Furnishings

Although the property was vacant, it was furnished. The vendors had been renting the house to weekend visitors and holidaymakers for a few weeks or days at a time. In fact, the real-estate ad gave a brief run down on how much the property could earn from casual rentals.

Short term rental properties at the coast probably do quite well, particularly as the local motels get booked out on long weekends and the Christmas-New Year holiday season. The summer temperatures at Batemans Bay are usually a few degrees cooler than Canberra, making it a very pleasant place to be. Winter too is a nice change from Canberra with its day and night temperatures generally always being colder than they are at the coast. Weather wise, the appeal of the coast is fairly universal throughout the year.

The house was kitted out almost in a motel fashion with almost everything anyone would need to move in and spend a few days. In addition to the furniture there were stereo systems, TVs, microwave ovens, crockery etc. Some of the furniture was in very reasonable condition; other pieces were virtual throw outs. I particularly liked the dining table and chairs. There were two double beds that looked okay. Though, I didn’t have much use for the bunk beds. The lounge chairs seemed well past their best, as were some of the cabinets and wardrobes. The crockery and kitchen items could have been good to have. Although I didn’t need any more TV, video, nor stereo systems they could have been OK to have. There was always ebay to get rid of any unwanted stuff. There was a mixed bunch of stuff in the house. We wondered if they would be available for sale too.

I had taken photos of all the rooms in the weeks prior to making the offer. I’d poured over them studying every detail of the place. In all, I think I had taken about three hundred pictures both inside and outside the property, and around the garden and in the garage. I knew exactly what all the furnishings looked like. With any property I’ve had an interest I’ve snapped a few photos. If I have been very interested I’ve taken dozens of photos. Perhaps four or five photos per room, including the hallway, bathroom, toilet, and laundry. And I’d go for close ups of anything that looks dodgy so that I can study it later, but in fairness I also take photographs of the good aspects as well.

It’s possible to miss things that will be captured in a photograph. You might not spot rusted gutters until you see them in one of your photos, or rotting timber decking, or a roof line that might be a problem or the general condition of the roofing steel or weather boards. Photographs can reveal so much when you study them later. Even aspects you weren’t able to study while inspecting the property become available to you later: the street, the neighbour’s place, and the general lie of the land. Inevitably, taking so many photos gave me an idea of the furnishings and fittings that were in the house.

Anyway, using ebay I checked the completed listing prices as a guide to estimating the value of everything. This is not a reliable method, but it does provide a general idea of price. There is no way I could match any ebay items exactly with my photographs, but a lot of ebay stuff comes remarkably close. Because I was checking completed auctions on ebay I didn’t care where they were located; just the last selling price. I think it helped.

If you use ebay and didn't know this feature was available, you should give it a go. When you are signed in, click on the 'advanced search' function, and tick the 'completed listings' box. When you search for anything its only completed auctions that are displayed. All the green items were things that sold at the price shown, which gives you a good idea of what people are paying. The red items are the things that didn't sell. It's really handy.

We made an offer on the furniture and contents which was subsequently upped to $2000 and we accepted. The deal was to be done privately. It would save us transporting furniture and saved the vendors from having to clear the house prior to sale. The vendors may also have priced it accordingly as they may have considered the cost of removal, or there may have been storage costs to consider. Anyway, what can you get for $2000? It seemed an okay price.