My rent was due and when that was paid I had $15 left in the bank. There’s a little petrol in the car, enough for a few carefully selected open inspections. I spotted a property at Chapman in which the write up seemed interesting. It was across the road from a couple of burnt out blocks with remnants of houses on them. The remains of Canberra’s bushfire.
This property was to be auctioned, and by the looks of the place would be miles too expensive for me. Just a short distance down the road was a very ordinary looking house advertised for $510,000. The property that was up for auction was very well finished by comparison. So I suspect it’ll go for something higher than that. We can have dreams.
While waiting for the agent to arrive, I walked onto one of the two ‘vacant’ blocks the bushfire had attacked. There was no sign of the inferno on the land, except for the fact that the driveway went nowhere, the level spots where the house used to be, and the empty swimming pool in the back yard. A few of the larger trees on the nature reserve at the back adjoining the block of land had clearly been ablaze, still showing charred trunks. It takes a long time to heal.
I felt a chill through my spine walking on this land, trying to imagine what it would have been like during the inferno. I have goose pimples on my arms while I write this just thinking about it.
There was a hell of a good view over Canberra from that block. My, oh my, was that a magnificent panorama.
I had a look at a few properties in Dunlop, that’s one of the newer northern Canberra suburbs. There are some very nice houses but generally on very small blocks which in turn have been covered with as much concrete paving as space for garden. I was shocked to see a property where the gutters seemed to be touching the neighbour’s house. There was a gap between the two brick walls of each building, but only barely wide enough to fit a broom. What a joke. How can builders get away with that? It’s not a design feature I’d be happy with.
I spent some time tidying up my new digs after my shift. I found some gold coins as I was going through my stuff; a few dollars of actual money. I’ll be able to buy some petrol and be able to get to work confidently. I’ll have enough cash until pay day. Isn’t this pathetic? If it wasn’t so serious it’d be funny.
Showing posts with label suburbs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label suburbs. Show all posts
04 April 2008
03 March 2008
Telstra's lousy service
I stayed at home on Sunday to tidy up some of the stuff I had in my landlady’s shed. To make sure I knew where everything was prior to my moving out. That didn’t take long. While I was busy I was thinking about the car.
The quote I got from Cooma Diesel had been playing on my mind. I’ve been worried about how I was going to cover the cost of the repair to the turbo. There’s only one real solution and that’s to increase my credit card limit. So, I thought I’d give the finance company a call and see what they say. I’d do it straight away rather than waiting until Monday.
I have a prepaid mobile phone. Being well aware of the time you can spend hanging on the telephone line in a queue before someone half way across the world eventually gets to you, and as I did not wish to use up all the credit on my phone on this type of exercise, I thought to myself, find a public telephone. The local shops were only a 20minute walk from where I lived. So off I went to find a public telephone at the shopping centre. It was a nice day for a short jaunt.
Canberra has catered for foot traffic like I have seen no where else. There is a myriad of footpaths crisscrossing Canberra suburbs. As well as the concrete pavement at the side of the street, which in some suburbs in some states, doesn’t actually exist, these pathways can be found at the back of properties linking one suburb to the next, meandering through parks, and with street underpasses to keep you safe from vehicles. The state of some of the concrete paving is showing its age, but I have to give praise to the idea. It’s a simply wonderful planning feature of Canberra.
Anyway, off I trot strolling under the shady trees to the local shops. I found the public telephone without trouble, but was disappointed to find it out of order. These things happen from time to time. Fortunately, I had my trusty street directory in hand and could see another public telephone marked on the map about 3km away. Anyway, it gave me a chance to explore more meandering footpaths, and see a few more suburbs at a rather more sedate pace.
With a drink in hand I set off. After about half an hour of up hill climb I got to the location marked on the map where the telephone box should have been, but strangely could not find the telephone box. At times like these you begin to doubt your own map reading skills. It’s so easy by car to drive up and down the street. Perhaps it was hidden behind a tree. Walking around the block takes a bit longer. I was wondering if the street directory was wrong and the telephone booth might have been in a slightly different place from where it was supposed to be. And then I spotted something.
Exactly at the place on the map where the telephone was indicated, and a little further away from the roadway than where I was standing I spotted a flat square of concrete on the ground. It was partially hidden by long grass. A closer look at this concrete slab revealed it to be, in my estimation, about the dimensions of a public telephone booth, having what looked like bolt holes on each corner. The only problem was that there was no telephone booth on top of the slab. I was wondering if this was the fault of the map maker or whether Telstra has just come along and removed it without telling anyone. I was getting annoyed.
