This string of dicussion has slowed down a bit and I hope to revive it as I have a lot of hot topics I would like to discuss. As a Berliner having worked for international consultants and running my own property consultancy now these have been fast and exciting 30 months. But...

Did the investments really deliver what they promised? As always, some " rolleyes.gif yes" and some " sad.gif no". Being German I am going to dwell on the "no".

There are various reasons for no:

-- It is not unusual that a change of ownership which usually includes a change of management will produce a slight dip in the performance. Vacated apartments are not rented as fast as they could be, tenants taking advantage and slacking on punctuality etc. This is life and can only be managed with a strict handover and startup process. Local support is advisable.

-- The investor did not have a propert commercial due diligence. Rent tables tell you what the tenants should pay but never what actually is paid month by month.

-- The cost side was not considdered appropriately at the purchase calculation.

-- You were cheated!

All of these items can be addressed, even the last one. I just helped a Danish investor to win his court case recaliming 8% of the purchase price of almost € 4 million.

Do you feel you have been cheated or know of someone? Did you have to take measures to get a property in Berlin to the performance level you were expecting it to be on day one?