Ranch 70 Leaves the Building - SOLD
Another week, another house sale. Bringing these projects to conclusion with surgical precision isn't easy, and we've spent a lot of time getting a program done that is both efficient, and effective. Considering we nearly always go into so random piece of woods and build a home, the challenges are endless, variable, and unpredictable. The project in Olivebridge - that 9 home project 2.5 years in the making - has no cell service, and to get it, means traveling at least 5 miles. Now that some of the homes are connected to the street and the internet, we've been able to wi-fi call, but that's still a bit of a logistical juggle. But challenge that come, is only a barnstorming brainstorm idea away.
Ranch 70 is the right home for the right property. The Owners spent part of the build climbing Mount Everest or something similarly challenging, and then used the rest of their time to design and collaborate on a lot of good looking fun choices in the home, from appliances, to paints, to wall coverings kitchens and tile. Not to mention lighting and plumbing.
I'm more or less an expert with pairing the right homes with the right land at this point, and more than that, I'm skilled at making sure the house is put on the right spot on the land. Hard to fake. Get it wrong and you get stuck with a spec house till you lower the price far past the pain point of losing money. And losing money after spending a year on a project is enough of a spanking to keep you from trying again.
This home is on just under 5 acres, on Lot 9, of a 9 lot subdivision just down for Tetta General Store which was recently passed down from grandparents to Primo, the grandson, who did amazing things reinventing the general store into something modern and fun.
Doing one of my favorite things today and that's taking a new survey with some landmarks such as stone walls, large oaks, paths that the surveyor marks on the plans, daydreaming and strategizing about driveways, elevations, houses, neighbors, internet, and property lines.
Problem with small business, or any business, is it's always a rubiks cube of problems to solve, and issues to confront, and conversations to be had, and ... lessons to be learned. Has anyone learned more lessons than me on a daily basis for 25 years? Probably not. Lessons about what to pursue, and what to let be. Lessons about when to engage and when to retreat. Lessons about who to trust and who to verify. Lessons about how to lose gracefully and how to win and 'let them up easy', as A. Lincoln instructed his military staff when dealing with the rebels.
My dog Lulu would never forgive me if I did these woods explorations without her, so though she's unaware of the excitement in her near future, soon she will be rewarded for being such a good dog with an hour or two in the woods.
Farm 75 Leaves the Building - SOLD
Ranches have been all the rage, and many times when I go to build something different we get a client or two who pass because they 'love the Ranch'. But as a builder of a diverse portfolio, we like to keep it fresh. In the recent project in Olivebridge in Ulster County, we did 3 Barns, 2 Farmhouses and 4 Ranches. We sold the last Ranch today and the last Farmhouse last week. I have two homes left up there, and we are going to sell them as finished projects ready to move in.
The American Four Square is a very recognizable home to anyone who loves quintessential American architecture. You see them in a lot of small towns, you see them in the Sear's turn of the century catalogue, you see them in Leave it to Beaver, Its a Wonderful Life, and other shows where American values hold sway. Like a lot of our farmhouses, they benefit from a floor plan and construction efficiency because of the floor plans, where the 2nd floor takes advantage of the foundation the same way as the first floor. Meaning, many don't have the vaulted ceilings which require a foundation and a roof line but don't give you any more space. I'm not throwing shade at vaulted room - we build them all the time, but looked at through a sq ft of floor plan size, it's takes a bigger shell to achieve the same square footage when you play around with 2nd height open areas.
This home weighs in at around 3000 sq ft. Full bath in ground floor, and 2 on 2nd floor. We built this around the corner (figuratively not literally) maybe 8 years ago, and it was fun to reinvent it again with the new homeowners, who jumped on board pretty early - don't remember exactly when, and had a hand in the whole design scheme from tile to plumbing and lighting fixtures to paints, stains, counters and kitchens.
NY Philharmonic
Opening night at the NY Philharmonic at Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center- its 183rd year or something like that. Prime seats in a home crowd of philharmonic fanatics, few tourists to be found. I found it a little confusing when to clap or not but following the crowd was easy to do. Having never seen a professional orchestra for 2+ hours it was fascinating to watch the hard work of the 100+ member ensemble. Some were working hard the whole time - the small strings and the like, and others joined for just a note or so like the harp, gigantic drum, etc... Interestingly, the ability to see the musicians detracted from the music they were making and the eyes diluted the ears, so with eyes closed, the large nuanced sound of the band was intense. Forgot my cuff links and had to have a pair delivered to the hotel, which is of course old hat to much people but a new idea for us country bumpkins.
Sunk Cost (fallacy) and Steve Cohen
I work with a lot of money. Money comes in, money goes out. Upwards of $1.5m a month. It's a rapid fire cash flow environment, where solid and up-to-date book-keeping and payable processes guides the way. Gotta know where you stand at all times.
But even though I'm a personal financial literacy advocate, and fanatic, I still can step away from myself and watch the same emotional struggles about the best use of money, and none more dangerous than the Sunk Cost experience. Sunk costs are defined as money and time and energy expended on a project, initiative, idea or business - money you have in it. It can't be changed. You already spent it. Sunk Cost Fallacy revolves around the human brain reluctance to pivot away from an initiative that you have measurable time and money invested- chasing the dragon some more in hopes of recouping the loss, further aggravating the loss. Happens with stocks when they decline and you know you holding a loser - the disinclination to sell it is emotional, not mathematical. The hope is that some variable or factor will change that will allow you to recoup and perhaps even gain some ROI.
Problem is, many times you just don't know. Success or momentum could be just around the corner. Perseverance is the mantra of any endeavor, especially entrepreneurial, and I guess that's what separates the ultimate winners and losers in the game of business, especially small business where resources are always scarce - those that can clearly identify losing paths that being traveled, and pivot away, quickly, stemming the bleeding at the first opportunity, instead of chasing the loss.
One thing the pandemic did was allow many businesses to make tough financial decisions under the cover of the pandemic, without judgment, with the ability to blame someone/something other than themselves. Culling employees, shutting divisions, selling off poorly performing assets. I bought a $5m project for $200,000 that the owners had held for 15 years hoping something in their luck would change. I still credit the pandemic with two things - increased skill of leadership since it brought challenges never seen before that needed action now, and the ability of businesses to streamline their operations with no repercussions from stockholders or community. Tough decisions that wouldn't fly normally became commonplace, and businesses became more efficient, lean and strategic and most importantly, focused. The pandemic forced a focus for survival, and most benefited from the concentrated and concerted return/attention to the basics. The counterintuitive thing is the NYC money manager who took a $4m haircut when he sold me the project for $200k never looked back, strengthened his focus, and is stronger than ever. Chasing losers takes a lot of energy and resources.
I had to confront a personal (business) sunk cost situation recently, with a 6 figure partner to dance with. But in the end, I beat back the emotions, looked at as a math and business problem, and discarded the problem with a stroke of my pen.
Then pulled a hedge-fund guru Steve Cohen, where after he paid a few billion dollars to the US Gov't to settle his problems, just to flex, he went on a spending spree showing up in headlines of art auctions and then ultimately bought the Mets.
I'm doing a little of that, with the pursuit of a new 30 acre subdivision in Kerhonkson, a long vacation in Costa Rica, and the addition of a new multi-play room and new garage at my abode. The new play room sports a ping pong table, electronic dart board, and a killer home theater with a sound system that blows the doors off.
And some shelves to show off my 85 piece typewriter collection.
Got one closing done yesterday and another one set for Monday.
I wonder if any of these lines of homes will ever reach 100. Time is running out for this generation.