Further reports from Buffalo.
I'm still pretty strapped for time, so instead of the whole long bit, I'll be providing edited highlights. For reasons that will become obvious, I'm not telling the whole tale
.
I had arranged to get a list of hot prospects of properties from my realtor before we left, but we took our time in getting to Buffalo. This was because my travelling companions, Dr Quiggles and Rolling Thunder, don't travel well and Dr Quiggles has a chronic illness which regularly leads to exhaustion. So it wa two weeks later that we finally dropped in and got our first surprise - quite a few Australians that we had known about, and more that we hadn't, had bitten the bullet and gone to the US. Some of the properties they had bought were my best prospects, too.
At that stage I had the ungenerous thought that it served me right for opening my big mouth. However, the obvious point came back to me that if I was willing to share only provided others didn't benefit, then my 'sharing' was not that at all. I was still disapointed, however.
There had also been a side benefit from the stir in activity. Australians, as the most exotic investors, came in for the most comment, but it soon became apparent that there was a lot of New York City money and Californian money flowing in. All that cash was putting a floor under prices, letting vendors know that they could sell (stimulating supply) and increased the value of my existing properties. I could tell however that the quality of the remaining stock was getting picked over and that I might have to lower my sights in terms of acceptable rates of return and/or building quality.
We spent four weeks in Buffalo, and worked our buns off, 7 days a week. Rolling Thunder had been enrolled in a school, which helped, and Dr Quiggles largely stayed healthy four the entire four weeks, which was pretty amazing.
The end result has still not played out, especially as there were a number of complicating factors. Just to give you an idea of the problems you can face, we made an offer on one place, and a week later it was condemned!! Why? Because the landlord had a dispute with the tenants, wanted them out and took the drastic step of cutting off the utilities. He then reported HIS OWN property to the authorities as unfit for habitation on that basis
and the cops moved the tenants out. We made it clear that our offer was inoperative until all utilities were back operating and the property was 'uncondemned'.
I'd have to say that if anything the second trip was as big a learning curve as the first, because I was trying to do better and bigger in a harder environment. Worthwhile experience? Absolutely. Stressful? Very much.
Some other observations: I have never met such friendly folk as the Yanks whose paths I crossed. They were unbelievably warm and open, and it made me wonder whether visiting Americans see Aussies as rather cold fish. Something to think about.
Most of the locals reacted with unbelief to the concept of investing in real estate in their city. There are too many stories of big concepts which never get off the drawing board, urban renewal heroes who turned out to be criminal slumlords with no intention of renewing anything except their cashflow, budget blowouts likely to impact on property tax and the like. And that meant that some opportunities remained.
Finance remains a hassle, which means that all who go there need to be well resourced and to tread warily.