enough is enough

A

agadele

Registered User
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Hi All

Sometimes it can be hard to find people to honestly talk with, so I have a question for all of you out there in Irish cyberspace.At what stage do you think you should just put your hands up and say enough is enough, when it comes to trying to make a business work.
I started off about a year ago, and set up a cleaning business. its going Ok, but its a slog and Im only just starting to get good commercial contracts now. But Im just running out of money. My biggest problem at the moment is I have an investment property, where there is a shortfal in the mortgage. I checked out extending the loan to 30 years but even with the interest rate charges I cant meet it. So basically my option is sell the house and carry on with business, or get a job and be able to cover the remaining mortgage gap.
I just feel stuck and stupid. any advice appreciated.Thanks
 
Hi Agadele,

First of all I really don't think you should feel stupid, after all you have had the get up and go to invest in a property and give your own business a go. These are both things most average people never bother to even try so you should feel proud for even giving it a go.

It seems to me that you need to just prioritise what your goals are, which is more important to you hanging on to an investment property which might well come good in a few years or sticking with the business.

My personal opinion would be to get rid of the investment property as I think property prices are now levelling off and having to make up the mortgage each month from your own pocket doesn't make a lot of sense unless you can see for sure it is going to increase in value in the relative short term. For example if there was a way to develop the property to add more value to it then it might be worth it. Otherwise I don't think it is. NB this is just my opinion and I've no specifics on the property.

As for the business if that seems to be picking up then it might be a good idea to focus on it. On the other hand you say it is a slog. I should take a step back and try and look at it objectively. What is the scope for the business over the next few years based on your experience to date? If you were to pack it in now and get a job would you be earning as much or would there be less stress and better quality of life. There is no point in flogging a dead horse if you have decided that it isn't for you. Also there is no shame in knowing when to quit, going back to a job and learning from the whole experience so you will do it better next time.

Sometimes I find the best thing is to try and get away for a couple of days, and things start to beceome clearer. Why not take the long weekend and try and give yourself a complete break and formulate a realistic and objective plan.

Good luck whatever you decide.
 
The investment property and the business are two different entities. Sit down and look at them both as if you were about to invest in one or the other and ask yourself where you would put your money. If you think the property offers the best return then stick with that. If the business looks better then ditto.
Do remember that you have no real control on that your return will be on the property. The return on the business is down to how good/hard working you are.
 
Last edited:
agadele said:
Im only just starting to get good commercial contracts now. But Im just running out of money. My biggest problem at the moment is I have an investment property, where there is a shortfal in the mortgage. I checked out extending the loan to 30 years but even with the interest rate charges I cant meet it. So basically my option is sell the house and carry on with business, or get a job and be able to cover the remaining mortgage gap.
Click to expand...

Can you go interest only on the investment mortgage until you become well established in the cleaning business?
 
You have 2 businesses. One is an investment property, the other is a cleaning company. Make no mistake about it, property investment is a business just like any other and to be viable it has to make you money or at least not cost you money. If it isnt working out you have to make a hard decision to cut your losses now and focus on 1 business or try to spread your resources between the two.

As another poster pointed out, you can control the cleaning business, the property market it outside of your control.
 
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