Greetings from the high desert...

Just revisiting this thread to make a few observations... first of all, that's a 2011 KLR 650 and it has about 25K miles on the odometer, plenty of life left for a bike like that, especially if the owner takes good care of it (which I do). I've been riding bikes and wrenching on bikes for decades, and I never pay anybody to do something I can do myself, 10-4? Enough said, so much for the KLR.

Some of my own family & friends questioned my move to the high desert & mountains, as I was a lifelong small craft sailor who loved the ocean, but truth be told, that's ALL I miss from living on the beach in Coronado, there was nothing else to keep me in that F/U state. And when I left, I bought a home with cash, something I had never done before. I wound up flipping two homes I bought in Arizona, making good money in the process, but I eventually found this bargain fixer home outside Alamo, and I've been very happy here since my arrival. I have tall mountains right nearby, while both mountains and high desert offer stellar offroading & dirt biking trails mere minutes from my door... so it's a trade-off where the ocean is concerned.

The only reason I'm sharing this info is to let drivers know what kind of home can be bought in the boondocks, and how LOW the price can be, even in this insane real estate market. Roughly one year ago, I bought this 3BR/2BA manufactured home ('78) on a treed 1/2 acre with 2 metal sheds on concrete slabs and a metal dual carport which matches the larger shed, all for $40K CASH. Not only that, the out-of-state seller (Kalifornia, go figure) who inherited the property just wanted to get rid of it, and the old septic system failed the New Mexico state-mandated inspection, so he had to pony up for a new septic system as well, all included in the cost. I threw in a couple of pics so you could see the new septic system, lol.

Now, the home itself was NOT in that bad shape, though it definitely needed some work. I pulled 3-4 months of nonstop home rehab work when I first arrived, then I kinda burned out on the home rehab effort, so I took a break, yeah? Winter rolled around and I took a longer break, lol... but now I'm on track to finish the home rehab this spring, doing most of the work myself as I always do, just to save money. Remember, I don't pay ANYBODY to do something I can do myself, UNLESS I decide to "farm out" work because I'm busy doing something else. Since my current home lies outside town limits, I'm on a community well and I pay county taxes on the property, meaning roughly $100 per year, lol. Town is 5 or 6 miles away, with everything I need in the way of resupply...

So, let's take a little whirlwind tour of this old truck driver's home, just to keep y'all motivated, you drivers who are still working on buying your first home. This will actually be the third home I've owned free & clear, though I never meant to flip homes when I moved to Show Low and Benson, Arizona, that just happened due to weird circumstances, including all the crazy political BS going on in recent years. Just know this: you can STILL find excellent properties for sale, totally worth the price, but ya gotta move fast when ya see one ya like, otherwise some investment group or other home buyer will beat ya to it every time. Check listings every morning and be prepared to jump on a property ya like, same way I jumped when I finally had a shot at THIS home. No regrets either...












Uh-oh, I'd better break these pics into multiple sets, I haven't even posted the septic tanks shots yet, lol... and much of the cr@p you see piled in the yard has already been tossed or burnt, aye? So it's cleaner now... but check out that practically new metal shed and matching dual carport, I'm thinking those two structures would probably cost ya at least $20K now, so I essentially picked up this 3BR/2BA home in decent shape for $20K, lol. This spring, I'll finish painting the kitchen, two bathrooms, and the exterior of my home, which will be white above the skirting, with forest green window trim, skirting, and step sides to the porch, which will also have forest green railings (once I straighten 'em out a bit, lol). The posts on the porch will be white, and the existing porch deck & steps will be covered with maple ply... I'll put urethane or polyurethane coating on the maple ply, then secure angled metal flashing around all the edges. Should look pretty trick once I'm done! The home's already worth 3 or 4 times what I paid for it, as you'll see in a moment.

 

Okay, let's see what we have here...












That front porch is roughly 8' x 26', and it reminds me of the stern gallery aboard an old sailing ship, lol... I'll throw some nautical decor out there once I've finished working on it and painting it. Those two metal sheds actually have smooth uncracked concrete slabs under 'em, really nice for shop buildings or bike storage. Luckily, I didn't have to pay a dime for that equipment to come install the new heavy-duty plastic septic tank, and I got to start my time here with a whole new system... the old concrete tank was beyond repair, it got smashed & buried by the backhoe, lol.

