Jay West, Realtor, Mentor.

      Indya and I travelled up to Beaverton last Wednesday to take Jay West and his wife, Teena out to dinner.   Jay has an extensive resume in the field of real estate.   In particular, he has 20 years of experience as a Realtor in Mexico.  He is managing broker and is owner of a Windermere office in Cabo!  I was introduced to Jay through my Principal Broker, Matt Powell.  As it turns out, Jay and I have a number of friends in common and some similar significant personality characteristics.
      Jay picked out Pepita's restaurant in Beaverton.  An authentic Mexican restaurant, with awesome decor, spicy salsa, plentiful portions, and good service.  We were in the restaurant for about 90 minutes, however time flew by and it seemed like we just arrived when it was time to head home.
      Indya and Teena sat across from each other, and despite having just met, their conversation was spirited and personal.  For me, talking with Jay was simply fabulous.  He has a wealth of experience in a career for which I am just starting to explore.   So the ideas, thoughts, and questions flowed like chunky salsa!!   Keeping this simple, I am grateful for our new friends.   Jay has agreed to allow me to advertise some of his companies properties, so look for these in the Fall issue of the Windermere/Lane county magazine.

International Real Estate Super Agent

 Summer is here in the Pacific Northwest and I am already thinking about the weather turning and the dark winters.  I have always struggled with living in the moment.  In particular, I often dream of spending winters in the tropics.  It's in my blood to escape from the cold, damp world and dive into warm sunshine.  Not sure if it's an age thing or not, however my bones feel better when it's February and the temperature is 75.

  I am hoping to find a city that has the same characteristics of my home town, yet does not turn dark and grey in November!  Eugene, Oregon has it's own vibration that resonates with all of us that live here.  It's that vibration that I will be seeking on the other side of the border, as I search for my winter escape plan!

  Today, I am a Realtor working at Windermere of Lane County.  I am also a father of three under the age of 15.  So it's not realistic to start living south of the border for a few more years.  In order to justify and rationalize spending more that two weeks in the tropics I am turning my travel plans into work.

  The plan is to spend a month at a time exploring retirement towns.  In each town or major city, I hope to reach out to a few Realtors and set up a face to face.  The plan is to make connections with Realtors and find the companies that I would use if or when I was going to purchase.  This plan includes the Realtor interview and office inspection along with a broker tour.  My hope is that a broker will provide me a short tour of three homes in a variety of price ranges.   I intend to write up a detailed description of the interview along with photos and personal impressions.

   The journey begins after Thanksgiving.  I plan to drive to Baja Mexico from Oregon.  My wife, Indya will be flying to Cabo San Lucas on December 8 where she will then join me.  There are numerous cities along the way, and I have just started to reach out to agents along the route.  Stay tuned for more updates as I firm up my travel plans!