I knew I was relatively close to the neighbouring suburb's shops, but getting further and further from home. Well, shopping centres do have public telephones located at them. So, ignoring the sweat that was beginning to pool in spots under my shirt, I once again set off toward the shops. I rested at the top of the hill and took in the view. The rest of the walk to the shops was downhill, and in half an hour I located the shops and public telephone, only to find it too was out of order. I flopped in a nearby park bench staring at the shuttered windows and boarded up doors of the closed shops, and wondering what sort of lousy dung heap of a city I’m living in, and about the lousy service Telstra is providing. The phone wasn’t vandalised it was just making noises other than having a dial tone and it wouldn’t accept my coins. That was it. Give up. Go home.
My sour mood lightened, when crossing a road near a bus stop but what should happen but a bus comes along, and the very bus that would take me home. I’m beginning to hate Telstra.
The quote I got from Cooma Diesel had been playing on my mind. I’ve been worried about how I was going to cover the cost of the repair to the turbo. There’s only one real solution and that’s to increase my credit card limit. So, I thought I’d give the finance company a call and see what they say. I’d do it straight away rather than waiting until Monday.
I have a prepaid mobile phone. Being well aware of the time you can spend hanging on the telephone line in a queue before someone half way across the world eventually gets to you, and as I did not wish to use up all the credit on my phone on this type of exercise, I thought to myself, find a public telephone. The local shops were only a 20minute walk from where I lived. So off I went to find a public telephone at the shopping centre. It was a nice day for a short jaunt.
Canberra has catered for foot traffic like I have seen no where else. There is a myriad of footpaths crisscrossing Canberra suburbs. As well as the concrete pavement at the side of the street, which in some suburbs in some states, doesn’t actually exist, these pathways can be found at the back of properties linking one suburb to the next, meandering through parks, and with street underpasses to keep you safe from vehicles. The state of some of the concrete paving is showing its age, but I have to give praise to the idea. It’s a simply wonderful planning feature of Canberra.
Anyway, off I trot strolling under the shady trees to the local shops. I found the public telephone without trouble, but was disappointed to find it out of order. These things happen from time to time. Fortunately, I had my trusty street directory in hand and could see another public telephone marked on the map about 3km away. Anyway, it gave me a chance to explore more meandering footpaths, and see a few more suburbs at a rather more sedate pace.
With a drink in hand I set off. After about half an hour of up hill climb I got to the location marked on the map where the telephone box should have been, but strangely could not find the telephone box. At times like these you begin to doubt your own map reading skills. It’s so easy by car to drive up and down the street. Perhaps it was hidden behind a tree. Walking around the block takes a bit longer. I was wondering if the street directory was wrong and the telephone booth might have been in a slightly different place from where it was supposed to be. And then I spotted something.
Exactly at the place on the map where the telephone was indicated, and a little further away from the roadway than where I was standing I spotted a flat square of concrete on the ground. It was partially hidden by long grass. A closer look at this concrete slab revealed it to be, in my estimation, about the dimensions of a public telephone booth, having what looked like bolt holes on each corner. The only problem was that there was no telephone booth on top of the slab. I was wondering if this was the fault of the map maker or whether Telstra has just come along and removed it without telling anyone. I was getting annoyed.
I knew I was relatively close to the neighbouring suburb's shops, but getting further and further from home. Well, shopping centres do have public telephones located at them. So, ignoring the sweat that was beginning to pool in spots under my shirt, I once again set off toward the shops. I rested at the top of the hill and took in the view. The rest of the walk to the shops was downhill, and in half an hour I located the shops and public telephone, only to find it too was out of order. I flopped in a nearby park bench staring at the shuttered windows and boarded up doors of the closed shops, and wondering what sort of lousy dung heap of a city I’m living in, and about the lousy service Telstra is providing. The phone wasn’t vandalised it was just making noises other than having a dial tone and it wouldn’t accept my coins. That was it. Give up. Go home.
My sour mood lightened, when crossing a road near a bus stop but what should happen but a bus comes along, and the very bus that would take me home. I’m beginning to hate Telstra.
22 January 2008
North vs South
I had an interesting conversation at work. I was talking about some of my experiences on my property search. I was speaking, in a favourable light, about the properties in the south of Canberra, and there was an overwhelming exclamation, “you don’t want to live down there.” As you might gather, I work in a northern suburb and most of the people who work there also live in the northern Canberra suburbs. There is an actual north-south divide between the people here. It reminded me of the Sydney – Melbourne rivalry. Certainly, with my job in the north of Canberra there is an incentive to live locally, for ease of travel.
Though, from my experience of Canberra so far I couldn’t really spot much difference between the north or south. There are posh districts as well as run-down trashy streets distributed all over Canberra. In my observations, the roads, streets, shops, and general appearance of the north seems much like the south. Canberra is pretty much the same where ever you go, but that’s only me.
