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What to Watch for When House Hunting

Touring potential properties can be fun. You get to envision a new life for yourself in every home you visit — and seeing all the decor and style choices is exciting, too.

But it’s also easy to get swept up in that excitement. Remember: You’re making a huge decision, and letting your guard down could mean big problems down the road.

Are you currently hunting for a new place? Want to make sure you choose the right one? Watch for these red flags next time you’re on a tour.

Lots of Fresh Paint

Repainting before selling is normal, but if there are large swaths of the walls or ceilings that seem to have heavy layers of paint, it could be an attempt to cover something up. Be especially wary of ceiling cover-ups, as they could conceal water damage and deeper problems.

Sloppy Renovations

Has the place obviously been renovated recently? If so, you’ll want to find out if the work was permitted and done professionally. Otherwise, you could have extensive repairs down the road.

Below-Market Pricing

Does the price seem too good to be true? It could indicate that lots of repairs or updates are needed. We can discuss comparable properties and pricing in the area to determine market rates.

Sold “As Is”

If a property is being marketed this way, it means the seller knows there are issues with the property but is unwilling to make the repairs. You may want to get multiple inspections before buying a home like this to get an idea of any issues and what you’ll need to repair.

Reach out today if you need assistance with your home search.


Nicole Kasten
Licensed Broker Associate
COLFAX REALTY GROUP
www.nicolekasten-miamiliving.com
55 Merrick Way
Suite 202A
Coral Gables, FL 33134 USA

Femme — Happy Mother’s Day!

A Biker’s Opinion on Women. Happy Mother’s Day!

Dedicated to Celine, RIP

By Florida Night Train

Majestic in all grace… to watch from afar what many never take the time to witness, pure with movement, depth with honesty, and engaging as simple as the breath we take when we dare to do so with such ease.  For every moment, it is said that one’s actions speak into the lives of those we touch.  It is with deliberate intent that she moves like the wind, she moves like the ripples in the ocean and she moves with the quiet confidence of the blowing mane of the lioness… SHE moves.

“Our generation is so busy trying to prove that women can do everything men can do, women are losing the unique qualities that set us apart. The God-given femininity & unique way our Creator designed us. Women were not created to do everything a man can do…. Women were created to do everything a man cannot do.  The lioness does not try to be the lion. She embraces her role as the lioness. She is powerful, strong, and nurturing. She does not mistake her meekness for weakness. The world needs more kind, compassionate, humble, faithful, persevering, confident, fierce, bold, pure, and tender-hearted women.” – Unknown

Danyelle Butler, Intuitive Alchemist and Masculine Mindset Coach fully agrees with the above statement from an unknown source.  Butler further affirms “[It offers a good picture of healthy balance between the feminine and the masculine]…The feminine energy can be a challenge to understand at times, it’s explosive in its roller coaster of up and down emotions. However seeing the beauty of the feminine in this way allows us to have total allowance for it in every moment, the flow of the energy in that moment, capturing the beauty and destruction for what it is without judgements because with the feminine energy it can shift and transform so quickly if we don’t appreciate it for what it is it can be gone. The feminine can teach us how to move through life in flow and let go of what no longer serves all while being in love. I truly believe the essence of feminine energy can create fullness of love in our lives and relationships if we allow it to be in all of its intensity.”

“In all of its intensity”, there is nothing I can write here that would be original or that has never been said or written about women.  May is the month that honors women, as mothers.  I have been tasked with writing about women to celebrate them and motherhood.  Task, I say, is nothing but the reality of a lifetime journey of reflection on women who I have read about, learned from, been close to, and dare to dream to walk alongside again one day, if she lets me (in).

Scriptures in the book of genesis speak of “sons of man” referred to here as actual angels by some of the most authoritative theologians.  They claim these “angels” found earthly women so beautiful they abandoned their celestial nature to be with them.  Countless stories in countless books tell accounts of strong men falling victim to women’s beauty.  The book of Ephesians speaks of wives needing to “submit” to their husband but we rarely hear about the part where it states that husbands too need to submit and honor their wives.  That if they don’t, even their prayers will not be heard.  They say it’s a man’s world.  I’m not so sure to be honest, if it ever was.

A friend recently asked me to describe women.  All I could come up with is that in my humble opinion, women remind me of the ocean.  Us men are like sailors, fascinated, called to pursue, and relentlessly navigate those waters sometimes at the risk of our own lives.  A rookie sailor who is unprepared, disrespectful, arrogant or too eager to sail will be shipwrecked.  The seasoned sailor who respects the ocean, knows its dangers, the beauty, and the peace it can provide, he will navigate in harmony with the ocean.  

