Yes, I too am sick of tradesmen who not only charge like wounded bulls, but also often don't do the job properly the first time so need to be called back..
I have maybe 12 electrical jobs I'd like done (additional security lights, changing light shades, a couple of new power points, a bit of a variety of stuff, but totalling 12) at my home, but as none of them is particularly urgent, I've been putting them off for up to 12 years – because it costs so much for an electrician!!      So some overcharging tradie out there has missed out for 12 years because they are too expensive.    They are their own worst enemy.    But they don't see that, as their ego gets in the way.
I had the best lawyer in the world to represent me in my fairly recent family court property settlement.    My partner spun the process out for as long as he could get away with, so it cost me $29,000, but my lawyer gained me an additional $197,000, so to me he was worth every cent.    I think some lawyer bashers could perhaps weigh up what they've got to gain, before they set out to find a lawyer.    Yes they seem expensive, but mine was worth every cent I paid.    I became aware during the process that he'd studied accountancy to further his education, & beyond the settlement I discovered he was also in the process of studying child psychology, to have a better understanding of his clients.
   There were 2 lawyers at his practise, & between them they had to earn enough to pay 7 staff, including themselves, as well as pay quite high rent, so I'm probably one of the few who could see where his $350 per hour was going.   
His name is Martin Hynes, Bunbury, W.A.
Yes, let's name the good service people   
…….and as for you "crashy", yes whining & moaning can bring prices down!
I took my only rental property of 13 years off my agent in August, as I couldn't stand the inefficient service any longer I got from the property managers & most other people who attended my property, which included the blind man, electrician, plumber, maintenance men.     I'd been asking for 13 years, for any tradies who attended my property, to call me from the job, as I wanted to ascertain whether I was going to pay, or whether the tenant was going to pay for the problem.     I think 2 of about 12 (we had a couple of very damaging storms) called me from the job, which I didn't know had been completed til the payment was deducted from my rent.    I found out too late each time, that the lack of calls was mostly the fault of the property manager's assistant (assistants should be made to pass some sort of an exam prior to employment!!!!) who didn't request a call be made from the tradies.   
So they all lost out, the property management company & the tradies.
I've also found that people who seriously overcharge have their head stuck a long way in where daylight don't go, & they have no perception that they have a disgusting reputation.   They also seem to be unaware of karma. 

StingrayBirke, sus out a person who's been investing in residential real estate for some time, & you'll hear the positives for yourself, straight from the horse's mouth. 
Property investing is like anything else in life.    If you pay attention, study the subject from books, seminars, & the experiences of others (including on sites like this), you'll see a completely different angle.
From my experience, the only people/media who knock property investing, are those who've never experienced it, or had no idea what they were doing when they did invest & so didn't do as well as they could've.  

Mmmmmmm. 
If we asked 50 different people, how many dollars would it take to make you rich, I wonder how many different answers we'd hear.

Some of us have been conditioned through our parents and others, to have a "scarcity" mentality.
It's up to the newer generation who're whingeing about "cant' afford this, can't afford that," to break out of the scarcity frame of mind.   And it can easily be done, just look at the examples given by some of the posts immediately preceding mine
Don't let fear get in your way.
You don't have to be wealthy to invest, but you sure need to invest to be wealthy (as in own your own home).  

Why is the Property Manager "waiting til they leave" for God's sake?
As has been suggested, get yourself an inspection ASAP, with you present (in W.A., 7 day's notice is required to be given to the tenant by the Property Manager!).   Tell the Property Manager to bring with them to the inspection, the ORIGINAL Property Condition Report, so you can compare what's written on there with what you'll be seeing at the inspection.
Once damage has been sighted, the Property Manager should be forwarding to them urgently, a Breach Notice, for Breaching the Terms/Conditions of their Lease Agreement, which gives them 10 days (or is it 14 days) to correct their misdemeaners.   The Property Manager then needs to re-inspect, & if the problems aren't rectified by that inspection day, she should then issue them with a Termination Notice, which gives them 7 days to vacate.
Check with your R/Estate institute first, in case your guidelines are different from here in W.A.. to know exactly what your rights are, & in what order procedures need to take place, & over what period.   Write down what they tell you, including the names of the forms the Property Manager needs to issue.   That way, the Property Manager knows she's got to stay on her toes.
By the way, Real Estate Agents & their Property Management section, are "scared" of the Real Estate Institute, so your contacting the Institute will make for fairly good power of persuasion with your Property Manager.
Good luck!
Cheers,           Liz

……sorry, forgot to state that I'm in W.A. – if that matters?

Cheers,
   Liz

Hi Joely,
I'd move into it, & rent out the one you live in now, if the one you currently occupy is of a good rental standard. 
That way I'm sure your existing mortgage becomes tax deductible, and you could do lots of the work you're planning to do in the second house, in your spare time, saving you lots.
I feel you'd be doing yourself a big financial favour by swapping houses.    May need to swallow a bit of pride, but hey, it's your future at stake here

I’ve just started the ball rolling towards having 2 home units built behind an existing rental, so far just to the planning application stage.
I’m 63, and perhaps quite ignorantly, assumed I could get my mits onto my super now.
Monday I discovered that that is not to be, as I still work full time, my only option seeming to be that I may be able to draw a small pension from my super. Fat lot of good a “small pension” will be towards repaying my $400,000 loan!
Am wondering if there is any way around this? Any ideas out there please?
Cheers,
Liz

Wow! 3491. That was worth all the grind & the going without over the last 20 years!
So that’s my benchmark. I wonder what I can achieve in the next 20 years, but I’ll start with this next 12 months first…….
Thankyou so much Steve McKnight, for sharing your experiences with us & giving us the benefits of your knowledge and wisdom, on which to build our own. You’re a champ!
Cheers,
Liz

I’ve found that our W.A. RAC (Royal Automobile Club) pays the highest interest.
I think there’s one in every state, with names varying just slightly.