The Evolution of Atlas: A Breeding (and Chat) Thread

[speckledhen]

Like I said, contact a good realtor, and discuss it. There may be a place that has the elevation you want, no steps, on 3 acres, with decent privacy, and no restrictions, that will be financially do-able. A good realtor knows the housing market better than the mortgage companies, so I would at least talk to one.

The person we used to buy this place, then to make an offer on the other lots, is also the one who is the founder of the Blue Ridge Humane Society. I could feel her out and see. I wish that there was a category for elevation. Every time I look at a property, I must open a new window to check the elevation of an address. As a former realtor myself, I'd love to suggest that to MLS as a category for listings. It was so much easier when my husband was working and we were able to buy this one before having to sell the other one, can't happen this time without some real creative financing since I need the equity from this one to get another one. She can show in GA and NC but not sure if she's licensed in TN or would have to refer us yet again to someone else if we even broached the subject.

 

[getaclue]

We too had our requirements, and we started looking 3 years prior to getting this place. Originally, Dh insisted we had to have at least 5 acres, and a big barn. He had always rented, and usually the owner would sell the home after a couple years, so we would have to move. I began reminding him of our ages, and that once we bought a place, we would not be moving. While 5 acres would be wonderful now, would it be so wonderful in 6, 8, 12 years from now? Would we be physically, and financially able to do the upkeep on 5 acres in 12 years?

Once we began taking a serious look at what our future needs would be, not just what we wanted now, the overall picture changed some. The housing market here moves fast. There are literally thousands of houses in subdivisions for sale, but very few nice places with property. A lot of people want houses with property, so they get a high price, and don't stay on the market long at all. Another thing, there are a lot of developers interested in properties that are 5 acres, or more. They will pay whatever the asking price is, and they don't care about the condition of the home, since all they really want is the land, so it's not easy to get a place like ours. The land owners know this, so the asking price is overly inflated. Like I said, we looked for 3 years, before we found what we wanted.

To give you an idea of how fast paced it is here, our place hit the market at 11:00 am. By 7:00 pm that same evening, the owner had 11 valid offers. The owner could have sold it within an hour of putting it on the market. I called my realtor the minute it hit the market. There were so many showings, he couldn't get me in that day, but I was the first to see it the next morning. I went straight home, woke Dh up, and told him to call the bank, and get this home FAST, it would not last another day on the market. He, the realtor, and the mortgage officer we had been working with at the bank, all got busy. By that evening, the owner accepted our offer.

Is a major life change scary? You bet it is. But life is going to change, no matter what. Sooner, or later it has to be addressed. Sometimes it's better to acknowledge that, and be on the lookout for later.

 

[speckledhen]

Since this is very obviously (to me) a Stukel chick, more pictures of Drea (or Drew). The barring is exquisite, the body more shaped like the two pullets, the comb base much less "meaty" than the other males (but that could be the difference between Atlas and Hector sons), more dark wash on legs than the other two very definite males. It is PAT from SNL? LOL. What is is??

I'm leaning now toward what Lisa said, a slow maturing cockerel. That would mean I have only one really good pullet to keep, darn it. The other is so small, but I guess I could keep her, though it would mean I have no pullets to offer with any of the three cockerels, if Drea is indeed a Drew.

Here you can see the comb on the cockerel on the right, even facing away from the camera, with the weird chick on the left. Such a difference!

And the other 7 week old chicks *Cheryl, you can see the steps in the background*:
Biggest cockerel. See that comb base? That really reminds me of Hector's comb at that age. He could be a Hector son, not a Stukel at all.

The smaller cockerel, facing right, though he's really not smaller, just not quite as tall.

My keeper pullet from Jill.

In front is Drea/Drew with cockerels in the background-comb differences are very plain in this photo:

Smaller pullet in front:

My big girl. I think I may call her Mary Jo since I lost her Aunt Mary.

And my volunteer butternut squash that is taking over the county!!

 

[speckledhen]

We too had our requirements, and we started looking 3 years prior to getting this place. Originally, Dh insisted we had to have at least 5 acres, and a big barn. He had always rented, and usually the owner would sell the home after a couple years, so we would have to move. I began reminding him of our ages, and that once we bought a place, we would not be moving. While 5 acres would be wonderful now, would it be so wonderful in 6, 8, 12 years from now? Would we be physically, and financially able to do the upkeep on 5 acres in 12 years?

