I’ve been offline for a bit.

Spending time with my family in Mexico.

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I’m fond of reminding myself that the cost of the status quo is hidden.

I like to take breaks from my “status quo” and pay attention to what I have been missing.

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Since last July, I’ve been pulling the plug on the internet for 5-7 days at a time and writing notes in a memo pad.

Via my breaks, I am able to see the cost of constant connectivity…

….reduced creativity, clarity and cognitive ability!

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It’s tempting to think great opportunities will never come again.

It’s also human nature to forget anything that is further back than about three years.

So I’d like to share memories of what happened coming out of the 2008/2009 credit crisis.

Ancient history in the collective memory!

In 2010-2012…

• I bought two buildable lots, one with an older house, for under $300 per sq ft.
• I then bought a two-unit downtown site for $375 per (very, very old) square foot. This seemed like a stretch. I didn’t expect the deal to show much progress for a long time.
• I was able to buy Tucson condos at $49 per sq ft. Shouldn’t have furnished these! Sold them early as I was running tight on cash (due to living in a big house with no yield).
• My last decision was NOT to buy a 5,000 sq ft house in Gunbarrel (City of Boulder) because I was concerned about the “hassle” of cleaning it up. This deal could have been had at $99 per sq ft! What was I thinking! Instead I put everything I had into a well-constructed home at $244 per sq. ft.

Cost to build (excluding land) is now around $400 per sq ft.

The figures above included land and building.

In hindsight, for three years, Mr. Market was giving land away in the City of Boulder.

Are you ready for the next tightening of the credit cycle?