Expansion Taking Place For A Rogue Valley Building Supply Company – In THIS Real Estate Market?!?!?!

Here it is, end of Summer 2009, the talk of doom and gloom in the housing industry still pretty prevalent, and lo and behold, here comes a glimmer of light! Funny how life can work that way, don’t you think? Well here’s one of those “balancing act” kind of stories for you…

My family and I moved to Southern Oregon in 2004, when with the help of an amazing real estate broker we found the perfect business for my husband Roy to run, the perfect home for us to live in, and later the perfect rental property to help us leverage in to the eventual purchase of the commercial building our business was located in. Yes…this took place during “the bubble years”. Yes…we’ve had some major challenges along the way. Yes…we are still here!

Our 5 year lease came up on this commercial building in July 2009. We had been negotiating with the building owners to renew the lease and continue with the same option to purchase we had built in to our contract, although in this down economy with an “underwater” rental and home, we were not yet prepared to exercise that option. Being the proactive people Roy & I are, we launched renewal negotiations early on. Although we had come to believe the rent we were agreeing to pay on the commercial building was higher than the present economy and commercial real estate market really supported, to avoid “rocking the boat” we were prepared to continue to stay in the building this business was located in, even though it is located way off the beaten path. We had done our research, and knew we could find less expensive commercial buildings to rent, but it was our purchase option that hooked us in to staying.

Now, my philosophies are sometimes different from Roy’s. I believe God can work in mysterious ways, and the Lord had a hand in what came next in our story, as in everything else. When our negotiated commercial lease renewal and purchase option arrived from the building owners, it wasn’t the signed copy of the agreement we had made with the owners, it was a completely revised purchase option agreement – the purchase option agreement that was the reason for us staying put vs. relocating to a less expensive, better location. Any clause the sellers felt was not in their favor was changed to suit their needs. No discussion. No negotiations. Totally one-sided. Just take it or leave it. We left it, setting our fears aside about relocating this business in a down economy.

Off we went with our mission to find a new location. Roy was on a roller coaster ride during this process, having found a building that was on a main artery that although bigger than what we needed, could be divided. When that transaction did not come to fruition, Roy had a hard time moving forward with the hunt for the ideal locations – yes, we discovered that based on current commercial market prices we were going to be able to afford two locations for the price we had been paying for one location. Roy quickly found the new centrally located Ashland showroom location, and was trying to line up the ideal Medford location. Mid-stream, we took a fork in the road, and stopped focusing solely on available buildings on main arteries, and looked at possibilities that were close to main arteries. We could easily direct homeowners to a showroom one street away from a main artery, and once the contractors have been to the showroom one tiime, they know where to find us. On top of that, the showroom/warehouse we found in Medford was right across the street from a related business – Ferguson’s who sells plumbing, heating and electrical supplies – both located in the fasted growing commercial/industrial area of the Rogue Valley.

September 1, 2009, Superior Windows & Doors relocated to a more centrally located Ashland showroom location and to a brand new showroom/warehouse in Medford near the Rogue Valley International Airport off Vilas Road. We have a lot of “thank yous” that go out to the many many participants in this endeavor, from the homeowners and contractors who have kept us in business during these challenging real estate market times to the staff whose dedication and hard work we couldn’t do without… from the local real estate brokers (both commercial and residential) we consulted along the way to the many local businesses (Matt Bostwick Construction Medford, Jerry Toney Construction Ashland, Peter McBennett Construction, Signs Now Medford, KDRV Medford, Deluxe Awning and Adept Communications Southern Oregon) that jumped through hoops to help us meet a very short time frame. We thank each and every one of you from the bottom of our hearts (and anyone we may have missed in this list)! We couldn’t have done this without you!

And last, but never least, our thanks and love go out to Dean and Susie Truscott for the loving friendship and support that was the critical element in our success at Superior Windows & Doors AND our family’s relocation and settlement in to a new community we just love. We'll never forget what you have done for us.

We’ll be having our Chamber of Commerce Ribbon Cutting Ceremonies at 4 p.m. – September 11, 2009 for 300 E. Hersey in Ashland and September 25, 2009 at 1121 Helicopter Way in Medford… come see us, or stop by our booth at the Fall Home Show September 18-20. Or just stop by some time and shake the President's hand.

See you out there!

Karen Cooper – OR/CA Mortgage Consultant – www.Quality4Loans.com