As I mentioned before, my family is in construction and that industry is being slapped around by the current banking problems. Much to my dismay, the problem is across the country. I haven’t been able to find a single locality that isn’t being hit by these economic downturns.

I was doing some online research on homes in different areas of the country and can’t believe how prices have fallen. Unfortunately, even the low prices aren’t helping since banks are not lending.

When the economy began to stall, people were adding on a room or two rather than building new houses. They were looking into carports instead of full garages. Now the only things people are interested in building are chimneys. They’re looking to burn wood to heat their homes because the rising price of oil, gas and propane.

I guess there are positives to living in the north, huh?

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We all know the real estate market is in turmoil right now. It’s definitely a buyer’s market. With my husband and son returning from Hawaii soon, I’ve been checking out various markets just in case work is still scarce here at home.

One thing I noticed is that people who can’t sell their homes are beginning to offer their homes for rent now. I’ve looked into mostly areas south of here, checking out Nashville, Atlanta and Hilton Head rental units and homes. Looks like things are the same throughout the region.

I don’t know why my husband keeps talking about Tennessee as a place to find construction work. Maybe someone has told him something I don’t know. I’ve never been to Tennessee so that might be an interesting option. Since traveling is one of my passions, this could be a good thing.

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We took a drive last week and I caught myself pointing out to the kids all the houses that their dad built. My husband bricked quite a few very nice homes in this valley over the past few decades, many that the younger kids had never seen.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that one house, a stately white brick, now had black vinyl shutters instead of the previous kelly green ones. I never did understand how anyone could choose that shade of green to put on such a beautiful home.

If I take Maggie and her friend to the mall this weekend, I think we may take a detour to see some of the homes that Brian did in Ohio in the early 90s. I know Maggie never saw them and I’d love to take a look again. It’s been a very long time.

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My husband is a brick layer and master stone mason, as is one of my sons. Two of my other sons have been laboring for my husband since before they were old enough. You would think that every one of my kids would expect to someday live in a brick or stone house.

So who brought the latest issue of Log Home Magazine into the house? And perhaps more important, why? I’m pretty sure Boomer, Maggie and Levi did not buy the magazine. That would leave me (I didn’t buy it), Brian (not likely) or Nick. Nick? Is he really thinking of building a log home?

Naturally, being so fascinated by building and architecture, I flipped through the book to check out the floor plans and furnishing. A few things caught my eye like a pretty plasma tv lift in a master bedroom and these great floor to ceiling windows at the front of one of the houses. I even found a floor plan that would be perfect for our family. Of course, we’d have to brick the house if we used those plans, and we aren’t in the market for a new house anyway, but still. I could definitely live in a house like that.

I really need to ask Nick why he’s looking at log homes. You think he’s planning to move away? Nah.

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Most of you already know that my husband is in the construction industry. He’s a brick mason by trade but has worked on every single aspect of home construction. I’ve always loved real estate and architecture so my husband’s work has caught my interest. I’ve often thought how great it would be if I had the education to sell the homes that he builds.

Last year I found out that my cousin, Mark, had gotten his real estate license. I was jealous so I’ve looked around for a program suited to my needs. PEI University looks like the perfect match for me. With over 3 million students enrolled in PEI’s real estate investor class, I know the curriculum is solid. And the best part? It’s completely free! That’s right, PEI is offering their real estate investment course at no cost.

Okay, I’ll confess that my goal is not simply to stick around here, investing in real estate. I have my sights on something a little bigger. After I’ve studied the PEI course and mastered the technique of investing in real estate, I want to take a stab at investing in property in Hawaii. Specifically, I plan to shop around on Kauai. That’s been my dream for over 7 years and now, with what I learn from the free Real Estate Investment course at PEI University, I just may be able to achieve my dream.

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If you’re under the impression that buying or building a brand new house means that life will be easy from here on out, think again. With a house, it’s always something. Whether you’re redecorating or updating or doing a major remodel to accommodate your family’s changing needs, rest assured that there will be more projects to come. There always are.

As some of you may remember, we just finished putting concrete sidewalks around my house. Finally. In doing so, my husband had to remove my side porch/deck. Our plan is to rebuild it but close it in. So today I was looking around online trying to get some ideas. I think I like what I saw.

First, what I was looking for was a closed in or glassed in porch or patio Apparently, in England thiese are called Conservatories. Regardless of what you call them, they are beautiful and I want one. Specifically, I want the Elizabethan style. Just look at that roof!

