West Coast Girl

Here's an update to that job posting. ENJOY! http://www.vancouversun.com/life/Three+Bri...0195/story.html Here's the article just in case the link doesn't work: Three British Columbians in the running for the ultimate dream job By Gerry Bellett, Vancouver SunMarch 3, 2009Comments (4) It’s touted as the best job in the world, being paid $100,000 to be caretaker of a tropical island and living for six months in beachfront luxury off Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. For once, it sounds like all the hype is justified. That is why 34,000 people applied, including the Province’s online editor, Erik Rolfsen. Rolfsen, 39, and two other British Columbians — Anny Chih, who just graduated from Simon Fraser University and tour guide Marcella Moser — were told Monday by the government of Queensland they had made the pool of 50 contestants from which the winner will be chosen. “It’s exciting getting down to the last 50,” said Rolfsen, who like the other job-seekers had to submit a minute-long video showing why he would make the perfect caretaker. “Tourism Queensland is going to pick 10 finalists and there will be one person chosen by the public in an online poll. These 11 will be taken to the Whitsunday Islands for the final interview to pick the winner,” Rolfsen said. The contest is part of a promotion to bring visitors to Queensland in tough economic times, and Rolfsen said for a budget of $1.5 million, Tourism Queensland has netted “$80 million worth of free publicity and it’s not over yet.” “They got 34,000 people making videos, saying how great the Great Barrier Reef was. It’s a brilliant promotion,” he said. Rolfsen’s video can be found on the islandreefjob.com website, along with those of the other finalists. His is as much a tourist promotion for B.C. as a pitch for the job, as he’s shown golfing, skiing and playing on the beach, pastimes Vancouverites like to pretend they often do all in one day. Seven Canadians reached the final 50, which Rolfsen found astonishing considering the applicants came from more than 200 countries. According to the organizers, the caretaker’s duties will be collecting the mail, feeding the fish and cleaning the pool in the mansion overlooking the ocean, but thankfully no mention of raking the beach each day just to keep the sand tidy. The caretaker also must blog his or her adventures on and around the Great Barrier Reef. Part of the job description is sampling all the attractions. Chih, 22, could hardly believe it when she discovered she has a chance. Her video shows her engaging in just about every activity imaginable, including bungee-jumping, skydiving and ocean kayaking. Last winter, she backpacked alone across Russia. Why? “That’s part of the challenge,” she said. When she finished university and her friends asked what job she’d like, she said she wanted one in which she could have fun and try something new every day. They told her such a job didn’t exist. “Then I read about the best job in the world on the BBC website and I thought, ‘Hmm,’ maybe it does.’” The next step for the contestants is to write 500-word essays describing themselves, their backgrounds and what is important in their lives. Organizers will decide by the end of this month which 11 will be chosen to fly to Australia for the final interview. gbellett@vancouversun.com © Copyright © The Vancouver Sun Did you notice that while there were 34,000 applicants, 3 of them have been chosen from my home turf, VANCOUVER, BC! YUP! We rock! Eat your hearts out guys!

Happy Birthday, Happy Ardy! Hope you had a great one! WCG aka Jean

Thanks a Million, Michael & Bev for the birthday wishes & balloons! You guys made my day! I feel so hono(u)red and privilged to be apart of the best and brightest folks and forum out there! Thanks "guys"! Faithfully yours, Jean! P.S. The weather is awsome today! Mild and sunny! Wooo Hooo!!! What more can a girl, I mean, woman ask for????

In English, please! CANADIAN, that is! Jean Translation: This doesn't work in his area. Move to the United States. He'll have better luck the further south he goes. THANKS for the linguistic translation, Jason! I greatly appreciate it! BEV, MC, Doug, what's your view point on Jason's insight / interpretation / suggestion / on our Market (especially, the Canadian one!)??? Jean

In English, please! CANADIAN, that is! Jean

COOL! Keep us posted and how things unfold! By the way, SLO's should be soooooooo much easier now since banks aren't giving out money any more! Cheers, Jean

Good to see you back here on the board, Dougie! It's been awhile! However, I CAN'T believe that you are STILL getting the same responses there in Ontario. My God! You are all in a serious recession right now! What the hell are they thinking? Like some unexplained magic is going to be bestowed upon them and they WILL SELL??? UNBELIEVABLE! On another note. Here in Vancouver the blood-bath is happening! FINALLY! We currently have a developer selling his inventory at 25 - 40% off the "retail price"! They are taking out FULL page ads in all the local newspapers and have been on the News to move their product as well! Other condo projects I have noticed popping up lately are HUGE signs saying "RENT TO OWN" in place of "NOW SELLING"! You gotta remember! Vancouver is, THE BEST PLACE ON EARTH TO LIVE! So, sheesh! If we can't move product, how the heck are those poor Ontarians expecting to do so???? WCG aka Jean

Happy Naked "B" Day, Dougie! Looks like us, here in Vancouver, is celebrating Dougie style this year too! Therefore, I know how ya feeling buddy! So, Keep Warm! I'll be having a hot totty while thinking of you! Us Canucks need to stick together (Ice and Snow or not)! Bottoms Up! WCG

