Property Clock

The property clock is often used to follow the property cycle, which circulates over a seven to ten year period, and is based on the relationship between interest rates, supply and demand, affordability/finance availability, and the cost of renting. It is seen as a useful tool  by the experienced investors to aid them in determining the best time to strategically enter and exit the property market.

A property Boom, indicative of peak prices, is shown at the top of the clock at 12 o'clock, while a property Bust, is indicative of when property is at its lowest price, at 6 o'clock. The best time to invest in property, just after 6 o'clock, is during a rising market where it can dramatically lower the risk of investment.

An important point to remember is that the "time span" between a boom and bust market is on average three to four years. 

The four quadrants of the clock can be better explain by looking at who buys & sells and what makes the clock tick (market move).

Boom Market (12 o'clock to 3 o'clock)

Who sells and why?

* Smart investors - Off-loading and shifting into an asset class with more growth potential

* Fortunate investors - Those "lucky investors" who were at the right place and the right time!

Who buys and why?

* Inexperienced investors - Jumping in just as the band stops playing

* First time buyers - Interest rates are low and entrance to the credit market is relatively easy

What moves the clock?

* High economic growth rate

* Very low inflation

* Sustained low interest rates

* Healthy foreign exchange rate and foreign reserves

* Stock shortage causes increasing property prices

* Increasing demand for property and high prices = sellers' market

Slump (3 o'clock to 6 o'clock)

Who sells and why?

* Landlords - Rentals far below mortgage payments

* Frightened Investors - Desperate to "get out before the bottom drops out of the market"

Who buys and why?

* Novice investors - Believe the good times and rising prices will never end

* "Must-buy" buyers - Relocating because of other circumstances

* Cash flush investors - Can afford a large deposit which makes mortgage affordable

What moves the clock?

* Slowing economy and anti-inflationary measures introduced

* Rising inflation and interest rates

* Credit not so readily available anymore

* Property takes longer to sell

* Lower sales volumes

* Lower house prices and negative equity

* Repossession of properties start increasing

Recession (6 o'clock to 9 o'clock)

Who sells and why?

* Indebted owners - Trying to avoid repossession

* Mortgage holders (banks) - Selling off repossessed properties

* "Must-sell" owners - Relocating locally or emigrating

Who buys and why?

* Cash buyers - Prices are low and no mortgage

* Professional investors - Bargain prices and repossessed properties

What moves the clock?

* Low business confidence

* High exchange rate

* Unemployment increases

* Reduced disposable income

* Reduced personal debt to income ratio

* Credit crunch and banks squeeze mortgagors (borrowers)

* Stringent inflation checks and rising interest rates

* High interest rates drive house prices down

* Minimal new construction

* Property oversupply = buyers' market

Recovery (9 o'clock to 12 o'clock)

Who sells and why?

* Rental property owners - Landlords getting dividends

* Investors - miscalculating market peak

Who buys and why?

* Experienced investors - Still predicting rising prices

* General public - Increasing credit availability

* Tenants - Afraid price increases will make later purchases impossible

What moves the clock?

* Renewed business confidence

* Market stabilizes

* Employment increases

* Interest rates and inflation declining

* Increased disposable income

* Improving personal debt to income ratio

* Property becomes an attractive investment

* House prices still low

* Increasing construction

* Increasing demand for property

Although this is a very simplistic analytical tool it is widely used by many investors. It is important to remember that it is not always the same "time" in every market and it is always advisable to gather the facts of the market you are considering and determining what "time" it is in that market.

The recent global slump we experienced and are still experiencing in many markets was unusually deep and long. The property cycle came to a complete halt; it was literally like taking the remote and clicking the pause button on the property market. We saw factors like global economic markets, business and investor confidence and finance availability inhibit the cycle’s movement.

In the market I work (middle class neighbourhood in the West Rand, Johannesburg, SA) we estimate it to be at around 8 o'clock, which signals the recovery will probably start in early 2011.  

What you should do now:

Buy

* If you need or want to upgrade

* If you have extra cash to invest, buy a small second property (even if you can afford to use up your equity in your primary residence)

Sell

* If you need or want to upgrade (even if you sell your current home at a lower price)

* If you are drowning in your debt

Don't Buy

* If you can't afford at least a 1% increase in your mortgage repayment

Don't Sell

* If you are considering down-scaling

* If you have investment properties which seem to be sluggish

Remember the market will move on and if you are careful you will have many more opportunities to invest and make money in the property market.

Sources used: The Mortgage Magazine, and South African Real Estate Investor 

Caroline's Properties
Inner City investment property
Good buy for a 1st time buyer
Excellent investment property
Modern living
Well priced with loads of potential
Distressed property - must sell before end of November
Stunning!
Extremely neat
Fixer upper
3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms for under R600k!
Stunning view

Property - “VOETSTOOTS” ? Does Silence Constitute Fraud?

