Originally Posted by h2oskineil

One thing I would look at is Landord insurance.

Should the tenant loose their job, become ill etc the rent will be paid until the tenant is out and you get a new tenant into the property.

http://www.letsure.co.uk/landlords/default.aspx This is who we used, great peace of mind when you are so far away.

Originally Posted by BonnieH

Like I said in the previous post it's the worry of moving away and having no control of the property. We have no intention of coming back to the UK so the thought of having a property back here wouldn't sway me to return however its the worry of that email or that phone call to say your property needs this repairing and that repairing..... our house has been renovated to a high standard so i'd hope that for the first few years at least it would be still in that condition, i'd like to think tenants would treat the property as if it was there own but that is not always the case.

Originally Posted by BonnieH

Thanks everyone for your comments, I suppose everyones situation is different. We've been to Oz a few times now and have family over there and have had mortgage meetings so we know that we can still buy a property over there and still have property in uk....

Unfortunatly we bought our house in 2007 just before the crash so we are not in a great position to sell and make a fortune, the decision is do we cut our losses and sell for a rubbish price or rent the property out until the market picks up....

Like I said in the previous post it's the worry of moving away and having no control of the property. We have no intention of coming back to the UK so the thought of having a property back here wouldn't sway me to return however its the worry of that email or that phone call to say your property needs this repairing and that repairing..... our house has been renovated to a high standard so i'd hope that for the first few years at least it would be still in that condition, i'd like to think tenants would treat the property as if it was there own but that is not always the case.

I suppose the main thing to do is get the pros and cons of renting and if all the hassle is worth it, you hear of so many horror stories that it kind of puts you off...... so thanks for the people who commented who have been or are in that situation.

I wish I never bloomin bought a house now!! lol

Originally Posted by Bermudashorts

Are you hesitating because you might not make a fortune or because you don't want to realise a loss? I would see the two quite differently. Breaking even would be reasonably acceptable to me (although financial isn't the only reason we didn't sell).

I have not found renting to be any hassle and I don't worry at all about the phone call to say something needs repairing. In fact the agent doesn't even tell me, they just get on with the little things that have come up and they seem to have excellent rates with local tradespeople. This is what I meant about having to change your mindset to see it as a business though, it is to be expected that businesses will incur expenses which is how I see the maintenance costs.

I am fussy about who I let to, I expect them to be vetted and reference checked very carefully and good up front checking reduces the liklihood of nightmare tenants.