Hello from rmb

I am a Sydneysider (yes another one!). I started property investing rather by default almost 15 years ago. Started brilliantly. One badly timed deal just before the GFC saw me almost lose everything I worked so hard to get. But I am still hanging in there by the skin of my teeth. I've joined PropertyChat to connect with other property investors and to get the advice that you just cant get by reading books or watching DVD's or going to seminars, like who in a certain area is a terrific property manager. I did the usual pre-questioning, but all too often all the promises given soon give way to complacency, laziness or the property manager being overworked with too large a rent roll. I hope that at some time, I will also be able to contribute to the forum.

 

Welcome rmb. Sounds like you've had character building experiences. I'm a firm believer of what doesn't kill us makes us stronger

 

Welcome rmb! Great intro - with all the folks on here, this place is a great resource to promote action. Have a chat to a few people here to get insights into who's great on the property manager side of things in different locations.

 

Gday @rmb , welcome aboard.
Could you tell us a bit about the really good start and the bad timing?

 

Hi Azazel,
The good start was purchasing a property that right from the start took care of all expenses and gave a little bit of profit. I purchased a cash-flow positive property when at the time "negative gearing was the fashion. It was in an area that was not considered a "good"area but the return spole for itself and I gave it a go. Pitty I did't buy many more.
The bad timing was a purchase at the very other end of the spectrum. We over-comitted (even the bank knew that but gave pre-approval) as we were going to re-sell soon after settlement. This was my first off the plan purchase with a 3 year timeframe that was called on over a year early, with settlement on the week before the GFC hit the front pages of all newspapers. The developers saw this coming. The result was that overnight, the "value" of the property dropped over 50%. Fire-sales in the complex saw this bottom out to 60% below the OTP purchase price.

 

Good to have you here rmb

 

Thanks for giving more details of your experiences.
Hope that you've recovered from the OTP/GFC problems.
Have you got any more in Sydney since then?

 

No. I've hit the proverbial brick-wall in regards to lending.