Woodlawn. A nearly revised neighborhood

The Woodlawn area of Birmingham was settled by Huguenot farmers in 1815 who traveled from South Carolina to settle in Alabama.  The leaders of this group were Obadiah Washington Wood and his son Edmond.

Edmond was granted 1200 acres of his father's homestead and went on to form a small community known as Rockville in 1832.  It was just a small group of homes near the roadway.

When the railroad came through in 1870, the area was renamed Wood Station and with the advent of the railroad through this area, it began to grow.  But the end of the 1870's, Woodlawn Academy had been created to educate the children of the approximately 90 families that called Wood Station and Rockville their home.  By 1891 Wood Station was recognized by the State of Alabama and it was incorporated under the name "City of Woodlawn".  In 1895 the residents erected their first city hall and jail.

In 1922 the gothic inspired and historical Woodlawn High School opened.  It is still a thriving high school and truly a landmark in the Woodlawn area.

By 1910 the city of Birmingham had annexed Woodlawn but the sense of community in Woodlawn remained strong.  The Wood family had turned their estate on Georgia Avenue into a park for Woodlawn complete with a spring fed swimming pool and named it Willow Wood Park.  

Unfortunately in the 1970's a culmination of events saw urban blight take over.  Some of those events were the tumultuous race riots of the 1960's, white flight, the aging population in Woodlawn and the desertion of Woodlawn by its younger residents as they moved elsewhere in search of employment.

As for notables who were raised in Woodlawn, Richard D. Zanucks wife, Lili was from Woodlawn as was Hop-a-Long Cassidy's wife, Dorothy.  Dorothy Sebastian was raised at 801 N. 49th St.  Follow the link below for a street view of what her childhood home looks like today. https://www.google.com/maps/@33.537845,-86.762978,3a,75y,90h,81.73t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sGj1X8RJ45Fi_kQ_r64RWcQ!2e0 

Of course no town would be complete without a cemetery.  The Wood family still owns and maintains a private cemetery located on 57th St. N. across from the Woodlawn High School. The descendants of the founders of Woodlawn maintain the cemetery themselves.

There is another cemetery in Woodlawn.  This one is a lot larger and a bit more notorious.  It is known as Greenwood Cemetery and is located by the airport.  

Some years ago, the airport took many acres of the cemetery and expanded their runway system.  They were supposed to move all the graves in their paths in order to accomplish this but there are doubts that this occurred.  A part of the interstate runs on the edge of the cemetery which again raised some suspicions as to whether the graves they disturbed were properly moved as well.  

For years folks had complained about not being able to find their loved ones but no one ever paid much, if any, attention to them since the cemetery itself was not always properly maintained.  This fact coupled with the common knowledge that vandals frequented this cemetery led authorities to take the families complaints with a big fat grain of salt and they simply replied that the graves in question simply could not be found - but certainly were still there. Perhaps the headstones had been vandalized?

Then in 1998, the sister of Addie Mae Collins went to visit her sister grave for the first time since Addie Mae was killed in the 16th St. Baptist Church bombings of 1963.  The owners of Greenwood had gone bankrupt in the 1970's and the cemetery was nearly in shambles and had been completely deserted.  A few times a year the city would go out and have it mowed and would have the police patrol it from time to time, but that was all the maintenance that it ever received.  The City of Birmingham estimates the have spent approximately $250,000 maintaining the abandoned cemetery. 

Addie Mae's family wanted to move her to another cemetery.  One that was better maintained and perhaps had security to keep the vandals away.

They found the marble headstone marking her grave but when the workers dug, they didn't find a coffin.  To this day, no one knows what happened to the coffin containing the body of this young girl who was killed in the bombing of her church.

The original fire station for Woodlawn still stands.  It was built in 1929 and was one of the most interesting fire stations in the area as it was not built in the usual square box like fashion.

When Woodlawn hit its lowest point in the early 1980's the fire station was all but abandoned and sat empty and boarded up for 20 years.

Then in about 2008 a drive was founded to restore the formerly beautiful building.  Below is what the fire station looks like today.

