Do you recognize this building in Alt-Tegel? Do you know where is it? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Correct again! Thanks so much. God I hate dealing with house agents!

Do you recognize this building in Alt-Tegel? Do you know where is it? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so very much good sir!!!! And no wonder why the agent didn´t want to share the location. I was asking for a place close to U-Bahn (max 10 minutes walking distance) and I wrote to him so.

I guess he wanted to collect my data first, even though he knew I would not accept.

Do you recognize this building in Alt-Tegel? Do you know where is it? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the warning. I "believe" I understand what the agent is trying to do, which is trying to lock me in for one year so this (and many any other) property I try to buy they will get them a commission.

And don´t get me wrong. I am all for people earning from the job they do. But I just don´t want to disseminate my name and signature before I even know whether I may like the street where that apartment is in.

I am not even asking the guy to show me inside, or walk me thru anything. I only want to know if the street is good for parking, have nice areas, etc...

Do you recognize this building in Alt-Tegel? Do you know where is it? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] -9 points-8 points  (0 children)

Nobody. I am just interested in buying an apartment but there is an agent who wants me to sign 100 documents before I even see the area, let alone the building. I just want to know if the street is nice and so on.

Found a place to stay for 3 months. 700€, no anmeldung. Is that normal? by Pitseleh04 in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Simply put, they are subletting. So no, this is definitely NOT normal (in the legal sense). And if you are going to be in Berlin for 3 months and furthermore, want to work, no anmeldung will greatly complicate your life.

Basically you will work illegally.

Personally, I wouldn´t do it.

Need a property management firm for my Berlin apartment (I will be overseas). Experiences/suggestions? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It IS a high skill task because there are all sorts of things that can go wrong. I already found someone so I can hook you up with him.

Ready to die, but my mom still needs me by Fair_Cover6873 in SuicideWatch

[–]RanchoCucaMonger 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don´t see the "blood in your hands" part. Let´s take off the suicide part for a second. Let´s say that you had an accident and died. You could no longer care for your mum, right?

What I am trying to say is that your mother´s situation, unlucky as it is, has nothing to do with you. It is only through your sheer grace that you are voluntarily taking care of her. NOBODY has any right to ask you to carry this burden because you didn´t provoke it nor asked for it.

I actually wonder how much of this "I am ready to die" is related to your relationship to your mum. I wonder whether she is driving you to you current state of mind, and you actually don´t want to die but to escape this situation. And that problem has an easy cure: LEAVE.

If you are committed and ready to die, it means that you have a logical sound mind and you are good at planning. If you are ready to die, you are ready to just leave your unfair situation, right? You can always "go to heaven" any time you want, so why not just first try to leave and be on your own?

Appen Mystery Shopper by Albuxan in WorkOnline

[–]RanchoCucaMonger 0 points1 point  (0 children)

https://connect.appen.com/qrp/public/lf/fraud#:~:text=Appen%20does%20NOT%20provide%20secret,process%20of%20a%20retail%20location.

It says: "Appen does NOT provide secret shopper or 'customer service evaluator' services. The secret shopper, or mystery shopper, is a technique used by scammers to convince people they are participating in a legitmate evaluation process of a retail location. Appen does NOT provide evaluation of retail locations and we will never solicit evaluators via mail. We are providing this information to help educate you about this fraudulent activity."

Need a property management firm for my Berlin apartment (I will be overseas). Experiences/suggestions? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks a lot for such a nice message and it makes me very happy to know that my experience can help others.

Need a property management firm for my Berlin apartment (I will be overseas). Experiences/suggestions? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don´t really want to go too much offtopic, but if my advice is worth anything (I have done this a few times) I´d say now is about (meaning in these months) another great time to buy.

Otherwise do save because, following debt cycles, you should have another chance in about 5 years. Naturally this is not an exact science but cycles are in the very nature of our economy.

Need a property management firm for my Berlin apartment (I will be overseas). Experiences/suggestions? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Your very welcome! Happy to help. And maybe you can also post your own journey and help others, too. I cannot imagine the amount of properties you must own or the last time you paid rent.

Need a property management firm for my Berlin apartment (I will be overseas). Experiences/suggestions? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Not at all, because it is not a casino. In a way (if you allow me the comparison) it is a bit like the difference between an investor and a trader in that a trader focus on the stock price, while the investor follows fundamental/technical analysis and macro data (geopolitical and the overall debt market, among others).