Not a bad deal though, aye? $40K CASH for EVERYTHING, all I had to do was throw down cash for home rehab materials, new carpet, etc. I'm not done yet, but I soon will be, barring routine maintenance... so you homeless drivers thinking about your own place, let this post or thread boost your morale... there are still nice places to be had, ya just gotta check listings every morning and jump on the one ya like before anybody else does, 10-4? Last pic shows the garden tub in my master bathroom, that thing is great for soaking in hot water with Epsom salts... I drink cold beer in that tub, lol.

 

Wait, see that 'wardrobe' or wooden box closet in the penultimate pic of the last set? That now holds all my cycle riding gear, lol... very convenient piece of furniture left by the former residents. I also "inherited" the hutch seen in one photo, and all of the matching furniture seen below: a tall chest or bureau, a mirrored headboard which fits my bed perfectly, and a smaller mirrored end table or whatever... there was some other furniture which I did NOT need or want, and that got hauled off for free by a local thrift shop, lol. No shortage of thrift shops in Alamo, and I firmly believe in recycling stuff or putting it back into circulation. Didn't have time to try and sell any of it, I was too busy pulling home rehab, lol...












Some of those shots are dated, they still show the funky old carpet and unpainted walls in certain rooms... once a friend & I yanked that old carpet, I painted ceilings & walls, rolled 2 coats of Kilz down on all the wooden floors to lock in stains and add protection, then paid a carpet crew to come in and take care of business. I always farm out carpet work, my knees can't take that abuse, lol... and I didn't have enough to put down new hardwood or laminate floors, so carpet had to do. I did buy the best pad available, and the second-plushest carpet, so it's plenty comfortable. I'll put some adhesive vinyl tiles down in the bathrooms once they're painted, and keep the flooring in the kitchen, it still has life left. Last 2 pics show my supervisors on the job, hard at work as usual...

 

Not quite done... this garden bench was the first thing I made here on the property, I found some piers kicking around and painted 'em green, then cut a 2" x 12" plank down to 6' length, painted it green and set it on top of the piers. Top two piers were inverted for purposes of style, lol. Anyway, I had a nice comfortable bench on which to sit and have a cold beer after a long day of home rehab... watching the sunset off to the west. I have a brand-new Pawleys Island Hammock I haven't even strung up yet, I need to place the tie-on slings so I can just haul the hammock out when I wanna use it... you never leave a hammock out 24/7, the sun and wind will destroy it, 10-4? I sold my last Pawleys Island Hammock with my home in Benson, AZ... figured the younger hand who had to pony up an extra $10K to top another offer could use it, lol. Same way I left my BBQ which was still perfectly serviceable... I'm that kinda guy, I'll leave that stuff in place so the next guy is ready right off the bat, and I just buy new stuff once I relocate. My good furniture goes with me, of course, and the 65" curved screen and home theater setup... can't be without those, lol.












Well, I reckon I'd better go water the fruit trees, those are the younger trees seen in earlier photo sets... no need to cover 'em tonight, it won't quite be freezing. I'm taking good care of those fruit trees, and this spring I'm gonna plant pecan & pistachio nut trees, as those do really well in this climate. All part of the big push to become more self-sufficient, don'tcha know? And the way things are going, I might need that extra food, lol. Anyway, I just wanted you hard-working hands to know that you can still find a decent home at a fair price, ya just gotta check your listings and move fast when the time comes, or someone else will beat ya to it, 10-4? BTW, I bought another big bottle of Jose Cuervo Especial Blue Agave Juice today, cost me around $30 but I like a few shots now and then, even though I'm basically a beer man. I do my tequila shots with lime & salt too... when I really wanna get a good buzz going, I drink straight from the bottle instead of using a shot glass, lol.

Y'ALL HANG LOOSE... I'M OFF TO TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS. MANANA, I'LL POST SOME MORE TRUCKING PICS IN THE OTHER THREAD... CHEERS!!!

 

Yeah, I hear ya... that's why some areas are better to live in than others, 10-4? And the NM state inspector passed the new system (after failing the old one), so I'm good. I'll tell ya, when I heard the cost was all on the seller, I was happy as a ####### on Father's Day, lol...

There's a lot of freedom to be found in the boondocks, which is another reason why I'm posting pics like these... I think a lot of truck drivers yearn for that freedom, otherwise they wouldn't be doing what they're doing. Posts like mine are just to let 'em know they can still achieve 'The American Dream'---it may not have a white picket fence, but who cares? Acreage is your best neighbor! I'm only on a lousy half-acre, but homes in this rural subdivision are spread out enough to offer privacy, and that's always a good thing. Gotta run and take care of a task before it gets dark... HASTA LUEGO!!!