Hey everyone!
Yes, I’m alive and doing well! Thanks for all of your calls and emails during this crazy time.
As many of you know, I live in Houston, TX. And this weekend, Hurricane Ike blew in and proceeded to cause more destruction than a bull in a china shop! Fortunately the MyHouseDeals.com staff, my friends, my family and I came out unscathed. And I haven’t heard of any deaths in Houston, although I’m sure there are a few. But Galveston’s a different story. That city took a BIG hit. And so did the Bolivar Peninsula. Please keep the people in those areas in your thoughts and prayers.
The hurricane made landfall on Saturday morning. And as of Monday afternoon, 75% of people in the Houston area were still without power. By some stroke of good luck, the power came back on at my house on Sunday evening. And it came back on at the office on Monday afternoon. So yes, we’re back in business!
Although my house has electricity, it is by no means “up to speed”. The 110 mph winds ripped dozens of shingles off my roof and threw them across my backyard and my neighbors’ backyards. (I’m sure they just loved that.) Soon thereafter, water … buckets and buckets of water … started pouring through the ceiling onto the floor my master bedroom. I bet I caught about 50 gallons of water over a 7-hour period.
But I couldn’t catch it all, so I have a lot of damage to my hardwood floors. And sheet rock is hanging from my ceiling … only because my fan is holding it up. The total bill looks like it’ll be … roof ($3,000), hardwood floors ($2,000), fan ($250), sheet rock work ($500), painting ($500). Total = $6,250. And that number could rise because who knows where else they’ll find water damage. But I don’t expect to be footing that bill because I have homeowners insurance with Farmers. And hopefully they’ll step up to the plate!
I have a lot of catching up to do here at the office because I missed two days of work, so I better run. But before I go, I’ll leave you with some pictures from my master bedroom, my backyard, and my neighbors houses. Just click on the image to view a slideshow. In the pic below, my dog Rocky inspects the damage …
(Click on the image above to view more pictures.)
Until next time, happy (and profitable) investing!
Doug Smith
President of MyHouseDeals.com and Hurricane Survivor!