My carpentry business was actually not planned the way it is going. I wanted to start a school and eventually start to sell some of the items that the students and I made in our classes. It turns out that someone found out that I was a decent carpenter and people started asking me to build things for them. This is actually a blessing, because I am able to earn some money on my own for life and for the construction of the school.
I am not very efficient with my current location. As you know, I live with Kathy and Beaver Brooks in a big house that is used for many things...a home for their family, a place for visiting teams to stay, a workshop and a retail space for 2nd Story goods, a place to park the big truck and where I live and work during the day.
It is not very efficient because I have to bring my tools out to the yard every morning and return them all to the garage or my room at night or during the day when it rains. I don't have a place to store ongoing projects that is not in the way of something else. And, it is not "mine" so it is difficult to make it work exactly the way I want it when I know that I will not be there for a long time.
The need for a house seems obvious, I have been married for six months now and I go to my wife's mother's house every night to sleep. We don't have a place of our own yet, and I think we need that sooner than later.
So, previously I had mentioned that I found a house that would also work as a workshop...but, it is a little out of reach for me at the moment financially. A couple of days ago, I called the property owner. He is a local, he is a businessman, he is an engineer, he is a friend, he also puts a lot of faith in God. I told him that I keep thinking about that house. It is still available and the price that he has offered me is well below market value. I told him that I want to be in that house, but I can't get him all of the money before I move in. Here in Haiti, the tenant usually pays for a year in advance.
My friend the landlord said that we need to meet next week to find a way to get me into the house. On the phone, I explained that I will be heading back to the US for about six months, I will be working and I can send money back then. I am nearly positive that when we meet, he will give me any terms that I want to get me into his house. He knows me and he knows that I will take care of his investment. This is a new building, there are still many things to be done to it...he even offered to give me a bit of a discount for building some of the things that are lacking like cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms.
The house is on a major road and it has a lot of potential for business. It is a two story structure with a three bedroom two bathroom apartment on the second floor and a two bedroom one bathroom apartment on the main floor. It has a well and a pump, it has indoor plumbing, it has good power. I would live on the second floor and turn the main floor into my shop. The main floor has a very open floor plan and would be perfect for many things, like a wood shop now and class rooms when I build the wood shop at the back of the property.
I would like to do this soon so that I have a secure place to put all of my stuff before I leave for the US. I know it sounds like an expensive storage unit, but this way I will have a home to come back to when I return.
So my request for advice is what do you think? Do I take a leap of faith and tell him that I can afford it? Is it too much? Is it more than I need. I would appreciate your thoughts and questions as well. I am especially curious as to what those of you who are helping me finance this adventure have to say.
Please let me know. You can respond via this blog - I believe it has a place for comments, you can send me an email at blueteamleader@gmail.com or you can chat with me on facebook. If you want to talk, send me your phone number and a good time to call...it is a lot cheaper for me to call you than for you to call me.
Thanks for taking the time today...I promise the next blog will be loaded pictures of projects and of my wife and baby...
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