Do more research on the rental demand in the area. Speak to the local council about what is comming up locally in case there will be increased work opportunities to give you clues on potential demand.

Look at different houseing options to meet that demand.

Make sure you are getting a good enough return before starting.

How about an annual trip to the Island of Santorini. That would suit me during Australia’s winter. [exhappy]

Back to property……

try and use your own money last as much as possible as it is limited in supply. ask lost of questions and do lots of reading to find out where you can get money from so that you can use your own money last.

Hi Fun, try this:

think about all the things that you really really love to do, have and enjoy. Don’t worry about how much they cost – just do a really long brainstorming type of list.
eg.
coffee in cafe overlooking the bay
playing footy with mates in park
ride on an air balloon
2 hour spa treatment
day rental of sports car
day off walking in national park
etc etc etc – what ever it is that really enlivens your heart and enthusiasm – what ever is specific to you.

Make it a long list.

Then – Take out a callendar and depending on what you can afford to do – start to ‘book in’ some rewards for yourself on a regular basis. daily – weekly – monthly – quarterly and yearly rewards. Fill up your callendar with special treats that are specific to you – that will really make you happy over a period of time.

Make sure that you block time out of your callendar for these things and don’t let other people’s requests change your plans. Be ‘busy’ if you have been requested elsewhere (as much as practicable) and make them change their plans for you – make your needs a priority.

This is the most important part – make sure that you reward yourself with these things even if you make really tiny steps in moving forward with your property investment. This is about changing your behaviour and making property investing followed by doing things that fullfil you personally a HABIT.

It is this habit that will keep you motivated to keep investing to keep gettin these ‘rewards’ that suit you.

This is the way I believe you may be able to break out of that innertia that is stopping you from getting to that next ‘plateau’.

So don’t hold back – start with your list tonight – make it long – don’t worry about the cost of things because the things that don’t cost money will get you motivated and then you will be able to achieve the things you want that do cost money. So don’t focus on the money yet as it does not seam to motivate you as it does others.

Go for the things you love and the Property Investing will get you to them

Let us know over the next couple of days how you go.

Mind you I think I’ll start on my list now!!

The tenant may not want to go to the trouble of leaving their home if they are happy there on the chance that you may sell the home – it consts money and effort to move. Tell the tenant that you are looking to sell and try to keep the opens to a minimum.

Deal with an agent who does not do the evasive ‘open for inspections’ to the whole public. Try the private selling agents who sus out the buyers before they bring them to the house. I’ve sold 4 times and have never had the ‘open for inspection’ times with anyone and everyone welcome – I prefer few quality buyers rather than a stream of tyre kickers shuffling through and your tenant would probably prefer the same – plus it keeps the tenant feeling respected.

Also remember that the buyer – even if they are an owner occupyer may have reasons to stay in their own home for a while before they move in to the new one and may see the tenant as real bonus. I’ve seen many situations where the new buyer has not sold their house yet and needs time to do so, needs the kids to finish in their school year first, may want to move into the area later but not ready yet, you get the picture.

So keep the tenant, be respectful to them, and see if you can meet your needs with a really good agent.

hope goes well

Dazzling and Padmaa, thanks for the insights and the details. I appreciated them. Hopefully more people will share like you – and hopefully I’ll be next![exhappy]

Try and ask questions to the realestate agent in an around about way to find out why the seller is selling. If they agent does not tell you then keep the polite general discussion up until you find out. This will help you to sus out the right price to offer. Without asking directly I like to find out if they have bought elsewhere, when they need to move out by, where are they moving to, what terms do they prefer etc. Any information that helps you to help them and hence yourself.

The best way I’ve found that works for me is to share my previous buy and sell stories with the agent and that tends to drop their defences. If you have none of your own, then tell the agent some from people you know. Eg. today I was talking to the agent who was quoting a high price on a property. I told him I understood the vendor because that’s exactly what I did with the last property I sold – and realised 2 months later that the market was paying much less and I accepted a much lower offer because that is the reality of today. After that the agent told me everything – when the seller had to move by, where they were going, the fact they had bought elsewhere – and from there I could look at the facts and be able to structure a good offer.

I find the more polite and open you are with the agents the more good information they share with you. After all whilst they are working for the vendor, they still have to work with the buyer to broker a deal – and at the end of the day if they do not sell they do not eat.

So ask lots of polite questions. If the agent sees that you want to progress the sitation and move towards an offer they will talk – just keep asking for their ‘help’.

Let us know how you went – or go in future offers.

Georgia

As a mother of two young children I have been through a similar experience as you. This is what I have learned. Separate your family life from your investment life. Do not allow your investment life to potentially harm your family life. Protect your family from potential bad investment mistakes. Buffer your family from risk. Expect your investments to be good for your family now as well as later. If they do not do the above then find another way to invest. You might be surprised what you will find if you are looking for it and expect better.

Get rid of your investments that are costing you so much money that you are struggling with your budget. Get what you can for them now and put it down to your first learning experience and be more savy next time. There are plenty of opportunities out there – don’t let the couple that are sapping you now close your eyes to the hundreds out there waiting to be discovered.
Enjoy your baby.

For the name – I would keep it basic and easy to find- Rotorua Backpackers. As for marketing the property – find out how backpackers make their decisions by asking them directly. Stand around other accompdation spots or tourist hangouts and ask backpackers directly how they decided to stay at this location – who did they ask? where did they find the name/phone of this accomodation? etc. Don’t feel comfortable doing this? Get a friend to do it for you. This excercise also gives you the opportunity to test a few names and see what might work best. Just make sure you ask your market directly. Good luck