THE VOETSTOOTS  CLAUSE = “As is” / “As it stands”
To protect the SELLER from any action by the Buyer, on discovering any defects he was not aware of when purchasing the property, from doing anything to jeopardize the actual sale contract.

TYPES OF DEFECTS:
PATENT:  A defect that is, or should reasonably be, easily identifiable upon inspection of the property.

Patent defects are described as flaws that will be clearly visible on a normal inspection of a property. They include wall cracks, sagging gutters, broken windows, missing tiles, etc. It is a Buyer’s duty to acquaint himself with the general condition of a property on purchasing it and he cannot later claim he did not see such defects. The test is an objective one, namely what could have been seen on the original inspection of the property.

LATENT: A defect that is not apparent after ordinary inspection by a 'reasonable man'.

Latent defects are defects which only an expert could discover or defects which cannot be discovered by an ordinary person during a reasonably thorough inspection, for example, rising damp in a house, faulty pool pumps and geysers, rusted internal pipes, leaking roofs (except where strain marks make the leak obvious) and defects that have been concealed such as dampness behind a cabinet. The test is what could not normally be seen on inspection.

Important:  Defects can be TANGIBLE (E.g. crack in wall, hole in the roof) or INTANGIBLE (E.g. bad tenant or soon to be raised special levy)

The Seller’s Responsibility
In terms of numerous South African court cases a Seller is only excused from liability for latent defects where he himself was not aware of the problem at the time of the sale. If a Seller knowingly conceals a latent defect he will be liable to the Buyer for the cost of its repair. 

A Seller will thus be liable for all cracks or dampness and other similar faults deliberately hidden from view. He is also responsible for latent defects which he is presumed to have been aware of, such as any appliance, which is not functioning properly. Examples are geysers delivering only lukewarm water, defective electrical points, etc\

.

The Buyer’s Recourse
It is very important for a Buyer to know what his rights are in such cases. By law he cannot do any of the following:

• He cannot obtain a quotation and deduct the cost of repairs from the purchase price and tender a lesser amount (or reduce his deposit);
• He cannot refuse to pay occupational rental or any portion thereof unless the defective article seriously restricts occupation of the property;
• He cannot repudiate or cancel the sale contract.

It is he, and not the Seller, who will be in breach of contract if he takes any of these actions. By law his proper recourse is to institute an action for damages and sue the Seller. This will obviously not appeal to the Buyer and the best way to resolve the problem is to ask the Conveyancer doing the transfer to settle the matter amicably with the Seller. Ideally he should arrange a refund of the costs of repair to the Buyer on registration of transfer. It is in the best interests of both parties to agree to this.

Late Discovery of Defects
There are two issues here. Firstly the discovery of defects that only appear later. For example, a Buyer may only experience a major roof leak when the first summer rains appear long after registration. If it can be shown that the Seller knew or must have known about the leak and consciously failed to disclose it, the Buyer can sue him for his repair costs.

The second issue concerns a delayed discovery of defects by the Buyer. For example he may only first complain about a wall crack six months after taking occupation. It will be very hard to prove that the Seller knew about a defect which the Buyer himself took so long to discover or that the defect existed at the time of the sale. In such cases the Buyer will have no recourse against the Seller.

The Estate Agent’s Responsibility
An Estate Agent is only obliged to inspect the property for obvious patent defects, to inquire from a Seller as to what known latent defects exist and to then disclose them before signature to the Buyer. Once having done this the Buyer’s recourse is against the Seller alone. A Buyer’s recourse will inevitably rest against the Seller alone and not the Estate Agent.

SOLUTION
“Prevention is better than cure”
When taking the mandate, the Estate Agent should advise the Seller to disclose ALL defects, and disclose same in the Offer To Purchase.

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Caroline's Properties
Under R700,000 

Just Listed - R399,000
3 Bedroom house - R485,000
Perfect Townhouse - R510,000
Really cute! - R689,000

Under R1 million 

Reduced! - R800,000
Very Urgent! - R850,000
House & Flat - R899,000
Beautiful Home - R920,000

Over R1 million

 What a view! - R1,09 million
Pub & Take Away - R1,25 million
STUNNING - R1,35 million
Northcliffe - R2,5 million

My Dad - Goodbye

Sad news, my dad passed away just before 5pm Saturday afternoon. He has been aging quite fast the last year or so and had been ill for a bit more than a month. He eventually died of pneumonia but it was very peaceful and as far as we could see quite painless. We decided to not take him back to hospital when he came home after Easter so he spent the last while in the frail care unit at Elm Park Village, where they cared for him with such tenderness and love. It has been a difficult period for us second guessing our decisions and sitting around watching him deteriorating on a daily basis. I believe we are all relieved its over but he was such a big part of all our lives and will leave a very large gap.

