work on. I am very opinionated and need to work harder to have more facts for those opinions.

19. Have I followed the habit of budgeting my time, expenses, and my income, and have I been conservative in these budgets?
I am very frugal person when it comes to budget, but far less frugal with my time. That is a real shame. Money can always be replaced, time cannot. I value my time, but need to work more efficiently in all endeavors to help me use that time wisely. I’m not saying I can be willy-nilly with my money, but my priority should be time.

In other news:
I sent off 14 more letters today. I greatly underestimated the time it would take to go through these probate files. I am through about 90 of the 146. 14 known addresses and 10 unknown. The unknowns will get a generic letter that I need to write. Less then 1/3 are property owners. That is somewhat disappointing, but I have to look at my area. Their are a large number of apartments and rental homes. I’m hoping Denver County and Jefferson county will have a bit better ratio. 23 of my leads I need to go through are Denver county.

I will be calling the neighbors house property tomorrow or Saturday to give them the information I promised to look up. I’m still waiting for more accurate comps from my Realtor on this property. I’ll call him tomorrow. Its unlike him to delay something like this, so I imagine he had a fairly busy week.

Got my car back today. They did a good job. My insurance relieved me of fault and will go after her insurance. Hopefully I get my $500 deductible back. My car looks funny now with one faded headlight and one new one. I think I;ll have the old one buffed and clear coated.

Thats it for now. Thanks again Scott for the shout out. www.strugglinginvestor.com