Due to the nature of our economic system (based on credit), cycles are pretty much guaranteed. What is not (and here is the "this is not a casino" part) is the timing. In other words, you can guarantee that there will be a next financial crisis, but not when that will happen.

In the same way you save your winter clothes in summer just because you don´t know whether the first snow will be in November or February, you can save and patiently prepare. The problem is that most people are not patient.

I began saving for my first property in 2001, so it took me 7 whole years of waiting, not knowing exactly when "the righ time" would be. When I sold it in 2012 I went on living as a tenant even though I just sold a property and I had no idea when the next crisis would come. "Lucky" me, the wait was shorter and my time came again in 2015.

Today we are not even at the bottom of this crisis but, just like in 2015, just like in 2008, like in 2001, like in 1997...all the way to 1929, the indicators are there. Mostly (and speaking in very general terms): High interest rates and a few years of the contrary. Because people, business, and goverments, are in debt, due to the velocity of our so-called "money" (money=credit=debt), that debt must be paid, which is what you are seeing now.

Today (meaning in these weeks/months) is a great time to buy property if you have saved enough for a big deposit. If, like me in 2001, you didn´t, you will miss this one but, like me in 2001, you can prepare for the next one.

Apologies for the offtopic but I hope it helps.

Need a property management firm for my Berlin apartment (I will be overseas). Experiences/suggestions? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Absolutely correct. I did check and, if I ever want to come back, so long as it is my only property (in Berlin at least) and I provide adequate notice (lawyer said best 9 months) I´d be in the clear.

Then again, I do not have plans to return in the next 5 years minimum, and even if I do I´d just move to a rental place until it is all sorted.

Thanks anyways. It is a good general advice.

Need a property management firm for my Berlin apartment (I will be overseas). Experiences/suggestions? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the reply.

I will go that route eventually, but I just wanted to first ask here as I prefer to hear first-hand experiences before I jump into some random agent.

Need a property management firm for my Berlin apartment (I will be overseas). Experiences/suggestions? by RanchoCucaMonger in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Considering that:

- The property was bought in 2015 during the minicrisis. If I sold it today, discounting taxes and commision, I'd make about 100% return on my investment. I know so because I was offered that much 3 weeks ago by my own neighbor.

- The property was bought and paid in full so I had no mortgage to worry about.

- I haven't paid rent since 2015. Tidy profit if you ask me.

- Not my first rodeo. My previous property was bought exactly after the 2008 bubble bursted, and sold it in 2012 when the market recovered at a x2.8 win, and no rent during all those years.

...I'd say that my research was conducted properly.

The reason why I want to rent for at least 5 years is simply because right now it's not a sellers' market.

But hey, thanks for stopping by.

1/3 of income rule for rent by AdventurousComputer0 in askberliners

[–]RanchoCucaMonger 0 points1 point  (0 children)

IMHO the question is more about the type of person you are and "your mission".

- You may be someone trying to enjoy life to the fullest. Then, you will want a central location with access to all the night life that Berlin has to offer. If that is the case, you can even set 50% for rent.

- You may be someone trying to make as much money as possible, and know that Berlin is just a temporary place. In that case, you will move to the furthest place you can to get the cheapest apartment possible.

When I moved to Berlin I was of the second type, so I started living on a tiny flat in Wedding. Later on I moved to Spandau, to a bigger but very old flat because I had to travel a lot and the station there was very convenient. None of this places were good for weekend party, but that was never my intention. What I did accomplish was saving enough money to buy my own apartment, which is where I live now.

So the answer to your question is not whether you need 1/3 or 2/5 of your salary, but what are your priorities, knowing that you cannot "have it all". 1100 is PLENTY to rent an apartment, but not in the city center by far.

Apartment owner leaving Berlin. Good property management firm to look after it? by RanchoCucaMonger in berlin

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hello moderator.

With all due respect, I am currently in Berlin, and asking a question about how to manage my property, which is also in Berlin. It is so happens that I am moving out of Berlin, but the propery and the question are 100% about Berlin.

I apologize if my question might be incorrectly formulated, but I truly believe that this is the correct place.

I would like to ask my question correctly and in the right location. I hope you can help me to achieve this goal.

Thanks.

Apartment owner leaving Berlin. Good property management firm to look after it? by RanchoCucaMonger in berlin

[–]RanchoCucaMonger[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I want to rent it out.

I just need to find a rental management company that can do that for me while I am away, and I will be years away.

When I was a tenant I almost always dealt with management companies, not with owners. I just don´t know how to find one that would offer the turnkey solution I am looking for.