Oh my God! I hope that was a tonge in cheek comment! Do you KNOW who CD is???? Better do your homework now. There's a LOT to unearth about this veteran INVESTOR and TEACHER! He's LEGENDARY! Check him out by doing a Google search. You'll see his articles can be found EVERYWHERE out there! Better yet, check out YouTube. You'll learn a lot from him there in the flesh! Hi, Mr. Diamond, It's a real pleasure to see you here on this board ... the One & Only Board! WCG aka Jean

PM me Darin, I can steer you in the right direction. I would post it here, but I don't want to break any linkage rules. Cheers, Jean

Dougie, Two Words for ya. Harper Baby! Actually, JUST before he was re- elected (and actually what he said during his campaign) he said that our economy was in good shape! NOW, that he's been re-elected as Prime Minister, he's now saying that we are in a recession/depression! WTF??? I'll find that thread and post it here! WCG

Sounds like you give out only ONE (1) loan per category. If you were giving out more loans per category, you would have said business loanS, personal loanS, etc. Get my drift??? Sheesh!

WOW Bev. Unbelievable. Well, if this makes you feel any better, you're not the only one having problems, especially ya'll Americans. Ya gotta read this thread posted here in Vancouver, BC. Scary times man! Scams are happen'n everywhere! What's really kinda of sad about this story is that this is an Asian (Chinese) man that doesn't speak English fluently and doesn't know our Tenant / Landlord laws or our Judiciary system. Read here for all the details on his rental scam: http://www.realestatetalks.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=36504 WCG

Hey Dougie Boy! Aweseome Blog! However, it doesn't look like you're monetizing it! That should be your next order of business! If you want to know how, well, you know my number. Give me a call and we can discuss it! WCG aka Jean

Long ago I accepted the fact that I was a sex object in the eyes of most women. What can I say? Don't hate me because I'm beautiful. COOL! You can then help me deal with these unreasonable peeps! Two (2) SEXY people are better than One (1) when trying to deal these types of peeps

Obviously, you've got some magic go'n on Girl, 'cause even though I'm almost as hot as you, I find it hard to make a deal (even with them flirting with me!) I ain't the prize! I'm the solution is what I tell them! Soooooooo, how do yu over-come the turn-ons during a transaction???

I beg to differ with you Bev regarding dealing with ASIANS! My frustrations FROM DAY 1 have been dealing with East Indians and ASIANS. Here in Vancouver, our population is made up of 80% of these cultures and what I have found is that they are the MOST difficult people to deal with. YES! Bev, ASIANS, especially the ASIANS! It seems that they have tried to sell me an OVER-PRICED home or that their relative is a Realtor. Here's what I learned from EXPERIENCE (as well as from my mentor who's been in the business for over 40 years) and their mentalities: EAST INDIANS: They will screw even their own kind over. They actually prefer to deal with white people because they are honest. Yes we are, but they are still unreasonable and ruthless & crooks! ASIANS: They will pay double or even triple the price as they are buying for the FUTURE for their family (children, grandchildren). Therefore, price is not an object, nor is any price too high! Kinda explains why the average house (shack) here costs over $700K. They will NOT entertain a Lease/Option UNLESS they directly benefit. I've spoken to a few of them that wanted EXACT details on how it worked as it sounded interesting to them. However, I knew what they were up to and wouldn't tell them exactly all the ins and outs. I was onto them! I got sooooooooooo frustrated after trying and trying and trying that I just gave up and quit trying to deal with these types of "immigrants", which like I said is 80% of the folks! Therefore, I will only work with white people (which leaves only 20% of the people that I can work with). Yah, it sucks to live in a Province that has TOOOO many immigrants and are pushing us out of our home & Province and people that I can't help! WCG

Happy Birthday to YOU ... Happy Birthday to YOU ... Happy Birthday to MC ... Happy Birthday to YOU ... AND .... MANY MORE! I trust you celebrated Bev-style, MC!

It's been awhile since I posted anything here. So I thought I would shake things up a bit for ya all! Here you go! Enjoy! http://uk.youtube.com/experiencewii

OK, you say "we'll see if this one pans out"! Are you kidding us again? You NEED to know for sure BEFORE you take a potential's T/B's money if it's going to work out or not. The ONLY way you can do this is to hook up with your mortgage broker to make sure that they will qualify for a loan at the end of the lease option period! If you don't, you run into all kinds of ugly situations! 1. The T/B loses their money! Not good at all! 2. The Seller doesn't sell their house! Not good at all, again! 3. You get a bad reputation! Definitely, not good! I can't stress enough how you not only do your due dilligence when dealing with sellers, but with T/Bs as well! I wish you luck! WCG aka Jean

The ONLY way I know that YOU can make a T/B buy at the end of the lease is what's called a Contract for Deed! However, they need to put up more than just 3-5% of the purchase price, and they also pay higher than fair rental market as well, which constitutes them as having an equitable interest in the property! Again, however, if they don't perform at the end of their lease/option, then the seller has no option than to start the foreclosure process if they don't buy as agreed upon! However, this technique has its pros and cons! The Pros: You make more money upfront and have a solid buyer at the end of the term! In addition, they are required TO BUY! The Cons: If they don't or renege, you are now FORCED to make the buyer buy at the end of the lease/option period, or are now having to deal with a foreclosure issue because THEY (the potential buyer) has an equitable position in the property and the law now resides with them on this issue! On the other hand, if it's just a lease to purchase agreement, then it's easier to evict the potential/buyer. However, this is not the reason why the seller got involved with the deal in the fist place. They wanted their home sold at the end of say, 3 years, end of story! WCG P.S. Don't get the these techniques confused with C.A's (Contract of Assignments) or you will be in deep trouble, as none of these techniques apply to the C.A.s (Contract of Assignments) which are discussed here at length at this forum!