The only mildly negative aspect I had noticed in the south of Canberra was that there appeared to be more young men hooning around in their hotted up cars; more than I have noticed in the northern suburbs, but that could be coincidence. I also noticed more burn out tyre mark circles in the middle of street intersections in the south, but you get them everywhere, and that too could have been coincidence. I definitely noticed a lot of bent street signs down there, that I haven’t spotted in the northern suburbs. This of course could be a phase. Perhaps the age group of youngsters prone to that kind of behaviour have predominance in the south, that they may have grown out of in the north.
Anyway, despite the pressure of their attempts at persuading me against the south, I won’t let up and will consider everywhere in my real estate hunt.
Though, from my experience of Canberra so far I couldn’t really spot much difference between the north or south. There are posh districts as well as run-down trashy streets distributed all over Canberra. In my observations, the roads, streets, shops, and general appearance of the north seems much like the south. Canberra is pretty much the same where ever you go, but that’s only me.
The only mildly negative aspect I had noticed in the south of Canberra was that there appeared to be more young men hooning around in their hotted up cars; more than I have noticed in the northern suburbs, but that could be coincidence. I also noticed more burn out tyre mark circles in the middle of street intersections in the south, but you get them everywhere, and that too could have been coincidence. I definitely noticed a lot of bent street signs down there, that I haven’t spotted in the northern suburbs. This of course could be a phase. Perhaps the age group of youngsters prone to that kind of behaviour have predominance in the south, that they may have grown out of in the north.
Anyway, despite the pressure of their attempts at persuading me against the south, I won’t let up and will consider everywhere in my real estate hunt.
21 January 2008
Another real estate hunting weekend
There was a house for sale in Macgregor that I’d seen a week or so previously, and I returned for a second look with my camera in hand. I took a swag of photos for S to look at. She seems keener that me. Maybe I talk up the properties too much. Of course, that’s the trouble with me being in Canberra and her being in Melbourne.
It’s interesting what people will put up for sale. There was ducted air conditioning in the house, which would have been a bonus, but I noticed something on the outside of the house. There was what looked like an air return for the air conditioner in the hallway. Not sure. Some sort of vent. On the outside of the house, on a section of the wall near where this air return would have been positioned, there was a large discolouration in the brickwork. Condensation? I had an image of the brick cavity being full of water. Hardly likely, but air conditioners can develop condensation. It had me concerned. There was also some cracking of bricks running up from this area to a nearby window. It may have worried other punters too, so why didn’t they fix it. I find it difficult to work out why people leave things like that. Structural repairs can be expensive. Would you sell a car with a flat tyre or broken windscreen? Who knows, maybe that problem was one of the reasons the place was being sold; to get rid of their problems.
I also checked out the deep south of Canberra. Banks is one of the southern most suburbs of Canberra. I thought it was bit like Dunlop but with views, and boy, are some of those views spectacular. There seem to be a lot of new houses as well as building activity. There are a lot of large houses on small blocks in Banks, and a lot of them don’t have any style to them. Building houses without style seems to be an architectural trend I’ve noticed in recent years.
I had been passing a property in Banks that had an open-house sign out the front. So, why not just have a look; nothing to loose. It was a hot day, and the coolness of its air conditioned rooms was welcome. It wasn’t a property for me; far too large, but I had a pleasant chat while there. The very friendly real estate agent gave me the address of a house in Gordon, which is also in the south, and not too far away. We had a chat about Canberra weather. Her advice: get a house with central heating, saying that it can get into minus figures during winter in Canberra. And of course, as I am only too well aware it gets darn hot in summer. So, an air con too presumably.
I had a look at the Gordon house the agent had recommended. No one was living there so I peered in the windows and had a walk around the property, but my attention was taken by the view to the south west. The panorama of the ranges that was visible from the property was astounding. There are some beautiful vistas to be had in the northern side of Canberra, but none are a patch on the rugged majesty of southern districts. Being a bit closer to the hills makes a lot of difference.
It’s interesting what people will put up for sale. There was ducted air conditioning in the house, which would have been a bonus, but I noticed something on the outside of the house. There was what looked like an air return for the air conditioner in the hallway. Not sure. Some sort of vent. On the outside of the house, on a section of the wall near where this air return would have been positioned, there was a large discolouration in the brickwork. Condensation? I had an image of the brick cavity being full of water. Hardly likely, but air conditioners can develop condensation. It had me concerned. There was also some cracking of bricks running up from this area to a nearby window. It may have worried other punters too, so why didn’t they fix it. I find it difficult to work out why people leave things like that. Structural repairs can be expensive. Would you sell a car with a flat tyre or broken windscreen? Who knows, maybe that problem was one of the reasons the place was being sold; to get rid of their problems.
