I agree with Superted. (I know Superted….I could probably know you over with a feather right now[biggrin]) I have never bought sight unseen either although I have had conditional offers on property w/o having seen them. In NZ though you make a conditional offer and sign a contract with conditions eg. building inspection, finance, due dillegence etc. Noone can bid for the property while you have a conditional offer. As far as I can tell money usually does not change hands (ie 10% deposit) until you go ‘unconditional’. This means that your only costs if you decide to pull out of the contract would be for the building inspection, some legals etc. However I would certainly want to check the property out b4 putting hard money down.
Regards,
TimNo matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love. (1 Corinthians 13:3b – The Message)
Well done Shaunwalker,
Good post and good points.And Yack, good of you to raise the topic. Look at all the response it has generated.
But at the end of the day, you can’t help those who can’t help themselves.
I say stick to your own investing philosophy and let the newbies and lemmings jump over the cliff..
I did, and survived and learnt plenty from the mistakes I made.
KP
i think the problem is, that the newbies read the book and think its easy, thats why they keep asking where are these pos cashflow properties, a few will persist and find them but at this stage of the game they are in small towns.
i must admit to start with i was one of them, but i realised after steves first book, that what was done 4 – 5 years ago, is not the way to do it now.
the moment the newbies and lemmings get “it” the better off they will be in terms of experience in understanding exactly what to look for, and how money really works.
we can only keep on answering their questions in the hope that they ask the right questions,
i do not wish anyone to go broke, but i do shudder at some of the silly mistakes people are willing to take.
i knew to stop buying real estate earlier this year when i was in a cab going to the darwin airport, and the taxi driver was telling me that “he had to buy an investment property” i asked him what he was looking for and he didnt know! only that he had to have one. alarm bells went off all around me then.
cheers all
shaunLead, Follow or get out of the bloody way
hey, i just noticed,
my contributer thingy at the top is stuck on 359!
how am i ever going to break the 1000 level? [biggrin]Lead, Follow or get out of the bloody way
Shaun,
I read the book pretty recently.
It was worth reading…but I didn’t race out and start looking for pos cashflow properties in the sticks.
I are in the sticks already,and am surrounded by such properties.
Some with asking prices of $400+k.
Average would have to be closer to $260k.You can only caution newbies…you can’t save them from themselves.
As far as I am concerned, there is always a profit to be had in real estate.
And I sure as hell wouldn’t let the rambling of a taxi driver disuade me from buying if I was in my buying cycle..
KP
I didn’t know lemmings were allowed to buy property in this country…
Frankly I reckon that if now is the first opportunity you have to buy property it’s not the worst time to start.
People have different goals & ambitions & if someone wants to learn about property investing there’s no better way than to actually buy a property.
If you don’t maximise your return on the first one, so what – you’re in the game & learning to buy better.
How many experienced investors in this forum started buying property between booms and saw prices drop a little before they rose? I’m sure there are a few at least….and they’d value that experience highly as it helped them when buying into the booms.
Cheers,
Aceyducey
In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. But, in practice, there is.– Jan L.A. van de Snepscheut
Hi Acey,
That’s a good point…
I seem to remember in about Feb 2003, when we started investing, and lots of people told us that “the boom was over”, and “prices couldn’t possibly go any higher”, “prices will fall and you will lose your house” etc….. Well, as we all know the boom went on a lot longer (possibly partly thanks to Steve’s book)..
We now have “hundreds of thousands” of reasons to say that they weren’t quite right.[biggrin][biggrin]
We probably would have been classed as lemmings at that time, but getting into the “market” can be the best education anyone can have…
As long as people use caution, there can be bargains in all markets…
Cheers,
Del
Hi Guys,
personally for me, when Steve, brought at his first book “130 Properties in 3.5 years” and being a book lover, and snooping books out, at the local book shop…
… his book caught my attention, but the links in his books to his website (forum) and being able to talk to like-minded people… was something that made me pick up the book, plus the book title…
overall i enjoyed the book, and while, the property market was booming, so was Steves website here…
though once i began to notice, people buying up these 11 second solution properties, it was simply outsmarting the firt timers or amatures… personally i do believe alot of people have been burnt and all…
but overall, i would not say that steve, was a contributor to the australian property boom, but, did infulence people (from reading his book) to buy properties… (but some people, took the 11 second solution a little to serious… or a bit stupidly…)
…yes there are some, horrbile stories ive heard, but thats people’s fault that thinking the “11 second solution, was the perfect key market indicator”
though im not one to say…
overall… congratulations to the ones that caught the boom early, and rode it out high…
but also, to the ones buying up property, in a market right now (currently)
… personally i feel that these guys have a different market approach and strategy and might actually do better than the rest, currently right now, if they can continue to buy properties up to the next boom…
Cheers,
sis… on another foot note…
personally, i havent read Steve’s second book, not because i dont want too, but because, i’ve found that most books are pretty repetive…
but also… investing, is pretty straight forward.. and with quick easy words… “its just repeating a system that works….”
