Greetings One and All

[MamaLiberty]

I'll try to round up the folks that live near here. We've quite a settlement in Sundance and Gillette, all close enough. Some of them may want to have you stop by their places instead of coming here, and that's fine. Those who would rather do that need to PM Fred so they can make their plans.

If you happen to land here right on the 16th, I'll be in Sundance myself at the handgun class. Maybe we can get together there if that happens. We had planned a little get together then anyway, so it would be too cool if you were there. PM for details.  But whatever happens that fits your schedule, of course.

Just let me know what day you will be here. And welcome again! 
MamaLiberty

[Fred Rogers]

I hope we don't miss you again, this time, ML.  We should be in that area by the end of the week, though, and you are at that class.  Maybe I need one--I had a .454 blow up in my hand the other day.  No injuries.  I must be living a charmed life.  Another time I had a rick-o-shay hit me in the temple.  .38 that time.  Good thing I have a hard head.  Both times it was my fault.  I reload and I think a reload  did the .454.

We may end up pasing through some of the bigger towns in the SE of the state as the wife was changing our plotted course again last night.  Won't know till we get there where the road leads.
Walt/Fred

[MamaLiberty]

"Fred" and his lovely wife came by today. We had a good visit and I hope they'll soon be joining us here.

We really need to encourage folks like these as much as possible.

Thanks for coming, and God bless you both! Hope to see you again soon.

Love, MamaLiberty

[Fred Rogers]

Hi all
We had a rewarding trip, met MamaLiberty, visited for a bit there in Newcastle with her.  Nice area, nice town, one of many we passed through, including Cheyenne, Lusk, Douglas, Sundance (again).  We also visited areas in the states surrounding Wyoming.  An incredible amount of land where you can see for miles, but even the town of Lusk has areas around it that are wooded and hilly.  We like the area, every area we saw.  So many of the questions one could ask or wonder about can only be answered by being there, I suspect.  It should be interesting to watch how the Free State movement evolves and grows.  We have an anchor or two here that needs to be addressed before we could actually move--two houses, one we're living in, another we have for sale.  Lots of opportunity there, no doubt about it.  After two trips, the area is beginning to feel like a home.  Only time will tell if the biography of that place will find us listed in the index. 

[Jared]

Shoot, sorry I missed you! :O  I've had some out of state company the past couple of weeks so I've been a bit scarce.
Glad it was a pleasant trip!

[Fred Rogers]

Hey Jared, maybe we'll be running into you again sooner than we thought.  Got back from work today and the real estate agent called to tell us he has someone that will be making an offer on the other house we have for sale.  Yippe-ki-aye!   We'll find out tomorrow later in the evening what it is.  If Wyoming is a sellers' market, here in the U.P. it is a buyers' market and although we're not likely to get what we would like, at this point, selling it would release one anchor, the heaviest one--our other house can be freed up and all strings cut if need be and away we go.  I'd thought I'd build a spec-house once this older remodel sells, but maybe what I ought to do is build a spec-house in Wyoming where the thing would likely sell for what it's worth.  We're keeping our fingers crossed.  The prospective buyer has been hemming and hawing for four months or so.

[wyomiles]

Fred, If you want to make some money on a spec house one place to build is in Rock Springs. There are lots of subdivisions going in ,so you could buy a lot ,build a home and rolll it over, and over. When you have made enough profit you can move elsewhere if Rock Springs isn't your cup of tea.  More people than houses there right now. My nephew is building them and selling them as fast as he can.  Miles

[Fred Rogers]

That's one area where we haven't visited, Miles.? I'm looking at the map.? I guess if my 14 footer doesn't sell--it's been for sale since our first trip--I could lug it along.? Got a snowmobile and a 4-wheeler, too.? You can tell where my mind is at.? What are the hunting possibilities there in that area?? Bow season starts here Oct 1 and I'll probably do time for all the time I spend in a tree.? One thing for sure, with the news you? posted, it's going to be hard to stay put and my recreating is the one string that will be hard to cut.? And in the end, I suspect I'll have to discover the hunting and fishing possibilities on my own.