I also checked out the deep south of Canberra. Banks is one of the southern most suburbs of Canberra. I thought it was bit like Dunlop but with views, and boy, are some of those views spectacular. There seem to be a lot of new houses as well as building activity. There are a lot of large houses on small blocks in Banks, and a lot of them don’t have any style to them. Building houses without style seems to be an architectural trend I’ve noticed in recent years.
I had been passing a property in Banks that had an open-house sign out the front. So, why not just have a look; nothing to loose. It was a hot day, and the coolness of its air conditioned rooms was welcome. It wasn’t a property for me; far too large, but I had a pleasant chat while there. The very friendly real estate agent gave me the address of a house in Gordon, which is also in the south, and not too far away. We had a chat about Canberra weather. Her advice: get a house with central heating, saying that it can get into minus figures during winter in Canberra. And of course, as I am only too well aware it gets darn hot in summer. So, an air con too presumably.
I had a look at the Gordon house the agent had recommended. No one was living there so I peered in the windows and had a walk around the property, but my attention was taken by the view to the south west. The panorama of the ranges that was visible from the property was astounding. There are some beautiful vistas to be had in the northern side of Canberra, but none are a patch on the rugged majesty of southern districts. Being a bit closer to the hills makes a lot of difference.
07 January 2008
On the road again
I have always had the habit of glancing at the number plates of the cars that come my way. If they are in your home town you should be a bit more patient with them; they may be having a hard time getting around, and any courtesy you can offer will probably be appreciated. I also check out the number plates when driving interstate. Anyway, on the trip from Canberra to Melbourne, before Christmas, I couldn’t help but notice the number of cars that were overtaking me that had ACT registration numbers. At times, that’s all there was. It seemed as though every car on the road had ACT registration. There seemed to be a mass exodus from Canberra. Maybe Canberra shuts down during the holiday period. I’ve never seen the likes of it.
I’m becoming relatively accustomed to the Hume Highway. I’m also getting to know the sections of the highway where the pot holes are located and able to avoid them by changing lanes beforehand. The Hume carries a lot of traffic, and at times seems over crowded by trucks, which in itself can be a bit daunting, and may well be the main reason for the poor condition of this road.
It is generally always the left lane that is in poor condition. It’s generally the left lane that trucks use. That’s not a coincidence.
Despite the occasional road sign advising drivers to use the left lane, there is no way I’m going to drive in the left lane over ruts and pot holes that are potentially damaging and dangerous on a highway that should be properly maintained. The Hume Highway must be an embarrassment to the NSW government.
I’ve been driving for a few years having had a wide variety of driving experiences. In these few months I have been spending a lot of time on the road. The quality of truck drivers has declined, I’m sorry to say. There will always be idiots on the road. Though, with the following exceptions, most idiots are car drivers rather than truckies. In my experience of maybe 20 or 30 years ago truck drivers were generally good reliable drivers, who were courteous, and friendly on the road. They were something to aspire to. This is not quite the case anymore.
I was on a quiet country road late one evening, and I was shocked and amazed at the antics of two courier truck drivers. I was cruising on the speed limit on a relatively narrow country road, and a truck passed me like I was still in second gear. People speed and that’s okay if the road is up to it, but this particular road didn’t seem suitable for high speed driving; particularly not in a truck. Anyway I didn’t give it much of a thought at that moment, but the experience sticks in my memory because of what happened next.
In under a minute a second truck zoomed past me at much the same speed. It must have been going faster than the first because I could see that it was beginning to gain on the first truck. I was very curious so sped up to see what they were about. These two truck drivers were racing each other. The terrain was gently undulating and I could see the gap between the two trucks narrow as they twisted and turned on the road. Despite the lack of clear visibility the second truck pulled out to pass the first. For some reason it couldn’t overtake and pulled back behind the first; it pulled in so quickly that it wobbled on the road a few times. After a short time it pulled out again and started to overtake. So, here they were, two trucks with about the same engine power, and both drivers pushing them flat out, driving side by side. It took ages for that second truck to get past the first. With so much time on the wrong side of the road I was certain there was going to be a collision. They faded into the distance and I slowed to a reasonable pace. I kept my eyes open for the rest of my trip fully expecting to see the result of this pair’s stupidity. I was expecting to see blood and guts over the road, or hear the sound of an ambulance siren, as one of these two trucks had a head on collision with another vehicle. Fortunately, I saw nothing. Perhaps the collision occurred on some other road they may have turned off on to.