I am particularly glad that he was around for so long and that he shared so much with Charles and I. He was much more than a grandfather to Charles and they had such a strong bond. He was always there for me and bullied me into buying my first property in 1983 - which I still own! I think he transfered his love of the property market onto me and got so much pleasure out of the fact that I had the courage to leave the safety of a big corporation and follow my heart. He could never get enough of my stories about my clients and deals and particularly loved to hear about the bodies corporate on which I serve as trustee.

Good Night Mr Calabash wherever you are!

Do we care enough? Have we given up?

I promised myself I would write a positive blog and not go down into the downwards spiral of complaining which is often seen in my industry, but I would like to ask a couple of questions.

The Jo'burg city council decided to upgrade their West Rand systems to SAP in October 2009. It has been a total disaster for all involved except it seems the people who are responsible. According to Kerry Taylor Director of Rates On Line, "On the 11 January 2010 (2 months later) the first applications were accepted for the issuing of clearance figures on the new SAP system. One person in the clearance department had received training and could capture the applications. As of the 18th January 2010 the next two staff members in the clearance department received training and began allocating figures to the staff who would be issuing the figures ultimately. There still poses a problem though. Up until today only a few of the staff have received training."

We have experienced a total bottle neck in property registrations since October 2009 - there are millions tied up in this mess and it seems nobody is prepared to do anything about it! Have we given up and will we just except this total incompetence?

What amazes me is that there was no class action against the Jo'burg council, if you look at people affected.

Firstly, we have the financial sector who have granted mortgage bonds worth millions on these new properties. These funds have been allocated to these mortgage bonds and are not earning any return while it is in the process. Why is there no pressure from the banks?

Secondly, we have the legal professionals - the slump in the property market since 2008 has had a significant influence on their bottom line if you just look at the way they cut back on their staff numbers. The market has started recovering and they now also have fees locked up in this mess. Why is the legal fraternity so helpless in this situation?

Thirdly, we have the estate agents - the few of us that survived the disaster of 2009 are now sitting with our commissions frozen. Why do the Estate Agents Affairs Board and the Association of Estate Agents not act - is this proof that they really as toothless as we thought? Also what about the large Agencies like RE/MAX, Pam Golding, Chas Everit, etc? Are they too busy fighting about turf that they can't stand together to fight this incompetence?

Fourthly is the normal citizens of which you and I are members - are we just going to accept what is being done to us? We go through the trauma of selling our homes and finally everything falls in place for us to move to our new homes with all the stress that is involved with that only to realize that we will now have to pay occupational rent until the staff at the council decide they feel like working? We are also forced to live in our new homes without doing any of the renovations we planned because we will stay tenants until the council staff decide to issue a clearance certificate for us.

You have to ask what has been done to resolve this?

As to my knowledge the banks have done nothing to date.

The Property Law Committee of the Johannesburg Attorney Association have drawn up a list of complaints and had talks with the council, twice as far as I know - with no effect that I have seen.

To my knowledge, the estate agencies have done nothing as a collective, neither have the Estate Agents Affairs Board nor the Association of Estate Agents.

I took photographs of one of my client's meters, she went to the police station and did an affidavit that she had done her own meter readings and that the documents attached were a true reflection of the meters. She took these to the council and was assured that her information was captured - nothing. She went to ask her local councilor for assistance - nothing.

The DA had a meeting with residents with no results - I doubt if they have even bothered to contact the people who attended the meeting. To me it seemed like the ideal situation for them to baffle the meeting with political propaganda - they need to be re-elected soon!

The DA staged a protest against Nedbank last week in protest of the bank declining to grant a commercial bond to finance the resale of an office block. The message I take from this is that the councilors know that it will have no effect to address their colleagues in the council and thus don't even bother!

What do we need to do to rectify this?

Is the council waiting for someone in the private sector like FNB to volunteer to send FNB staff to do their work while they sit and eat KFC like what happened when Outsurance started doing the Traffic Police's work and now KFC is fixing the potholes. Where will this end?

Is this the definition of nationalisation the young politicians are asking for?

My Dad - Education, graduation and childhood

Charles, including all his brothers, received their primary/secondary schooling at the Louw Geldenhuys School in Linden Johannesburg. This School was named in honour of Lourens Geldenhuys who was born on the farm Eikenhof in the District of Heidelburg, Transvaal in 1864. He bought the farm Emmarentia on the 13 October 1909 and was also one of the owners of the farm Braamfontein.

