What to look for.

Hi George,

Welcome to the forum []
I’m unsure from your limited description where these blocks are, however they might be older and in need of re-wiring, perhaps re-plumbing, re-guttering, re-roofing etc. These items need to be checked out professionally. However there are a few things you can do yourself…even if the RE agent thinks you’ve gone loopy [:0]

Don’t forget to talk to some neighbours to the block, that might let you know what sort of tenant it attracts []
Just use your senses.
Hearing – Listen for noise, be it scratching noises (rodents or roaches), traffic noises etc. Knock on wood (truely!) and listen for any hollowness or vibration under your hand (ie. at door jambs, window frames, archetravings etc). Walk on the floor and listen for any creaks (if there are floor boards)
Smell – any smell of rot/rising damp etc, run a tap and smell the water that comes out. Carpets can also carry smell (but I’ll leave the reason for that out from this post []).
Taste – that’s if your game drinking the water after you’ve smelled it! []
Sight – Wallpaper (used to mask a multitude of sins [}]), Paint flaking off (can also be because of rising damp) New painting especially on ceilings of bathrooms (cover moisture damage). If electricity connected, check if fans are working in bathrooms. Generally your bathrooms and Kitchens are the most expensive to replace. Roofing (downpipes and grates) might be a bit difficult to check if it’s a block of flats though. Check that the toilet flushes/adequate water pressure…
Get a marble and place it in 1 corner of the room (on flat surface) and see where it travels to. That’s the slope of the floor. Do this in the bathroom, (in case it floods you want to make sure that there is a drain at the lowest point of the slope).
Look at the laundry area (not sure from your description if it is a communial laundry room or in indivudaul units).
Look to see if flywire doors, doors and windows open freely or not. Also check cupboard doors or any sliding doors that they open gracefully or not. Believe it or not, a couple of places I went to, I’ve had door knobs and even doors come off in my hand []
Touch Well you’ve walked around and opened doors, now if you suspect any rising damp, feel the walls with an open palm against the wall, especially in bathrooms and of the adjoining the wall where the shower/bath recess is (usually another room which shares the same wall).
If Kitchen is tiled (or any tiled areas in bathroom or kitchen), run your hand with firm pressure over the tiles to see if they are securely adhered to the wall/splash back. Check that grouting is complete. If kitchen benches are laminate, make sure that at seams at the kitchen sink (or where ever there is a laminate seam) the laminate is flush with the adjoining sheet of laminate. If not, there could be swelling underneath the laminate sheet due to water seepage.

I hope this helps some… it’s a long post I know.
Don’t be afraid to look funny doing these things infront of the RE agent…after all it’s your 170K at risk, not the RE’s.

Have a look to see if there are any little cosmetic things you can do to improve the look and feel of the place, cheaply.

Let us know if you buy them. Sounds nicely cash flow +ve assuming they are all rented out.
Good Luck George!

Cheers
Sooshie []

When a problem is created the solution is created simultaneously

HI Sooshie
great post, we do most of these things but it was good confirmation of what others do.
Erika

Hi Happydragon,

A simple due dilligence can be, a builders/pest inspector report, talking to locals, asking further more questions with the real estate agents. Or even a quick search about the area on the interent.

Even just talking to the locals, you learn so much.

Cheers,
sis

People 4get that by saving just $3 a day & investing it sensibly
over a working life, you’ll end up with around $1 million

Hi George,

I think it still might be a goer, depending on how much you can negotiate on price. Perhaps vendor can leave money in the deal, then you’d have money to do the place up (if it’s worth it ?).

I forgot to mention, that you can get a little plug which you insert into the powerpoint and little LED’s light up if there is any power leakage. Dick Smith Electronics or Tandy sell them if I recall. It doesn’t replace a true electrical report, but it can tell you if there are any problems. This gadget is worth buying!

Glad you enjoyed my post []

Cheers
Soosh []

When a problem is created the solution is created simultaneously

Hi Happydragon,
Don’t give in so easily. Like Sooshie said, you have a lot of room for negotiation.
There is a person on this forum who advocates finding a problem and solving it, I think you found a problem!
What is the area like? Was this place in amongst other rundown props or was the area decent?
Might be worth a professional opinion on the price of fixing the place.
Find out the vacancy rate of the area. It moght be that this place was a dump causing the 50% occupancy rate. If it was more appealing, tennants would probably stay longer.
Basically, do more research on the area before you give up on these units, step back and take a look at the big picture.
Cheers,
Sue []

“Be careful not to step on the flowers when you’re reaching for the stars”

EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWww What makes a post Sticky?? im not sure i wana know [:o)]

Regards Bear[:o)]