Definitely, definitively, and darned right, the highlight of yesterday was finding out what the multiple offers on Russet Valley were, and deciding which one to accept. Ah, that’s a nice position to be in!
So, after the 4 pm deadline for offers passed, Carol analyzed them and sent them to me and Lee to review (it’s our personal house, remember). She also calculated our profit (potential) and other useful real estate agent stuff, so we could make an informed decision. In the end, we accepted one of the offers, and are very happy for the new owners, who said really nice things about the renovation job.
Why We Are Happy
While making a little money will make us happy, the fact that this whole process fit in with our goal of making a better life for everybody makes us even happier. On our blog for potential sellers, I wrote up the story of this house, which you might enjoy reading. From an investor standpoint, though, there was a lot to make us feel good:
First, we bought the house to help out someone who needed to move away fast and had no time to clean up a house that was in rough shape and full of fleas. We bought it at a reasonable price that enabled the owner to start a new lift, and we made the house livable. That provided income for our painters and other contract workers.

We’re under contract, but still in the option period. It will be ten days until the contract is finalized. Closing is scheduled for the end of the month.
Then, we rented the house out to some friends of ours who were having trouble getting a conventional lease because their work was contract most of the time (it’s hard to rent when your job isn’t “stable” in the minds of the landlords). We enjoyed five years of regular income from the house, and they got to move out of a tiny apartment to a place where they could garden and have space. That made a better life for all of us!
When our friends decided to move to one of our Cameron rental properties, we embarked on a complete renovation. We brought on Carol as our project manager, and she brought on Oscar’s team to do the work. This provided income for the contractors, making their lives better, for sure. Plus, we will use them again in the future.
Assuming all goes well and the house is sold, Carol will get her management commission and her real estate agent commission. The best part, though, is that yet another family will get to enjoy the house and the neighborhood. I envy them getting to sit on that patio in the good weather and in front of that beautiful fireplace when it’s cold.