From my last journal, Take 6:
I was trying to spend the time until I get vaccinated for Covid focusing on 1, 3, and 6, but for a variety of reasons, more or less rational, I felt compelled to move on 4. Thus, the purchase of The Money Dimple. The renovation of this property- tiny house. garage, shed and large garden- is going to be a huge generalist project, so the sub-path 3 and 6 projects I have already started (my novel, copyright mining business, garden-robot build) will have to be back-seated for a while. Hopefully, I will still be able to make some progress on the (1) health/fitness front. Unfortunately, I know from previous experience that renovation/construction type activities tend to put me in a sort of oblivious stevedore mode where I semi-consciously behave as though I deserve to eat giant plates of food after hauling heavy stuff around in the snow all day or endlessly scraping paint in 90 degree weather. Maybe I'll attempt intermittent fasting to curtail this likelihood.So, first order of business hiking forward again (on path towards my ideal lifestyle) from prior to ERE junction would be getting back in better physical shape, second order of business will likely be getting well laid again, third order of business might be starting something like a new business/finishing my novel/similar, fourth order of business will be rebooting a permaculture “cottage” project in alignment with further reducing spending/burning to 1 Jacob, fifth order of business will be integration of my extended family with other projects, sixth order of business would be adding more fun tinkering/invention and zany arts and crafts into the mix. THEREFORE, straightforward effort to increase size of my nest egg would only be 7th order of business at best. Actually, simply learning more about finance and the markets would likely trump this too, and highly likely other stuff will come up, so probably 10th order concern is more like it.
On other thread, Alphaville suggested that I might want to follow the strategy followed by a near bankrupt Brazilian railroad(ALL) as described by the Heath brothers in "Switch" for renovation of this property. I found the rules related to this strategy in this article:
https://www.strategy-business.com/artic ... ?gko=decabRule 1: Money would be invested only in projects that would allow ALL to earn more revenue in the short term.
Rule 2: The best solution to any problem was the one that would cost the least money up front — even if it ended up costing more in the long term, and even if it was a lower-quality solution.
Rule 3: Options that would fix a problem quickly were preferred to slower options that would provide superior long-term fixes.
Rule 4: Reusing or recycling existing materials was better than acquiring new materials.
Obviously, renovating a property in which I hope to live myself is not exactly like revitalizing a bankrupt railroad, but it is a good model in the sense that I absolutely do not want my cash flow into this project to exceed the level of Dimple towards the level of Pit.
Some thoughts:
Rule 1: I did choose to purchase city rather than rural property in order to increase my semi-ERE employment opportunities. For instance, once I am vaccinated, I will easily be able to substitute teach 3 days in order to pay an electrician/carpenter/plumber for 1/2 day of work if/when needful due to fail of my DIY skill set and/or local code issues.
Rule 2 and Rule 3: The first big problem is Achieve Ability to Live in Decrepit Tiny House Legally and/or Absent Huge Hassle. I would like to solve this problem as cheaply and quickly as possible before upgrading to Superior Quality solution(s.) I am willing/able to continue to mooch bed space and shower access off of The Cowboy and/or family members, but they will be at pretty long commute distance. I am also willing/able to rent motel room or other temporary accommodations closer to the project or even purchase a camper to park on the property if the city code will allow with intention to re-sell. Obviously, camping out in the decrepit house as I fix it up would be cheapest/fastest fix, but might not be "legal" and would definitely require purchase of indoor safe propane heater at this time of year. I can't get any of the utilities (water, electric, natural gas) turned back on again without city inspection of relevant equipment, and I STRONGLY believe that it would be in my best interest to fix major carpentry issues such as missing window sashes and gaping holes in siding prior to having equipment inspections. Theoretically, carpentry repairs, as opposed to renovations, should not require me to pull a permit first. Highly likely that this is going to have to be an iterative process. It has not been my experience that inspectors are of the type likely to be easily charmed towards expense reduction.
Rule 4: Very much in alignment with permaculture principles. I always try to do this.
Anyways, the other thought I had based on conversation on other thread combined with my recent reading of Retrosuburbia is that maybe I will divide my tiny property into quadrants loosely based on different future scenarios. For instance, the tiny house could be Intelligent Green Tech Electric renovation, the tiny two room Shed and Garden zone could be Low Tech Sufficient, and the tiny Garage/Barn could be Scavenger Society zone. Beyond the point of achieving ability to live on the property (not have to pay/mooch shelter elsewhere), I am not very concerned with such options as "resale value" or "rendering legal for rental."