Then of course, you have those sections of the Hume Highway where the two lanes converge into one. And then you’ve got one semi trying to pass the other semi before the road runs out. Of course, every other motorist does this too. But when you see truck drivers behaving badly it seems so wrong. At times it is absolute madness on this road.
And so here I am, driving my little car on a one-lane section of the Hume, determined to keep within the speed limit, and I notice a semi in the distance coming up behind me. Over the next quarter hour or so I notice it getting closer, until all I can see from the rear vision mirror is the radiator grille of this monster. What did this truck driver expect? What goes through the minds of these people? I don’t doubt if the road had been less busy this truck would have overtaken me; I made it wait until the dual carriageway came our way and it shot past. It could have been that some inexperienced motorist might have succumbed to this pressure and driven faster; perhaps faster than they were capable of, which could have been dangerous, or cost them a speeding ticket. Be warned: some trucks have road handling capabilities far superior than some cars, can go a lot faster, and generally, a truck driver will know the road a lot better than you. Don't try and complete.
It’s not hard to work out exactly what’s on the mind of these people. A truck following by half a car-length will certainly put the wind up the motorist. It’s intended to do so. But that won’t be a legitimate excuse if you get caught by police radar for speeding. They want you to speed up. No one want’s 20 tons of truck looming behind you, and they know that. If a roo comes out of the blue and hops across the road in front of you, and you stand on the brake pedal there is no way a truck will stop as quickly as a car. That’s it, you’re gone.
I wouldn’t play the games of speeding up and slowing down, as I’ve done if a car has been following me too closely on multilane roads in the suburbs. Just keep to your guns and the speed limit and drive steadily and reliably, but if it’s all getting too stressful for you pull over when it’s safe to do so and let them through. Don’t make them angry as they may behave worse to the next poor sucker. Put you indicator on to indicate that you are going to shift off the road, but get your revenge by slowing down gradually. Truck drivers hate slowing down; it takes too long for them to speed up again. Perhaps if they realise the only way they can get past motorists is for them to slow significantly while you pull off the road they might be more reasonable in the future by allowing a reasonable distance between vehicles.
Anyway, back in Canberra. What will the new year bring?
I’m becoming relatively accustomed to the Hume Highway. I’m also getting to know the sections of the highway where the pot holes are located and able to avoid them by changing lanes beforehand. The Hume carries a lot of traffic, and at times seems over crowded by trucks, which in itself can be a bit daunting, and may well be the main reason for the poor condition of this road.
It is generally always the left lane that is in poor condition. It’s generally the left lane that trucks use. That’s not a coincidence.
Despite the occasional road sign advising drivers to use the left lane, there is no way I’m going to drive in the left lane over ruts and pot holes that are potentially damaging and dangerous on a highway that should be properly maintained. The Hume Highway must be an embarrassment to the NSW government.
I’ve been driving for a few years having had a wide variety of driving experiences. In these few months I have been spending a lot of time on the road. The quality of truck drivers has declined, I’m sorry to say. There will always be idiots on the road. Though, with the following exceptions, most idiots are car drivers rather than truckies. In my experience of maybe 20 or 30 years ago truck drivers were generally good reliable drivers, who were courteous, and friendly on the road. They were something to aspire to. This is not quite the case anymore.
I was on a quiet country road late one evening, and I was shocked and amazed at the antics of two courier truck drivers. I was cruising on the speed limit on a relatively narrow country road, and a truck passed me like I was still in second gear. People speed and that’s okay if the road is up to it, but this particular road didn’t seem suitable for high speed driving; particularly not in a truck. Anyway I didn’t give it much of a thought at that moment, but the experience sticks in my memory because of what happened next.
In under a minute a second truck zoomed past me at much the same speed. It must have been going faster than the first because I could see that it was beginning to gain on the first truck. I was very curious so sped up to see what they were about. These two truck drivers were racing each other. The terrain was gently undulating and I could see the gap between the two trucks narrow as they twisted and turned on the road. Despite the lack of clear visibility the second truck pulled out to pass the first. For some reason it couldn’t overtake and pulled back behind the first; it pulled in so quickly that it wobbled on the road a few times. After a short time it pulled out again and started to overtake. So, here they were, two trucks with about the same engine power, and both drivers pushing them flat out, driving side by side. It took ages for that second truck to get past the first. With so much time on the wrong side of the road I was certain there was going to be a collision. They faded into the distance and I slowed to a reasonable pace. I kept my eyes open for the rest of my trip fully expecting to see the result of this pair’s stupidity. I was expecting to see blood and guts over the road, or hear the sound of an ambulance siren, as one of these two trucks had a head on collision with another vehicle. Fortunately, I saw nothing. Perhaps the collision occurred on some other road they may have turned off on to.
