I consider myself a middle/working class American. This week alone I have seen thousands of little imaginary dollars disappear from my savings. From my 401k, IRA SEP, and investments. Another week like this one and I just might have to readjust my planned retirement age. That being said it brings to mind two things I'd like to share with you.
- A PERSONAL STORY
When I was young my grandmother and papa kept me while my mom worked. In the little town we lived in everything closed down on Wednesday afternoons and my papa got off work and we went down to the A & P grocery store. I'd get a coke and pack of peanuts for the shopping trip. One particular visit we drove home a different route. I must have been 4 or 5, but I remember my papa pulling off the side of the road and getting me out of the car and standing me on the hood and telling me to "look". As far as I could see he owned that land. He said to me... when you grow up, invest in land they aren't making any more of it.
Now my papa died in 1979. My grandmother now lives in a nursing home and currently is in the hospital. I have no idea what my papa paid for that land. But in 1979 when my papa died it was worth about $400. per acre. When we sold it for my grandmother to have money to pay her medical and living expenses we got over $5000 an acre and well it was a lot of acres. She mainly spends the interest. My papa had lived by his own good advice and my grandmother is all the better cared for because of it.
- A CLIENT'S STORY
Once upon a time I had a client looking for acreage on Lake Sinclair, now this a rare. So I went to the record books and found several 4 to 6 acre tracts on the lake. I mailed letters (this was before Al Gore invented the Internet). One gentleman called and told me he really did need to sell his property. So I told him I'd do a CMA, got his phone number (Caller ID might have been invented, but I didn't have it yet). I went to look at his 6 acres with 280 feet on the beautiful shore of Lake Sinclair. I called him back and I told him at the time I thought we should list it for $279,000. and that I felt a realistic sales price would be some where around $250,000. He asked me to repeat myself. Then he asked his wife to pick up the phone and asked me to repeat myself again. Then he broke down in tears. He and his wife were both retired from Eastern Airlines and had lost their pension when Eastern folded. He told me he had paid only $11,000. for this land and that if I could get him a quarter of a million dollars for it, he just might not have to go back to work. He said I would be the "savior" of his retirement.
Well I did sell his land and he did get a little more than the quarter million I'd suggested it might sell for at the time. No I don't think I'm a savior, but I'm sure glad I helped this couple out instead of someone comming along and offering him $50,000. and him jumping on it without being informed.
My point here is that real estate, land, property is a safer, better investment than Wall Street. Buy land, they aren't making any more of it. Even in the housing "crunch" we are currently experiencing I dare say noone's house on Lake Sinclair would appraise today for less than it was purchased for even if it was purchased last year or the year before.
Invest in Lake Sinclair... a safe place to put your money.
As you can see it's a beautiful place to put your investment and you can have lots of fun while your investment grows.
NOBODY COVERS THE LAKE LIKE LANE!
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