There are a lot of buildings in the Woodlawn area that are still in decent shape.  The downtown area of Woodlawn is attractive and for the most part well maintained.  It could be brought back to its former glory and when that happens, the rest of the area will follow suit.

Other neighborhoods in the Birmingham area such as Avondale, Crestwood, South Side to name a few have all had their ups and downs but once their commercial area began to be refurbished and revived, the residential areas followed suit.

Woodlawn is a stones throw from downtown Birmingham.  The trendier neighborhoods of Avondale and Crestwood sit on its borders.

The original City Hall is still standing.  It has been repurposed as a funeral home and is well maintained.

Below are a few more shots of downtown.

The downtown area of Woodlawn has a nice urban feel to it.  I can imagine coffee shops, art galleries and perhaps even a community theater there.  The trendier neighborhoods are so close to Woodlawn that I am positive these residents would bring their business to Woodlawn rather than drive further down the road to Forrest Park or South side to get their Sunday cup of coffee while watching the traffic and reading their paper.  

All it would take are a few investors with a few good ideas.

Why do you want to Move?

Why do you really want to move?  Need something larger, smaller, cheaper, nicer?  Maybe you want more land or less land.  Like to live closer to work or maybe as far away as possible? There are a bazillion reasons that people move.  All of them perfectly legitimate.  But sometimes folks think they have to move when they really don't.

After all, moving is not a quick or inexpensive chore.  Just trying to remember everyone I need to notify of my new address is enough to make me want to stay put.

If you want more land or less land than what you currently have, I'm afraid moving is your only option.  But if you like your location and lot size but don't think you have enough interior square footage or your space just seems tired and boring, sometimes that's a problem that can be solved.

You would not believe the number of people who move because they don't think they have enough storage space or they think they've "outgrown" their space when in fact, they didn't. What they did do, is try to cram more stuff into their house than it would hold.

I've always said that these types of people are bordering on being hoarders with money. People who have money and good credit can always buy a bigger house when they've succeeded in stuffing their present one to the gills.  The ones without money and good credit show up on that reality TV show about hoarders.

The things  that seem to overwhelm people and make them want to throw their hands up in the air and move are (1) clutter from their children (2) cluttered entryways/mudrooms (3) kitchens that they think are too small and (4) playrooms and/or bedrooms that seem too small. 

So let's address these one by one.

(1) Clutter from Children.  

Want to know why there's clutter from the children driving you nuts?  It's really pretty simple.  The children have way too much stuff, they are not taught how to pick up after themselves or both.  

Look at the picture below.  No child needs that many items out at the same time....as a matter of fact....no child needs that many items at all.

Even children as young as 3 can do simple chores. At that age, if you slap on a bright enough smile with a happy enough voice, they will do it in record time and be super excited about it. The key is not making it appear to be a chore and be consistent about making them put their own toys away.  

Children should be taught very early on that if they get a toy out, they have to put it back when finished before they can get another toy. Once children form a habit of picking up after themselves, it become a habit that they will keep throughout their lives.  But it all has to begin with the parents.  If mom or dad makes them pick up their toys today but then tomorrow, they allow the toy to remain in the middle of the floor.....they have to begin all over again with training.

Studies have proven that children have the ability to concentrate and actually engage in playing with a maximum of 3 toys at any time. So don't allow the kids to drag out every toy they own.  It's pointless and creates an unnecessary chaos in your living space. A very important thing to remember is boredom.  If your child sees the same toys all day every day, they grow bored with all of them and then they want more - but they don't want to get rid of any of the old ones......see the cycle?

Now what about children clutter that is caused by the adults?  Parents do you really need to have car seats, strollers, bouncy seats, play pens, changing tables and high chairs in every room?  As a matter of fact do you really even need these things in view when not in use?

Some parents, especially first time parents, go nuts when they have kids.  They go out and buy every piece of child furniture, accessories, clothes and toys that they can find.  Somehow all those things inevitably wind up strewn about the common areas and entryway.  Then the parents wonder why they have "outgrown" their house.  

