Good morning! Here’s an update for your Tuesday. After hosting the Carnival of Personal Finance yesterday, I hope everyone had a nice weekend.
So, Easter week started off with us dealing with a broken fridge. It wasn’t really a surprise since the fridge was at least 10 years old and left behind by the previous house owner. We always knew we’d have to replace it eventually, but the timing wasn’t great since we just bought a second car and a boat. Given the options—buying another old fridge for $120, getting a repairman for $80, or buying a new fridge—I went with a new $750 fridge. It should make life easier and maybe even stop my boyfriend from calling me cheap for at least a couple of days.
My boyfriend was really keen on a fridge with an ice dispenser, but the cheapest one we found was $1,250. I couldn’t justify spending an extra $500 just for an ice dispenser, so we settled for a fridge with manual ice trays. It still makes things easier for him.
I ended up buying the fridge from a supermarket recently acquired by Walmart. The manager assured me they could deliver it with their minivan, which usually drops off customers who buy over $40 worth of products. Unfortunately, she underestimated the fridge’s size, so we had to bring it home with it half-hanging out of the van’s sliding door. Amazingly, it arrived in one piece and worked fine when our guests arrived.
The rest of Easter week was great. We spent it with friends, swimming in the lake, and sailing on our new boat. With Thursday and Friday being bank holidays, it was a nice break since there were no workers around. The following week, they were back to give our boat a makeover, fixing it up with new wooden seats, coffers, and floors. These guys can pretty much do anything, from laying concrete one day to fixing boats the next.
After Easter, it was back to work. We finally got the level maps for our 90 acres of land, so we’re starting to develop the back into affordable, small plots. The Northern part is accessible by the town’s street network, which is great because they’re fixing up the streets and bringing in electricity. Best of all, they’re paving the main road that comes from the village, just three blocks away. This will add value to our plots.
Last week, as mentioned in my Friday Recap, we burned down the weeds and grass on the land because we couldn’t find anyone to put cattle there. Now, three guys are working full-time to weed and draw up the plots. Don’t worry; the rainy season is coming, and everything will grow back stronger.
We’ve turned a simple aluminum boat carcass into something impressive, and we’re not borrowing any money for this development, so we’re here to stay. Additionally, to make the plots attractive for locals, we’re donating a football (soccer) field to the village. It will be surrounded by 10 plots, with a total of 60 plots available.
We’ve priced these plots at $2,000 for 900 sqm, which is about 0.22 acres. We think this is affordable for locals since a similar-sized plot in the village sells for $4,000 to $8,000. We’re also offering interest-free financing over a year.
The higher-end development near the front of our property is looking greener since the earlier burn. We’re planning a paved road and entrance gate as the first steps in that area.
So, that’s our latest update. What’s new with you?