I actually got quite a few ideas for our future Home improvements projects from this site. My husband does all our own work, since he is in construction, so I’m urging my UK readers to check out this site. Right now, they’re offering an £800 off internet special promotion. There’s something very appealing about hiring someone to just come in and do the job, rather than waiting for your husband to work on the project on the weekends. I wish I could call Angian Home Improvements now. I miss my side porch conservatory!

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I love when Jesse calls me from Hawaii to tell me how things are going there. When he called yesterday, he seemed content to remain there for the time being. There’s plenty of work and the money is excellent.

Of course, he misses his family and friends here, too. While he keeps an eye open for available property there, he also has me checking here at home as well as the Phoenix area and the beaufort nc real estate market. I think he mentioned something about Tennessee as well. Apparently, he’s getting advice from other builders and is really wanting to go where he can find the most potential for new construction.

I miss my boy but I sure am proud of him.

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Sometimes you happen upon an idea that makes perfect sense on so many levels that you wonder why more people haven’t thought of it. College Pro, specializing in house painting, is a company that has combined the needs of homeowners and college students to create a win-win relationship.

I’ve got some experience with college students. My son and two nephews have done the starving student routine, trying to keep up with school work and work enough to earn extra spending money. Most jobs available to the boys have been in fast food places or grocery stores. Of course, there’s always something to learn in any job, but it sure would have been nice if the jobs the boys had in the summer had more to do with their future careers. It would be great if they could actually get some real world business experience.

Likewise, I’ve been a homeowner for a couple decades. Granted, my husband is in construction. Nevertheless, he works at building all day so he isn’t terribly interested in doing more work when he finally gets home. I’ve had to hire various workers to repair toilets, paint walls, and even hang a new door. The biggest problem is finding someone who does quality work at a reasonable cost. (I’m still reeling from the furnace incident of 2004.)

So, like I said, College Pro saw two needs – that of college students needing summer time work and homeowners needing their homes painted – and devised a business plan to help both groups. Every CollegePro franchise is managed by a college student, the work is done by college students. CollegePro trains these students and assists them in running their franchise. Oh, and the really great thing about CollegePro, if you’re a student, is that you don’t have to “buy” the franchise as you would with McDonald’s or Subway. College students need no money up front. Instead, CollegePro receives a royalty or percentage of your summer profits.

Because CollegePro managers and workers receive top-notch training, the quality of work is superb. Coupled with their very affordable prices and the fact that this is an established business, operating since 1971, there’s no reason to look any further for a house painting company. Operating in 29 US states 7 Canadian provinces, there’s likely a franchise near you.

Over the years, some of the best workers my husband has had on the job have been the college guys who were trying to work their way through college. It was always bittersweet to see them go. On the one hand we were happy to see these guys achieving their college goals and moving on with their careers. On the other hand, we knew we were losing some really good workers. I’d never hesitate to hire a college kid working his or her way through school. It takes determination and dedication to complete a higher education and those qualities show in their summer work, too.

I’m going to talking to my nephew about CollegePro when I see him next week. The more I read about it, the more impressed I am. It would be great if there were a franchise around here. I’d encourage college students to check into this as well. And if you’re a homeowner looking for quality house painting, do consider a CollegePro franchise. It’s more than an investment in your home; it’s an investment in the future.

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We should be pouring concrete this coming week or next week. At least I hope so. It’s going to be so nice to have sidewalks around the house after 15 years of gravel.

We’re also trying to plan our landscaping. Once we get all the shrubbery in, it’ll look so much softer. I love masonry but it has a hard feel to it. My house needs the softness of shrubs and flowers.

My main concern right now is whether we’ll be able to get anything planted in time for the current summer season. It could be too late by the time we get the concrete in. I saw some very pretty silk trees the other day while I was out shopping. I wonder if I ought to buy a couple of them to pretty up the back until next year.

I wonder if Brian will think I’m crazy when I bring them home.

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Nick and Brit aren’t even in their apartment out back and already they’re looking at property to buy and blueprints of homes. It’s nice to dream like that but they really need to scale down from the 3500 sq.ft. luxury home blueprints to the more modest 2000 sq.ft. ones.

Okay, I know that Brian and Nick can build a larger home for a huge savings from what a contractor would charge. But they really don’t need anything quite so grand. Besides, don’t they know that I’m pretty good at designing houses? Maybe I’ll whip something up and show it to them.

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