Then of course, you have those sections of the Hume Highway where the two lanes converge into one. And then you’ve got one semi trying to pass the other semi before the road runs out. Of course, every other motorist does this too. But when you see truck drivers behaving badly it seems so wrong. At times it is absolute madness on this road.
And so here I am, driving my little car on a one-lane section of the Hume, determined to keep within the speed limit, and I notice a semi in the distance coming up behind me. Over the next quarter hour or so I notice it getting closer, until all I can see from the rear vision mirror is the radiator grille of this monster. What did this truck driver expect? What goes through the minds of these people? I don’t doubt if the road had been less busy this truck would have overtaken me; I made it wait until the dual carriageway came our way and it shot past. It could have been that some inexperienced motorist might have succumbed to this pressure and driven faster; perhaps faster than they were capable of, which could have been dangerous, or cost them a speeding ticket. Be warned: some trucks have road handling capabilities far superior than some cars, can go a lot faster, and generally, a truck driver will know the road a lot better than you. Don't try and complete.
It’s not hard to work out exactly what’s on the mind of these people. A truck following by half a car-length will certainly put the wind up the motorist. It’s intended to do so. But that won’t be a legitimate excuse if you get caught by police radar for speeding. They want you to speed up. No one want’s 20 tons of truck looming behind you, and they know that. If a roo comes out of the blue and hops across the road in front of you, and you stand on the brake pedal there is no way a truck will stop as quickly as a car. That’s it, you’re gone.
I wouldn’t play the games of speeding up and slowing down, as I’ve done if a car has been following me too closely on multilane roads in the suburbs. Just keep to your guns and the speed limit and drive steadily and reliably, but if it’s all getting too stressful for you pull over when it’s safe to do so and let them through. Don’t make them angry as they may behave worse to the next poor sucker. Put you indicator on to indicate that you are going to shift off the road, but get your revenge by slowing down gradually. Truck drivers hate slowing down; it takes too long for them to speed up again. Perhaps if they realise the only way they can get past motorists is for them to slow significantly while you pull off the road they might be more reasonable in the future by allowing a reasonable distance between vehicles.
Anyway, back in Canberra. What will the new year bring?
03 December 2007
Real estate hunting
One of the difficulties in coming to grips with a new city is getting to know where the various suburbs are located, and their relative position to one another. In one of my early scans of the real estate section of the newspaper I spotted a house that was very reasonably priced, and generally sounded quite good. It was a definite contender, or at least it was until I spotted it on a map. My failing was that I didn’t realise that Bredbo was a small township about 80km south of Canberra and not actually a Canberra suburb. Any local would have known this.
My Saturday mornings developed into a routine. With my lack of experience of the Canberra layout here’s what I found worked well in making a few property visit open inspections. I got up early and grabbed a copy of the Canberra Times, which has an excellent pull out real estate section, and with a notepad and street directory in hand spread everything out on a tabletop, usually with some fruit toast and coffee to help get me through.
My Saturday mornings developed into a routine. With my lack of experience of the Canberra layout here’s what I found worked well in making a few property visit open inspections. I got up early and grabbed a copy of the Canberra Times, which has an excellent pull out real estate section, and with a notepad and street directory in hand spread everything out on a tabletop, usually with some fruit toast and coffee to help get me through.
- Mark the properties that you clearly want to visit by reading the ads. Isn’t that what you do anyway.
- On a page of the notepad, make very brief notes of the advertised properties, and be sure to include the address, inspection open and close times, and page number that you saw the ad. (you can seldom find the ad after you have closed the paper, and you usually only want it when you are in a hurry.)
- Number each property on your pad sequentially.
- Look up the street directory of each one, noting on your pad the map number and its grid coordinates. This saves you doing it later when you don’t have time and are a bit flustered. Doing this now makes the day much more pleasant.
- Now comes the mildly artistic part. Street directories usually have an index page displaying the locations of all the individual map pages. This index map is essential for getting a bearing on where the properties are in relation to each other. Find that page.
- On another page of your notepad, sketch an outline of the area you want to search for properties and mark the map numbers on the page just as it is on the index map of your street directory. This takes 30 seconds. If you can’t do it within a minute you are spending too much time.
- Now, refer back to your first page of notes and mark on your sketch index map on your second page of your notepad where each property is located. Don’t write much. The property number you used and the inspection times may be sufficient. Try to do this as near as you can to being accurate within each map, but it doesn’t matter a whole heap, you just need approximates.
- When you have transferred your brief notes to the even briefer notes on the sketch map, sit back and have bite of your toast, sip your coffee, and consider what you’ve got.