Talked to the realtor today after work.? We have an offer on the table.? About 82% of our asking price.? The house has been on the market since April 2005, the second I've done this way.? There's empty land behind it and I talked with the wife about building a spec home back there, thinking it would sell quicker and for more than a remodel.? But on our two trips, what we're selling here would go for at least double there in Wyoming.? The difference would help arrange a lot of recreating.? I'll be meeting the realtor tomorrow and we're inclined to take the offer, all things considered.
The wife told me earlier, "you should build a spec house in Newcastle," out-of-the-blue.? Rock Springs?? Maybe another trip?

So who knows what time will bring?

[wyomiles]

Fred , Any town where the boom is reaching would be good for a spec house, Gillette, Newcastle, Pinedale etc.Rock Springs is in the desert contry so mostly sagebrush,junipers and canyons. There are lots of folks there who love to hunt. Lots of antelope, mule deer, and even a nice desert elk herd. You won't have to worry about getting your hunting or fishing in no matter where you live in Wyoming.

[Fred Rogers]

We signed some paper today, setting the wheels in motion, and apparently the buyer has seven days to come up with additional paper that says the money is on the way, or something like that.  Fingers crossed, but until we close, anything can happen.  We hope and expect the best.

And now that that step may happen, and with downtime in the construction business likely around here, what with 200" of repellant on its way, the next step to consider is logistics and timing.  A former employee stopped by today as I was unloading the truck.  He'd been out west last winter, St. George in Utah, Junction Something in Colorado, and confirmed construction is booming.  I was going to ask, but I suppose he already answered--that winter work is just as likely as summer?  I don't know, so I ask.

Anyway, we're thinking, or I am anyway, since I should handle logistics, about travel and timing.  It's a bit daunting to consider, given the volume that needs relocating, but with winter coming on, perhaps that could be accomplished in steps.  We could leave our first home here as a base, or rent it out--it's paid for--and with the likely sale of this other, financial obligations are at a minimum. 

Maybe I'm only thinking out loud, or on-line, but sitting around here twiddling my thumbs this winter, or moving out there, is beginning to take on larger dimensions.  Time will tell.  All you need do in this life is die, and live till.  It'd be easier if I knew life would be better in Wyoming until that time...and like everything else I guess if it is to be it is up to me.

[MamaLiberty]

You might take a look at Home Place Realty here in Newcastle. http://www.homeplaceusa.com/  She is very reliable and helpful. You could probably find a fixer upper here to live in while you built something. Then you could sell the fixer. I hated to move twice, but sometimes it just can't be helped. There are four places on this page for under $100,000. http://www.homeplaceusa.com/Listings.htm and several under $200,000. Prices will only go up and up as long as the boom lasts.

There's almost nothing for rent, unfortunately, but Vera should be able to find you something if that's what you need. She has listings in all parts of eastern Wyoming, and of course has access to the multiple listings too. Tell her the lady who bought the log house sent you.

MamaLiberty

[Fred Rogers]

Thank you, MamaLiberty.  The details on that page are hard to ignore and we liked the Newcastle area--saw an elk just across the border in South Dakota--don't know if they are found nearby in the area.  One worry I have is financing the operation.  When we sold the first remodel here, we left the loan open, though we paid it down to zero, and began again on the second instead of closing it and starting paperwork for another.  We should be able to find out what the possibilities are for something like that again.  It irks me to have sold the second for less than optimum, but even if we stayed here, that puts us in a position to do better with less baggage.  Like everywhere, I imagine, the people who loan money prefer "established" folk.  But if we hang onto the home we're in, that ought to satisfy who holds the purse strings.   But at some of those prices, we could be there easy. 

[Cat]

A builder out of Douglas is here working on a couple of commercial projects.  To keep the crews busy, they bought two lots and put a house on each, nothing fancy (lower level unfinished).  One sold for $160,000 and the other one has a sale pending.  That company has now purchased eight more lots. 

The hardest part here now is finding lots or land to build on.  The price has been rising dramatically over that last two years with the boom.  I am not trying to discourage you, just let you know some background.

Cat