reality check

My father in law is very good value. As well as being a lovely guy, he helps us out so much, both around our own house and also with our units.  We couldn’t have done half of what we have if it wasn’t for his help over the last couple of years.

On Tuesday night, before meeting our new tenants, we dropped by the current reno to speak to him.  He’d been there most of the day, painting on undercoat/sealant on the walls and ceiling of the smaller bedroom.  I was having a whinge about how tired I was from the night before (see previous post for boring details), and about how hard it was, and how tired I was, etc etc.  He paused for a moment, painted some more of the cornice, and said: ‘And just think, in ten years’ time, you’ll be told how lucky you are.’

Talk about putting something into perspective.  In ten years’ time, we’ll be financially set up for the rest of our lives.  Minor crap like doing the hard yards sometimes, working all day then painting ’til  midnight at the latest reno, dealing with problem tenants and regular turnovers, that’ll all be in the past.  We’ll be reaping the rewards for all that stuff, and it’ll be in the past, while our lives will be immeasurably financially improved from our hard work we’re putting in now.  Let’s face it, you get very little in this life without doing some hard work at some stage.  We just happen to be at that stage now.  And really, we’re already reaping rewards.  We got a great tax return last year, and we should get another great return this year, so even apart from the capital gains the properties will inevitably produce, the yearly returns are going alright too.  We’re making our own luck.

Next time I’m complaining, I’m going to remind myself that we’re doing okay.