- Study the open times and their locations that you’ve got on your sketch map, and work out a sequence of visiting them. Doing this will prevent you from doing too much backtracking, keep your petrol costs down, and you might even see more properties in the one day.
- When you’ve got a sequence worked out you might write it down somewhere because you’ll forget it otherwise. You might even like to draw arrows all over your sketch map.
This is just the sort of project that some whiz kid needs to develop on a computer to make the job simpler for the punters, but the method I’ve outlined works for me.
You could just scan the newspaper and if you spot something interesting just go and look. There’s nothing wrong with that, but if you are like me and want to see as much as possible you’ll need to get a bit more efficient. The last thing you want is to be doing is wasting time looking for an address with only a few minutes to get to a property, or having to drive half way across town when you have only just been there an hour ago. Anyway, enough of this.
I went to another auction, this time in Evatt. It sold for $365,000 at the auction. Its great to see an auction go to the end and see it sold, rather than being passed in. The house was on a small block of land. It had a small lounge and dining room. It also had a small kitchen and family room. The bedrooms were a reasonable size. It did have a nice bathroom, but no bath. That seems like a contradiction in terms to me. There was a good deal of decking outside. It had a garage designed for a mini because part of it was used as a room! It was a well kept property but was just a very ordinary place, and small at that. $365,000 - house prices seem so inflated in Canberra, for what you get.
I had a look at Duffy and neighbouring suburbs. The occasional vacant block where houses used to be can still be spotted. A result of the bushfire, of course. It’s sad to see garden remnants, retaining walls, garden paths and steps at the front of the empty block that don’t go anywhere. The house was gone, just traces in the dirt where the foundations used to be. Though, it’s interesting to see the number of new houses in the area. And not just ordinary looking places either, but large, luxurious houses. I gather that some people won as a result of the fire, and by the look of some of those new houses did very well indeed.
I discovered the Woden shopping centre to the south of Canberra. Now there’s an unusual name for a place: Woden. I can’t help but wonder if the individual who coined the name had a speech impediment. I laugh to myself whenever I hear someone refer to it: “I wink I’ll wop wound to Woden wopping wentre to wet a woo wings.”
20 November 2007
Trolling the suburbs
I took a drive through the suburbs of Scullin and Page after work. There is a strange mix of posh houses here and there amongst what look like older public housing. The locals refer to the older government provided housing as ‘govies’. Presumably, a lot of bulldozing of these old houses and rebuilding goes on. Presumably if you can come across the opportunity of purchasing one of these older houses that may be a bit run down, and you can get it for (mostly) land value, you may come out okay building a swish house on the land. These govies often sit on fairly large blocks, compared with what is generally available today, in Canberra. This would also have the effect of gentrifying the district.
I also discovered the suburb of Macgregor. There are definitely some nice properties in this suburb. Though there are distinct divisions between and within the same suburb here in Canberra, and Macgregor is typical of the situation. Macgregor starts on fairly flat land and gradually climbs to reveal views of the northern Canberra suburbs to the Brindabella Mountains in the distance. It’s very obvious that the more wealthy people have built homes that reflect their incomes and live on the slopes with views to the mountain ranges, whereas the poorer residents live on the flats often in ordinary looking houses, sometimes in unkempt streets, with no views. And the views are magnificent in Canberra if you get high enough up the slope.
I also discovered the suburb of Macgregor. There are definitely some nice properties in this suburb. Though there are distinct divisions between and within the same suburb here in Canberra, and Macgregor is typical of the situation. Macgregor starts on fairly flat land and gradually climbs to reveal views of the northern Canberra suburbs to the Brindabella Mountains in the distance. It’s very obvious that the more wealthy people have built homes that reflect their incomes and live on the slopes with views to the mountain ranges, whereas the poorer residents live on the flats often in ordinary looking houses, sometimes in unkempt streets, with no views. And the views are magnificent in Canberra if you get high enough up the slope.
19 November 2007
Auction
I went to a couple of house auctions, only one of which sold. I’m beginning to get around Canberra and feel quite comfortable in getting from one place to the next; never without the street directory of course. I came across Scullin and found it to be a very average looking suburb, which might mean the prices are average. That may not be such a bad thing. There was an auction so I called in to watch what happened. There was only one bidder at the auction and a lot of spectators. This individual was persuaded to open the bidding at $300,000 and with no other action the auctioneer placed a vendor’s bid at $350,000. That’s a staggering jump. Everyone was quiet and the property was passed in. The house had a small lounge room, a small main bedroom with ensuite. Though, the other bedrooms seemed larger than average. This house had a very small yard and there was a lot of work to do to the place. It was rough. I thought the opening bid would have been a fair price. Perhaps I knew less about the location that I thought, and Canberra property prices gave me a shock.
