mid-week update and property blahblah

Well, I’ve managed to survive going back to work.  I’ve been having hour-long sleeps in my lunch break to tide me over, and naps after work, but I’m actually functioning well while I’m awake, which is great.  I’m able to sleep at work due to our fantastic sick room – it’s dark, quiet, has an a/c duct which blows onto your face (I love this as I get really hot), and a very comfy mattress.  I just sneak in there, lie down, set the alarm on my mobile for an hour later, and I’m out like a light.

I finished my nasty antibiotics last night, and I’m glad.  I was just starting to get pains in various tendon-like areas, but I chose to ignore them on the basis I was finishing the course that day.  (Yes, I play an MD in real life as well as on the internet.)  They’re still a bit sore today, but I’ve stayed off my feet, and I’m sure they’ll improve now I’m off the ciprofloxacin.  At least, that’s the plan.

Work has actually been good.  I’ve done some good work and got some really positive feedback.  This is so good!  I spent months under-performing pretty badly when my depression was out of control, so it’s fantastic to be appreciated. 

SO and I are still on the property warpath.  We put a couple of offers in on Monday evening after seeing a unit, but the owner wasn’t negotiating, and we didn’t want it badly enough to pay full price.  We’ve got our eye on another couple of units, one of which we should be seeing on Saturday morning, so we’ll see what happens then.  SO has really got into the search this time round - he’s actually pointing out potential properties to me, which is a first.

(Please feel free to skip the next few paragraphs if you’re not interested in hearing about our approach to buying investment property.)

We’ve got a pretty good system going of elimination based on internet research.  We have a list of essential features, desirable features, and deal-breakers.  Essential features include:

1.  Must have two bedrooms;

2.  Must be on the ground floor (ever tried carrying a three-seater lounge up two flights of stairs?! I thought my father in law was going to have a heart attack.  Never again.);

3.  Must be able to be tarted up, so we can get it for a good price, clean it up, and voila, instant equity;

4.  Must be in a decent complex;

5.  Must be in a desirable location (eg. close to public transport, shops, freeway entrance, beach, the city, etc.);

6. Undercover parking for at least one car.

Desirable characteristics include:

1.  Air conditioning installed (we can do this ourselves, but it’s a pain getting permission from the body corporate);

2.  A private courtyard out the back of the unit;

3.  Bathroom and kitchen in okay condition (so all we need to do is apply lots of paint and new handles, to create a major improvement).

Deal-breakers include:

1.  A poorly maintained complex.  This is an absolute deal breaker for us;

2.  Major problems with wiring or plumbing that require extensive (and expensive) repairs;

3.  Any form of commercial-type setup – we like to control the rent, tenants, etc ourselves;

4.  Ugly apartment layout (paint can’t change poor layout);

5.  Evidence of dodgy owners or tenants living in the complex – I wouldn’t want to rent where drug dealers hang out, and I don’t expect our tenants to do so either;

6.  Dead gardens (another sign of poor strata management);

7.  Very large apartment blocks.  We try to buy in smaller groups, as they appear to be better maintained.

Anyhow, that’s the approach we take.  It varies a little, but it’s getting more and more refined over time.  For example, it’s at the point where if I see a great buy that’s not on the ground floor of an apartment block, I don’t even consider it.  It’s just not worth the hassle, especially when we rent our units fully furnished, and so have to shift the furniture ourselves.

Eh, I think it’s time to hit the sack.