(2) Entry ways and/or Mudrooms

Houses get a bad rap from entryways.  The rest of the house can be awesome but if that entryway is small and/or cluttered, people soon develop a bad attitude about the entire house. Entryways were designed to be exactly what the name implies....an entryway.  They weren't designed to house all your coats, shoes, boots, strollers, backpacks, etc.

It's so much easier to take off your coat and boots and then carry them to your bedroom than it is to trip over them in the entryway.  Another plus to taking them with you when you enter the house is purely logistic.  If you take off your coat and boots and leave them at the door, then tomorrow when you get ready to leave the house, you will grab another pair of boots and another coat and wear them to work or school.  Then when you come home, you'll leave those by the door and when you get ready for work or school the next day.......see how it can all pile up and get out of control?

Does the picture below look like your entryway?

If you simply cannot or will not take your belongings with you, then how about purchasing a bench with storage inside?  Sit on top to take off your boots, open the lid and toss them inside. Out of sight.

(3) Kitchens

Nearly everyone that mentions moving mentions the kitchen.  It's too small, there's not enough storage, it's outdated.  The kitchen below would make me want to move pronto!

This is actually a good sized kitchen with plenty of storage.  However, every single surface has something on it.  There is nowhere to even sit a cup.  

I used to be bad about fridge magnets.  Every inch of my fridge (including the sides) were covered with them.  I began using them to keep schedules on the fridge, or notes to myself or other family members or to showcase the kids artwork or schoolwork but somewhere along the way, I collected so many that it just took over.  Once I put them in a box to donate, I marveled at how clean my fridge looked and how much larger my kitchen felt.  The same effect was achieved when I took my pot rack down. While I loved it and loved the convenience it offered me, the feeling of spaciousness after I took it down was well worth the extra step of bending over to get a skillet.

A clean and uncluttered room gives you serenity and induces a calmness.  I don't mean to imply that you should toss out everything you own and go minimalist - I hate minimalist - I'm simply saying maybe toss half and what you don't toss, hide.  If you use your crock pot every day, keep it on the counter.  If you only use it once a week or once a month - it can go to a cabinet or into the pantry.  Same thing applies with toasters, mixers, blenders, etc.  Anything you don't use on a daily basis should not be seen.  

Lots of people will read that and reply that while it sounds nice, it's just not feasible to do this because the cabinets are already filled with dishes, drinkware, etc.  The key to accomplishing this trick is to reduce the amount of items already housed in your cabinets. 

With plates and drinkware, I keep 8 of each in my cupboards, the rest of them go into boxes and sit on the floor in my pantry.  If I have company, I take them out if needed.  With cookware/bakeware, I keep the ones I use the most in my cabinet by the stove.  The rest of them, again, are boxed up in my pantry.  When I have company for dinner or for holidays, I take them out but once I'm finished - back into the pantry they go.  See?  I didn't throw them away or donate them.  I just hide them away which makes plenty of room for me to store the things that once lived on my counters.  

As a result of the above tips, I have a kitchen that I enjoy being in.  I have a kitchen that never feels cluttered or out of sorts and I am never embarrassed whenever anyone pops over unannounced.

(4) Playroom and Children's Bedroom

If you follow my advice about drastically cutting down on the number of toys you allow your children to keep, then you shouldn't have any issues with maintaining order in their playroom or bedrooms.

A few bookshelves, toy chest, light colored paint and furniture that is smaller in scale will open these rooms up and make them appear much larger than they are.  They will become places where your children will want to be.

Check out the before and after below.

Now we're back to the original question.  Why do you really want to move?  Obviously you liked your house enough at one time to actually move into it.  At some point you simply fell out of love with it.  It's time to figure out why you fell out of love and fix it.

If decluttering it still doesn't do the trick, try rearranging the furniture and painting. Bedroom causing you fits?  Google bedroom ideas and you will see a ton of ways to enhance your bedroom making it feel brand new once again.