The next house was auctioned in a nearby well to do suburb. It was near the top of a rise with views to Mt Stromlo. A huge crowed of people were present when I arrived. It was a 4 bedroom house on a very large block with a neat but very plain garden. It had a lounge room that was smaller than my place in Melbourne, but 4 very nice sized bedrooms that were accessed from a central passage. It was a simple design but the elegant furnishings made it seem to be a very appealing property. Unfortunately, the extension that had been added looked like a tack on; possibly a veranda had been enclosed. The auction started at $500,000 with $25,000 rises, slowing later, and selling for $775,000. It went well above the reserve. Possibly someone was trying to buy into the street rather than the property. The price didn’t seem worth it. Perhaps that’s just Canberra. Ouch!
The next house was auctioned in a nearby well to do suburb. It was near the top of a rise with views to Mt Stromlo. A huge crowed of people were present when I arrived. It was a 4 bedroom house on a very large block with a neat but very plain garden. It had a lounge room that was smaller than my place in Melbourne, but 4 very nice sized bedrooms that were accessed from a central passage. It was a simple design but the elegant furnishings made it seem to be a very appealing property. Unfortunately, the extension that had been added looked like a tack on; possibly a veranda had been enclosed. The auction started at $500,000 with $25,000 rises, slowing later, and selling for $775,000. It went well above the reserve. Possibly someone was trying to buy into the street rather than the property. The price didn’t seem worth it. Perhaps that’s just Canberra. Ouch!
15 November 2007
Canberra suburbs
I was driving around some of Canberra’s northern suburbs, including Aranda which had a certain appeal to me. I find this a pleasant way of getting to know a town. On the way home from work I’ve been ambling (ie. driving) through the quiet streets having a look at what’s what. There are a lot of leafy suburbs that are brim full of character. And there are some that aren’t. The difference between those with money and those without is very apparent here in Canberra.
I had a look at Cook, Macquarie, Weetangera, and Hawker. There will be some million dollar views to be had from some of the properties at the top of Hawker. I spotted a for sale sign on a house near the top of the hill. I must check it out and see what it sells for when the auction comes up; at least I can see what the views are like.
The Canberra suburb and street names are something to behold. I don’t know how the locals handle many of them, but I can’t get my tongue around half of them: Weetangera, Gungahlin for instance, and how do you pronounce Ginninderra Drive. Anyone for a tongue twister?
Then of course, there is the political influence in Canberra with the naming of its suburbs. How would you like to live in Fraser? And while Fraser has a fine tartan, I don’t think any kind of honour to that clan was intended. I knew a Fraser once; not Malcolm though, but I doubt if the suburb was named after him anyway. Would you want to live in a suburb that reminds you of him? Alternatively, you could go for the suburb of Latham. This name would have little to do with Mark, but the name does have an association that might put some people on edge or swell with pride. Could you live there? I wonder if the suburb names attract people with the associated political views. Perhaps people don’t care.
For the nation’s capital, I’m surprised at the lack of political chit chat that goes on around the traps. The people I’ve come across in my travels here don’t seem to bother with politics, as much as I thought they might. Before I came to Canberra I thought it would have been awash with conversations and gossip about the politicians and their schemes and scandals. Perhaps I don’t mix in the right circles.
I had a look at Cook, Macquarie, Weetangera, and Hawker. There will be some million dollar views to be had from some of the properties at the top of Hawker. I spotted a for sale sign on a house near the top of the hill. I must check it out and see what it sells for when the auction comes up; at least I can see what the views are like.
The Canberra suburb and street names are something to behold. I don’t know how the locals handle many of them, but I can’t get my tongue around half of them: Weetangera, Gungahlin for instance, and how do you pronounce Ginninderra Drive. Anyone for a tongue twister?
Then of course, there is the political influence in Canberra with the naming of its suburbs. How would you like to live in Fraser? And while Fraser has a fine tartan, I don’t think any kind of honour to that clan was intended. I knew a Fraser once; not Malcolm though, but I doubt if the suburb was named after him anyway. Would you want to live in a suburb that reminds you of him? Alternatively, you could go for the suburb of Latham. This name would have little to do with Mark, but the name does have an association that might put some people on edge or swell with pride. Could you live there? I wonder if the suburb names attract people with the associated political views. Perhaps people don’t care.
For the nation’s capital, I’m surprised at the lack of political chit chat that goes on around the traps. The people I’ve come across in my travels here don’t seem to bother with politics, as much as I thought they might. Before I came to Canberra I thought it would have been awash with conversations and gossip about the politicians and their schemes and scandals. Perhaps I don’t mix in the right circles.
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