Cheers,
sisplease dont get me wrong, if the right IP at the right price comes along i will snap it up!.
i just had some concernes with people being speculative on property, and me beleiving it thats all. i dont think theres a right or wrong time to buy property but the strategy you have must fit the current curcumstances. for me i dont have a right strategy at present, the nsw land tax is killing me, so i am currently looking at other ways to make a profit, other than the 11 second rule.
oh well i can only keep looking and studying how other people are doing it now until i come up with something.
cheers all
shaunLead, Follow or get out of the bloody way
Yesssss Shaun,
That says it all……………
Hi All,
I have not read all of the posts to this topic as there is now 5 pages worth of opinions here but I will add my two cents worth in respose to Yacks original post.
I believe that if I don’t give it ago… even though I am a Lemming[laugh4], how will I be able to learn from my mistakes? Yes, I want to make as little mistakes as possible because I am dealing with mass amounts of money but that is impossible, nothing is fool proof.
I can not predict the interest rates, nor can I predict the market but if I sit by waiting for the right opportunity at the perfect time it may not come so I believe that we need to make the best of what we are dealt with in the time we have, after all…. ‘WHERE THERE IS A WILL, THERE IS A WAY!’
-Blondie [cowboy]
Blondie,
It’s worth reading all the posts on this thread.
Some good advice to be had and also some heated debate from the big guns!Mini’s major post was awesome.
This thread has made me think twice about the type of IP I want to start with, originally I wanted something close to where the new rail line is going to be south of Perth, but nothing would fit the 11 sec rule (strongly influenced by steve’s first book) so I have also been scouring the internet looking for cheapos in country towns including Peterborough, Katanning, Tassie and NZ.
I did find some cheapos that could fit the bill but have been hesitant, due to reasons mentioned in previous posts, no industry, unemployment levels etc.
I know some of you will say don’t procrastinate or you’ll never get anywhere but I guess it’s my nature to be doubly sure I’m making the right move, even if I get the first couple right, I’m sure I’ll make mistakes at some stage and learn from them.
I’m hearing more and more about Peter Span books and quite like the sound of (mentioned previously in this post) -ve to begin with then neutral to +ve so in today’s market maybe it’s not such a bad idea to buy something where I was originally thinking about, close to where the new railway will be, maybe a bit of reno and work towards the CG and +ve cashflow, at least I would be close to it as I live in Mt Lawley, just a 40 min drive down the freeway.
I will be reading steve’s second book which I’ve bought and also Peter Span, Rolf De Roos and some others as recommended by other contributors to the forum.
Will let you all know when I’m about to take the plunge…hopefully not like a lemming[biggrin]
Cheers, Doug
Good Stuff Doug.
Tread with caution and make sure you read Spann as well as Mcknight and decide what you reckon is the best strategy for you.
With your approach, eventhough it may take some time will succeed in the end.
Bec
Have you read any Peter Spann or Jan Somers Books? Before you act it will be worth your while in the long run.
Hi again,
No I have not read many books yet, I have spent hours on here talking with people and reading posts along with Steves first book I have read that one.
I also have Steve’s second book freshly purchased this week as well as a Margaret Lomas book but I am spending all my saving money so am making a trip to the library next week!
I WILL of course be reading many books before I take the plunge but my partner and I have only just bought our first house which we are using for PPOR at present.(Moved in 3 wks ago). So it is still early stages for us yet.
We plan to buy another two next year and start off reasonably slow. I live in regional SE of SA so think I may be in a good area for now but am looking around, I am also a real estate agent/property manager so I have access to information which can be VERY helpful.[biggrin]
Thanks for your tips, hints and advice.Blondie[cowboy]
Oh yeah…..
I think my mums also getting me Buyer Beware for Christmas![blush2]
Blondie[cowboy]Yack…
I am a newbie with two properties, only aquiring the second one recently.
Thanks for the warning, although I am wondering how much of Steve’s 2 books you have actually read.
It is explained quite simply that research is the answer, along with preparing for the worst case scenario.
Interest rates can be fixed for periods of time and along with creative thinking to “improve” the propoerty, not only in apperance, but cash flow are also explained.
Team this with an exit strategy for each property and you are well on the way to reducing your risk, not eliminating it obviously, but you can keep an eye on it.
Also the larger the deposit, the better the CoCR looks.
As far as fun goes, well that would depend on what you want from investing and where you want to be and in what time frame. I think the fun starts when the cash flow received is more than the expenses paid out, even in times when capital growth in stagnent.
It may pay for you to read the books again.
Just a tip from a newbie mind you.[cap]
<<<I am a newbie with two properties, only aquiring the second one recently.>>>
Drewbie – could I ask where you bought these properties and whether you have a PPOR. Whats more important to you – a few $000 in positive cash flow or capital gain. Or living in your own house one day.
Remember Steve made his money from capital gain. Not a few $000 in positive cash flow.
Good luck with it, but I would like to know the answers to those few questions.
Hey Yack
I am living in my PPOR and paying it off.
My propoerties are in Midland and High Wvcomb. Both in the Perth Metro area.No one is saying it is easy by any stretch of the imagination. The deals don’t just fall in your lap, you have to make them work.
Cash flow is what I am looking at presently, but as i said previously, if the figures tend to swing then you look at the exit strategy. If capital growth happens to a point to make it worth while to sell, great, off load it, pay the CGT and search for a better deal, or deals in comparison.(Divide and Multiply)
The trick is to continually monitor the situation.
It is all subjective, what I want may not be what you are looking for and vice versa.
I hope this helps.[biggrin]
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