I agree with you Doug, as well as them being GREEDY bastards too! Not sure when they got on the US Real Estate bandwagon, but they sure aren't as savvy as us Canadian investors as a whole! Why the hell did they not consult with us (YOU AND ME) before funneling all that money into the US Real Estate market?? I work for the Government, but do you think that they will listen to me (until it's too late)???? WCG

Good one guys! :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Hey, Us Canucks have gotten hit badly too! Here's the article that was in today's Vancouver Sun's Newspaper! However, this is just one of our top 4 banks that have been burnt! CIBC (Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce) was hit the hardest! The other Canadian banks that have been effected are: RBC (Royal Bank of Canada) TD-Canada Trust (Toronto Dominion Bank) http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/bu...a2-eabdc37a37d3 BMO Q3 profit down 21 per cent Share drop triggers at least one analyst downgrade to 'sell' John Greenwood, Canwest News Service Published: Wednesday, August 27, 2008 TORONTO -- Hit by losses on U.S. home loans and deteriorating credit markets, Bank of Montreal posted steeply lower third-quarter earnings, pushing the shares lower and triggering at least one analyst downgrade. "The largest surprise came from the significantly higher-than-anticipated level of provisions related largely to impairments in the bank's corporate U.S. real estate portfolio," said Dundee Securities analyst John Aiken, who reduced his rating on the shares from "neutral" to "sell." "With concerns that we cannot see the end to real estate woes in the United States, this material increase in credit related headwinds will weigh on BMO's valuation over the coming months," Aiken said in a note to clients. Canada's fourth-largest bank reported a net profit of $521 million, or 98 cents a share, down 21 per cent from the same period last year. Revenue moved up 7.5 per cent to $2.75 billion. Due to its significant U.S. operations, BMO has been made vulnerable to the collapsing U.S. housing market. But it has also suffered losses from its off-balance sheet entities, such as Links Financial and Parkland, structured investment vehicles in the United States that have come back to haunt the bank in the wake of the credit crunch. "Obviously [bMO's earnings] came in much lower than we expected," said Mario Mendonca, an analyst at Genuity Capital Markets. BMO has so far taken back about $850 million of assets related to Fairway, an asset-backed paper trust, and provisioned for losses up to about half that amount. "We think there are more charges to come," Mendonca said. Provisions for credit losses were $484 million, and the biggest chunk of those were "unusually elevated," according to the bank, because of the inclusion of $247 million related to two corporate accounts exposed to the U.S. mortgage meltdown. "The impact of the deterioration in the U.S. housing market has affected our results, and while uncertainty exists, we are confident in the earnings capacity of the core franchise," said Bill Downe, the bank's chief executive. © The Vancouver Sun 2008

I thought this was an excellent illustration of our busy, busy lives. Take the time to read it and think about how "the sand sneaks up on us". One day an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business students’ and to drive home a point, used an illustration those students would never forget. As he stood in front of the group of high-powered overachievers he said, "okay, time for a quiz." Then he pulled out a one gallon, wide-mouthed Mason jar and set it on the table in front of him. He then produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside he asked, 'is this jar full?" Everyone in the class said, "Yes". He then replied, "Really?" He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel. Then he dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the space between the big rocks. Then he asked the group once more, "is the jar full?" By this time, the class was on to him. "Probably not," one of them answered. "Good", he replied. He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand in the jar and it went into all the spaces left between the rocks and gravel. Once more he asked, "Is this jar full?" "No!" the class shouted. Once again he said, “Good”. He grabbed pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was full to the brim. Then he looked at the class and asked. "What is the point of this illustration?" One eager beaver raised his hand and said, "The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you really try hard, you can always fit some more things in it!" "No," the speaker replied, "that's not the point. The truth this illustration teaches us is: If you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all. What are the 'big rocks' in your life? Your children ... Your loved ones ... Your education ... Your dreams ... A worthy cause ... Teaching or mentoring others ... Doing things that you love ... Time for yourself ... Your health … Your significant other? Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first or you'll never get them in at all. If you sweat the little stuff (the gravel and sand) then you'll fill your life with little things you worry about that don't really matter, and you'll never have the real quality time you need to spend on the big, important stuff (big rocks). So tonight, or in the morning, when you are reflecting on this short story, ask yourself this question: What are the big rocks in my life? Then put those in your jar first! By: Anonymous! WCG!