I have written on the topic of how to fall back in love with your house before.  I am a firm believer that unless you want more or less space or unless the surrounding area has become unsavory, there's really no reason to go through all the hassle and expense of moving.  Just grab that paint brush and those boxes and get to painting and donating.

Enjoy your space!

Do you want steady money or just quick money?

Before the first dollar changes hands, an investor and/or potential landlord should ask themselves "Do I want steady money or do I just want quick money"?

I can only speak for myself, but if I was asked, my answer would be steady money.  I think this is the one area that will  (and does) quickly break a lot of investors and/or landlords.

You can double the market rate on a house and eventually you will rent it to someone.  True. How many months will that house sit vacant before that happens and how long will the tenant stay there once you get it rented and what kind of condition will they leave it in once they move (or get evicted)?

Personally, I would prefer to have a tenant in place for 2 years paying $800 a month ($19,200) than a tenant in place for 6 months paying $1,000 ($6,000).  

Sure, you can slap some lipstick and mascara on that pig and if you're willing to take someone with less than stellar credit, you will be able to get a higher than market value on that property....for a month or two anyway.  People with bad credit expect to have to pay more for everything than those with good credit.  Sadly it's a fact of life these days that those who don't have the means to pay high prices are forced to do so because of their credit histories.  

Let's say you find what you believe is a perfectly lovely person to rent your house at the inflated price.  One of three things are going to happen.  

(1)  Renters are just as price savvy as buyers.  Good renters know about what to expect to pay for rent in any given neighborhood.  A good renter will know right off the bat if the property in question is over priced and will move on down the road.  If they don't - you may have just rented your property to a meth cooker or some other sort of criminal who has nefarious plans for the use of your property.  Plans that down the road could land you in some very hot legal water and might even end up costing you your property.

(2) If someone pays a much higher rent on your property than they could go down the street and get, there's the chance that you've just rented your property to someone who is on the verge of getting evicted from their current property and they just need somewhere to put their stuff for a month or two while they look for a more affordable property to get into.  I know, sounds ridiculous doesn't it that a person would pay the deposit and first month's rent just for a temporary solution.  Trust me when I tell you that this is a much more common occurrence that you might think.  I have personally witnessed it on way more than one occasion.  

But how can they do this if they are about to be evicted?  Won't that show up on their background check or when references are called?

Possibly no.  If the eviction hasn't been filed yet, nothing will show up on a Court search or on their credit history.  As for the reference checks, when you call the landlords number shown on the application how do you really truly know you are talking to a landlord and not the applicant's sister, brother or best friend?  You don't.  

People like this know how to work the system and they associate with others who know as much about the topic as they do.  I can pretend to be anyone's landlord.  All I have to do is tell the caller that I own the home privately and the tenant has been a wonderful tenant that I hate to lose but I've decided to let my son move into the house so the tenant needs to find alternate housing.  See how believable that sounds?

or,

(3) You have just been suckered by a career non-rent payer who is going to give you the deposit and first month's rent, move in and never pay another penny.  They are going to string you along with all manner of sob stories and bad luck and get you to wait until the 15th, then the 1st, then next week.....but next week never comes and one day you awake to discover that you've allowed them to live in your house for months.....for free. 

Now these folks are cagey.  They will throw you a bone from time to time.  $100 here, maybe $200 there but never anywhere near the whole rent.  Just enough to make you think that they are at least making an effort.  But the thing is, those bones are very few and very far in between. 

But never fear.  They will move.  After you've spent time and money paying someone to evict them and after you have waited the required period of time before you are allowed to go into your property to put their things on the curb. 

Putting their things on the curb....now we're getting into the part that lets you know where all that "extra" money you got for the deposit and first month's rent is going to go towards.  You thought it was going to go towards that new boat, or maybe that lot by the lake so you could build your dream cabin didn't you?  Sadly, it won't.  It will all be spent (and then some) on paying to get the tenant evicted, loss income while the tenant is living in the property for free and getting the rental ready for the next tenant - which could take a couple of months realistically.