For women, like the ocean, I feel are majestic, dangerously beautiful, captivating, deep, unpredictable, entertaining, vast, mesmerizing, frustrating, powerful, and gentle.  The ocean can be destructive yet nourishing.  The ocean gives and sustains life.  It can be deadly.  It inspires dreams within, it gives purpose, it is a well of absolutes.  It challenges.  It rewards.  It gives a reflection of oneself if we pay close attention and truly look with wide open eyes.  It can rock you to sleep and it can wake you quite brutally. It is filled with a myriad of mysteries to enjoy and be thankful for.  It has the capacity to feed the soul, the mind, and the body.  It cannot be controlled.  It can only be respectfully navigated.  The seasoned sailor will know when to refrain from taking the seas.  The seasoned sailor will know how to read the signs.  He will understand and respect the ocean.  The ocean cannot control the sailor either.  It can only carry him if he chooses so.  If the ocean becomes too dangerous, out of control, unapproachable, violent and stormy, the sailor will not sail it, the sailor will cease to marvel at the ocean.  The sailor will retreat and he will not open sails and be vulnerable.  The sailor cannot, however, be a sailor without the ocean.  The ocean can be the ocean without the sailor but without the sailor the ocean will be missing the pleasures of being navigated, learned, marveled at, nourishing, and carrying the sailor.

Dr. Deborah Singh states that “Woman was apparently made from the rib of man, and for that there is and will always be a connectedness between the two.  For the rib surrounds all that helps give life to breath and meaning to souls intertwined.  It creates the space for life to be born and that is the one thing, the most powerful, endearing and admired thing a woman can do… for life is a blessing isn’t it.”

Men, Mother’s Day is this month.  If you have the honor of being with your babies’ mother or, you are privileged to be with your soul mate, do yourselves a favor… take a step back in contemplation to silently and patiently take her in, observe her, hear her heart, marvel at the magnificence of her essence as a woman in her core and as co-giver of life.  She is the single most beautiful creation on this earth.  Do that all the while solidly anchored in your identity as a man… you know? The kind of man this society is so hellbent into vilifying, changing, and emasculating.  If she does not respect that, she may be a puddle trying to impersonate the ocean.  Yeah… don’t let it happen.  Be the sailor that respectfully navigates but be the one who is respectfully not controlled.  If you cannot navigate her respectfully, you may be a sad excuse for a sailor or simply still not ready to sail.  Know the difference.  Celebrate your co-givers of life.  Celebrate your mothers.  Celebrate all mothers in your life.

And, if there is one thing I can leave you with, is the influence of voice.  As you celebrate for whatever it means to you, I challenge you to do the simplest and sometimes hardest thing to do, utter words that build and lift her and her spirit up. For she who is loved deserves to hear it and feel it through the whisperings of kindness both in actions and in words.  That is well beyond the gift of flowers once a year.  


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IG: florida_night_train

Picture: Rebekah L.K. with son by 323 Photography Studio, Florida Night Train and Phoenix Engineering.

Contributors: 

Dr. Deborah Singh, B.A. Sociology, Masters & PHd in Counselling, General Practice Psychotherapist, Children & Women’s Rights Advocate

Danyelle Butler, Intuitive Alchemist and Masculine Mindset Coach

Become the Best Version of You

I truly believe that everyone wants to become the best version of themselves, but the reality is few people actually do. Bottom line—we become our own worst enemies when it comes to achieving success.

So many people are self-destructive without even realizing it. In order to achieve success, it’s important to be consistent and have good habits.  Success involves having the right attitude and applying yourself on a daily basis.

The reality is that many people don’t even start because they have the fear of failure. Once we realize that failure is part of success, we can learn to welcome failure and even embrace it. The most successful people in the world have all failed at some point in their lives. Always use failure as a learning experience, this is how you will grow.

I’ve also seen that some people fall short of success because they may have a fear of it. When things go well in life for them, they become nervous expecting that something will go wrong soon. Fear of success hides in our own subconscious minds. People can be afraid of success for several reasons. They may think that if they become more successful, there will be more responsibilities and the expectations will be lifted higher.  Others may think that they don’t deserve success.

We always must remember that success is a good thing. We all have dreams inside of us and we deserve to live out those dreams and make a difference in the world. We’re not going to please everyone, but we must be comfortable with the decisions we make. Make sure you surround yourself with people who really want to see you succeed.

Also, in order to be the best version of ourselves, it’s important that we always look for the good in others. We have to get rid of all the negative energy. Make a commitment to build people up and edify them. Avoid criticizing and judging others, we never know what they are going through. Choose to be a light in the world, and make people want to be around you.

Being the best version of ourselves also requires starting right away. Choose not to procrastinate. The bottom line is procrastination is just another form of laziness. When we procrastinate, we are stopping ourselves from achieving our goals. Make a commitment to be precise with your goals but make sure they’re reachable. Put people in your life that will also hold you accountable.

Finally, if we want to be the best version of ourselves, we have to believe that we can achieve greatness. Never put yourself down. Don’t even joke about it. As a matter of fact, look in the mirror right now and start telling yourself how awesome you are. 

Remember, you are designed for greatness. You have awesomeness inside of you waiting to come out. It’s time to be the best version of you that you can possibly be. Life is short. You might as well be the best!

Have a super fantastic week!

RICH NORTON

Regional Sales Manager RMS

Photo by Edu Lauton on Unsplash