My Dilkhush which I sold.
It's a skill which we have had to hone over the last five years. With six apartments under our care, it's been a pretty steep learning curve for us being landlords. Getting the right tenant is quite a task and can take months. BUT we have learned the VERY hard way. Select them with care. You can get one who will come in and destroy all you have so painstakingly expended your savings on. Better they pay less rent than have a messy tenant.
My first lesson was the two flats I built near the old HAL airport called Dilkhush. Tenants who pay small rents are the worst, remember that.They come from less affluent backgrounds and so treat your beautiful new apartment building so badly it's shocking. Finally when I sold Dilkhush which was barely 12 years old or less they had run the place into the ground. We had to gut everything -- from toilets to the kitchen, we gutted it all and redid it and then --- SOLD it. There was no way in hell I was cleaning up behind cheap tenants again. Cost me 3 lakhs but it was done.
Gorgeous duplex flats.
That money I invested in a flat near us so we could amble down at any time and check it and a flat in Goa where I plan to spend time writing. In this flat too the owners had sold it in a huge mess. Again we gutted the toilets and kitchen and redid the whole place.We even grew a beautiful garden in six months in the little open space outside.
I gave it after much thought to a Muslim filmstar and her mother believing they would look after the place as they were women. How WRONG, utterly wrong and in six months I requested them to vacate.Our beautiful modular kitchen was covered in grease, broken swing door dustbin, bathrooms had health faucets missing, bulbs were missing, GOD!!! Even the bloody door bell was missing.
Golden Arch
Cut it from the deposit they said airily -- oh yeah!! And who the heck has to do it?? Took six months of vetting people and finally I struck a deal with a young Sardarji. His fiance loved the garden and that was that. Periodically I get videos of the kitchen and garden and they know they will be out if they dont maintain the place.
Try renting in the West -- I know they will make you sign all sorts of sheets with details and woe should you leave dust under the cupboard or a dried cucumber in the fridge. You get fined to the tune of outsiders coming in to clean and cutting the hundreds of Euros out of your deposit. Had it happen to classmates and colleagues -- I usually learn from example!
What I know will get stolen in Hayes went there!
Here in Hayes Road we go through the gamut of all varieties of tenants. Vaastu compliant? Tramp through the flat with their shoes and muck it up. Huge families, small families, couples with huge dogs or cats or all sorts. “Haan haaan! We can use the guest bathroom for washing haandis. “ I over hear. Sorry folks, the flat has been rented is my response when the realtor calls. Haandis in the bathroom with jaguar fittings?? My sister will have a fit!! Another has a dog like a big horse. The dog is as big as the lady and drags her through the flat, while she makes flirty noises of don't Buster -- as if Buster gives a damn. Can't imagine the state of the doors once they come in. African teak -- no,no, I get nightmares. I smile and double the rent-- so they gasp and leave.
We have two BIG cars this won't do say so many great couples -- after everything seems fine and they look pleased and we do too. Our garage has been designed by a moron. We have lost so many excellent tenants because the garage does not work for them. Really?? you don't have a gym??? No we DON'T, you can run on the excellent pavements outside I say and the light bulb comes on! Or if they seem snotty say -- go to the Ritz gym.
Heliconias given by my friend Debbie Puravankara.
I proudly show off the Lazy Daisy, the fabulous Elicia stove top and chimney and the entire modular kitchen to one couple. I love my kitchen and we spent lakhs buying only the best. The lady of the house is uninterested and the husband sheepishly says -- we don't cook-- we ONLY order in!!!
I chose a couple last week after taking time to decide for my sister, because it's much, MUCH easier doing without the rent than redoing a beautiful apartment. Then of course through the year there are various niggly bits we have to see to, but it's worth the effort because as one of my tenants learned the hard way -- don't service your geysers and aircons -- one will burn out and you have to replace it!! Oh and by the way -- people who come from Singapore are very careful. Probably the tenancy laws there are tough which is good for us.