Why a couple of months?  Because when you run across this type of tenant, you might as well cash out your 401K because by the time you clean up the yard, the house, repair the damage they caused and get it ready to rent again....you're looking at some serious time and money.

I managed a house a few years back.  The landlord accepted a tenant against my recommendation.  "She's awesome" I was told.  She had marginal credit but a steady job and loved the house!  Within a month after moving in the house, she had been fired from her job (for stealing), her car had been repoed (goodbye marginal credit) and then came the sob stories and bad luck songs.

The landlord kept thinking it would be cheaper in the long run to take the $100 here and there that this tenant dished out sporadically than to go through the eviction proceedings and miss a month or two on rent altogether.  After all "she was trying".  It turned out to be more like 6 months.

By the time I finally talked the landlord into allowing me to evict the tenant, the damage had been done.  The tenant fought the eviction pushing the process from 1 month to 3 months. When I was finally able to go inside the house, I almost fainted. 

Fleas EVERYWHERE.  Feces in every room.  Newly refinished hardwoods destroyed.  Doors clawed and chewed by the 4 large dogs that she kept in the house.  4 broken windows. 2 busted doors. Massive holes in the walls and even in some of the ceilings. Roaches everywhere.  Grass was literally as tall as the house.  Weeds had choked the life out of the numerous flowers in the flower beds.  Concrete retaining wall looked like someone had repeatedly run a truck into it.  Mountains of garbage in every room and all over the back patio. As if all of that wasn't bad enough, they had their water cut off for nonpayment several weeks before and had decided to go ahead and use the toilets anyway and once the toilet was full - they used the bathtub.  Now add to all of this the fact that needing money to move, she and her boyfriend (who wasn't on the lease) stole the central heating and air unit and sold it.  Only they didn't disconnect the unit.  They ripped it out.  Electrician bill to go along with the cost of replacing the units.

I tell the specifics of this story to illustrate my point that while the landlord did initially make about $600 more on this property than it was worth on the market, the cost of evicting this tenant and getting the house ready for the next tenant was a grand total of $13,000 (and change) and that total doesn't account for the lost rent.

You may be thinking, "I'll sue them for the damages and also have them arrested!".  Good luck with that.  Many states don't allow landlords to actually have a tenant arrested for damage to their property.  They consider it to be a civil matter rather than a criminal matter.  As for suing the tenant for money damages, you can do that in all states.  But what are you going to get in return?  Nothing.  For one thing, in order for this to really impact the tenant's ability to rent (especially from a private landlord) you will need the judgement to show up on their credit report.  Unless you are willing to pay for a membership to all 3 of the reporting agencies (which is not cheap), then it isn't going to show up on any credit report.  Secondly, you may indeed have a judgment against the tenant.  How are you going to collect that money?  These people are what lawyers call "judgment proof".  Meaning they don't have anything for you to take - or at least nothing in their name.  They typically either don't work at all or only work for a short time and only sporadically at that.  Remember the old saying "you can't get blood out of a turnip"??  

Everyone deserves a place to live.  Rich, poor, good credit or bad credit.  Everyone should be able to have a roof over their heads.  However, do you really want to trust your property to someone who is going to do this to you?  

My rule of thumb is to set the rent at a reasonable price and rent it to someone who checks out. Maybe they have bad credit but their rental history is stellar.  At the end of the day if a person pays their rent on time who really cares if they don't pay their VISA card on time?  

The key phrase in the above paragraph is "checks out".  Pictured ID so you know if the person applying is using their info and not their infant child's info.  Get the last 6 paycheck stubs from them and don't accept copies or printed versions.  Those are far too easy to forge.  If necessary, get the employer's address and mail the verification form to them.  If the applicant gives you their landlords info and it appears to be a private individual - go to the tax collector's website.  There you will be able to search by address and that site will tell you exactly who owns that property.  If the name or contact info doesn't match - chances are you've been given bogus information.  

At the end of the day, you won't get rich quick by accepting reasonable rent.  But chances are, you won't wind up in bankruptcy court either.

But that's just me.