Once we began taking a serious look at what our future needs would be, not just what we wanted now, the overall picture changed some. The housing market here moves fast. There are literally thousands of houses in subdivisions for sale, but very few nice places with property. A lot of people want houses with property, so they get a high price, and don't stay on the market long at all. Another thing, there are a lot of developers interested in properties that are 5 acres, or more. They will pay whatever the asking price is, and they don't care about the condition of the home, since all they really want is the land, so it's not easy to get a place like ours. The land owners know this, so the asking price is overly inflated. Like I said, we looked for 3 years, before we found what we wanted.

To give you an idea of how fast paced it is here, our place hit the market at 11:00 am. By 7:00 pm that same evening, the owner had 11 valid offers. The owner could have sold it within an hour of putting it on the market. I called my realtor the minute it hit the market. There were so many showings, he couldn't get me in that day, but I was the first to see it the next morning. I went straight home, woke Dh up, and told him to call the bank, and get this home FAST, it would not last another day on the market. He, the realtor, and the mortgage officer we had been working with at the bank, all got busy. By that evening, the owner accepted our offer.

Is a major life change scary? You bet it is. But life is going to change, no matter what. Sooner, or later it has to be addressed. Sometimes it's better to acknowledge that, and be on the lookout for later.

The market here is quite different. It's really a second home market. Not many places with a lot of land and more and more covenanted subdivisions popping up, the type that I loathe. If it says "shared" anything, I don't look further, be it driveway or well or "gated community". I want none of that. And a mobile home? No way I'll even look at one. No matter how much you fancy up the insides, it's still a trailer, a tin can for humans. Things do not sell that quickly here. And it's hard to get comparables, too. I have homes in my own neighborhood from $60K up to a million+. We are unique in that we are really a mini-farm type property.

 

[getaclue]

Oh my. You really do have quite a climb. Just looking at it, and the thought of having to climb that much, is exhausting. Especially the thought of having to climb it with bags of groceries, or other items.

Cyn, here we have the county tax assessor's website, and you can do a search by address. Would that give you the elevation? You can bookmark the site, and as you look on realtor.com, and see a place that might interest you, then click there for further information. I had to do that, because a lot of Florida land is very low, and either stays slightly underwater, is mushy, and prone to flooding, goes underwater during the rainy season, etc. The realtor sites don't give that information, so I had to look it up by address, at the tax assessor's website. Oh, the other thing Dh insisted on, was looking at the crime map for the area. I had that bookmarked too There were at least 2 places that looked really good, but a neighbor up the road had been busted for drugs on a regular basis, and most of the other visits in the area by law enforcement were for theft. We didn't even go look at those places.

 

[speckledhen]

No, elevation is not listed there, trust me, I looked. You can see the tax map for the flood plain, of course, but it won't tell me the actual elevation of the property. I go here for that: http://veloroutes.org/elevation/?

Any property with water, like a creek or lake or on a river would have a flood plain issue, but where we'd be looking, for the most part, it would not likely be an issue. I want nothing on a river, couldn't afford it if I did. A small pond, maybe!

 

[getaclue]

That seems to be a good site for elevation. It does seem odd that elevation information would not be readily available.

Our biggest concern here was not elevation. Let's face it, Florida, for the most part, is flat, and only slightly above sea level, if at all. It was the flood plain issue that affected us more. I can't tell you how many places had 5 - 10 acres, but only 2 acres were high, and dry. I wasn't about to pay prime land money for swamp land.

 

[speckledhen]

Just put out a video about my sidewalk project as well as showing the little Brahma cockerels battling it out today. They are brutal today!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Wow on the squash plant, mine are still bitty plants. I think you do have 3 boys, that's bad hatching odds, but at least you have one pullet.

I have no clue how we would ever pack everything up and move it, easier to stay put, and probably cheaper to put in a lift. Too much outside stuff here. Looking at new places would be fun though.

 

[getaclue]

The video of the chicks is a riot. Love the way you say "you little snot". The sidewalk project is shaping up very nice.