Flexible work opens options

No matter how you slice it, computers allow people to do many tasks: send e-mail instantly across the globe, order airline tickets, chat with others and research college papers.

And for people like Jackie Houchin, 40, vice president of operations for Builder's Capital Inc., computers make it possible for her to work from home part of the time.

She has two sons, ages 6 and 9, and while a child care facility is part of the family's lives, Houchin has no immediate family in town to call should one of them become ill. Her husband, John, who works in construction, can not disrupt an expensive building project to stay home with a sniffling child. That's where the computers come in. Well, that, and an understanding boss.

"My boss, Steve (Brockman, president and founder of Builder's Capital) is great," she said. "He gives me the flexibility to work at home if I have to. That's something about having children: companies understand that children get sick and sometimes you have to be home to be with them."

Her job is made even easier because the computer she uses at home, provided by Builder's Capital, is linked with the one in the office, 8275 S. Eastern Ave. From the home PC, which occupies an area of her great room, Houchin (pronounced HOW-chen) can access any client's electronic file. She can make changes as required, save the updates and then close the file. The changes appear instantly, should someone in the office then retrieve it on their computer. Houchin estimated 90 percent of her day-to-day work occurs at the keyboard, so being able to access files at home is a big plus. The arrangement was in place "from day one."

Houchin generally works four days in the office, which includes meeting with clients or taking paperwork to the proper businesses. On Fridays, she works out of her home as a matter of convenience. The children are either in school or in day care.

"If they were home on Fridays, I'd never get anything done," she said with a laugh.

She said one working location was not better or worse than the other, as there are good points associated with both. Working at the office, she noted, gives her a chance to interact with adults versus children.

Even though she's at home part of the time, Houchin makes herself available to clients any time, even weekends. She receives as many as five phone calls on Saturdays or Sundays from some of the 200-plus investors with which the company deals. But the linked computer (and its super-fast cable modem) allows her to pull up their files with a few clicks of her mouse.

Brockman, her boss and the company founder, does not have access to the files at his home. Should something need his immediate attention on the weekends, Houchin contacts him ... via computer, of course.

"The way it's set up now is very convenient," she said. "I can access our files on weekends and e-mail him at his house if something needs his approval. It's convenient and helps us maintain a high performance level for customers."

Being able to instantly access files from home on weekends means Builder's Capital can be more personable. Besides being available at all hours, it is not unusual for Houchin or Brockman to go to investors' homes with paperwork that needs signing, instead of asking them to come to the office.

Her only suggestion for computer companies is to make them less susceptible to glitches because "when something goes wrong, I don't know how to fix it."

When the computer is not being used for business, Houchin allows her sons, whose names she asked not be used, to play educational games like "MathBlaster," the Learning Company's "Jump Start" series and "Where in the World is Carmen San Diego?" on it.

Builder's Capital was founded February 1997. It has a portfolio of $48 million in 46 separate loans. Its main focus is trust deed investments secured by prime Las Vegas real estate. Investors with as little as $25,000 are welcome to have their monies combined with other investors for raw land loans. While there is risk, investors see a return of 12 percent to 14 percent on their money, Houchin said. They have a say in which land deals their money is used in and receive checks on a monthly basis, as the loan is paid off.

The companies can point to many plots that now hold Taco Bells, KFC stores, taverns and shopping centers. Many of their deals have involved land near Fort Apache and Tropicana, Cheyenne and Rancho and the Horizon Ridge area.

Whether at the office or at home, that information is at her fingertips. And it's all possible because today's computer technology allows her to be a high-tech business person while still being a mother.