Lourens (Louw) Geldenhuys was a member of the Second Volksraad of the Transvaal (1896/1899); the Legislative Assembly of the Union of South Africa, and the Johannesburg Municipal Council. In the ‘June 1929’ elections for the Legislative Assembly, Lourens Geldenhuys achieved the very rare (if not unique) distinction in South African political history, by defeating his opposing candidate for the Johannesburg North constituency by a margin of only one vote. He was also a very active supporter of the missionary work carried out amongst the black mineworkers who were housed in the compounds established by the mining house companies in Johannesburg. Louw was against the continuance of the guerrilla warfare during the Anglo-Boer War and was a member of the South African Party (later - United Party) and represented the Johannesburg North Constituency until his death in 1939.

The Louw Geldenhuys school in Linden (established in 1902) was what was then known as a ‘double-medium school’ i.e. it catered for instruction in the home language of children from both English and Afrikaans family.

The De Wet children’s mother had decided that her children were to be brought up in an institution that was more tolerant of her circumstances at that time. As a consequence she chose the Salvation Army whose senior officials at that time were mainly drawn from Europe -more particularly from England where it had been founded in 1878. These officials had not yet managed to master the Afrikaans language in South Africa and as a natural result, English was the language in which that organisation’s affairs were conducted at their children’s homes. The language generally spoken at the Boys’ Home in Linden was English. The reason for this language-medium was two-fold. Firstly, at that time, most of the children taken up in these ‘homes’ were from English-speaking families and secondly, Afrikaners in South Africa were also in general not attracted to the Salvation Army’s style of religious worship. Consequently, all the De Wet boys had also received their tuition (1922/38), in the English medium.

Charles however, when entering into the first grade at school, was placed in the Afrikaans-language stream, through the intervention of his eldest brother Jacobus (Jack). Jack had had misgivings in regard to the person who was responsible for the teaching of the little children through the medium of English in their second Grade of the English-language stream. It was Jack’s perception that this particular teacher had taken a dislike to the succession of De Wet boys that passed through her hands and (although, personally, being of a tough and dauntless disposition) he was not anxious to see his youngest sibling (a very small baby when they had earlier been separated) also being exposed to this particular teacher when only entering his second year at school.

When he reached the higher Grades/Standards at the school, Charles was ‘uncomfortable’ in the Afrikaans-stream because the thoughts and the reasoning of his mind were predominantly in English. He believed that he had been particularly disadvantaged by the decision taken on his behalf when he had barely reached the age of six. It was his considered opinion that he would have done a great deal better at school had he received his instruction in the English language.

At the cessation of the 1939/1945 World war and on his return to civilian life, Charles took a serious interest in the public debates that were taking place at that time in the ‘Mother-tongue/Home language’ medium of education. Regrettably, in his view, these debates were mainly attended and dominated by prejudiced persons (which included learned educationalists) with a distinct ‘nationalist Afrikaner’ political agenda – at the ‘expense’ of the genuine interests of the South African youth.

In a less serious vein; another reason of personal regret for Charles was that, in the Afrikaans stream, he had been denied the important primary (Grade 1) learning, in the class of the very popular and intensely devoted Miss Honey; a person with an abundance of empathy for the very young children placed under her care, and more particularly, the children from the Salvation Army Home. Ironically, when the time came for Charles to be moved to Grade 2, the English and Afrikaans teachers in that grade were interchanged; resulting in Charles ending up under the very teacher that his brother Jack had wanted him to avoid.

In 1938 Charles was elected the captain of his schools', very successful, first rugby team. The attached team-photo reflects the absense of two members from the team - one of them of note being their quality wing-three-quarter (Andrew ‘Tony’ Harris); and the inclusion of their two sportsmasters, viz. A P Minnaar and D J (Mannetjies) Viljoen. Sorry, I need to look for this Photo

Charles always held his schoolteachers in very high esteem. He had however a particularly high regard for Mr Viljoen and is on record for having said that he believed that Mr Viljoen played a very significant part in his upbringing and that he also believed Mr Vijoen to have been one of the most important role-models in his life.

Charles remembered Mr Viljoen once telling his class (which comprised ‘home-boys’ as well as a majority of ‘outside’ children) that, if he ever were to decide to open a business of his own, he would recruit home-boys because these boys had been brought up to do work - regardless of whether or not the ‘jobs’ were in the normal course considered to be ‘dirty’ work.

By way of examples, it must be mentioned that:

In the time prior to the introduction of water-borne sewerage disposal, teams of ‘big boys’ were required to empty and wash out the lavatory buckets at the end of each week. The contents of the buckets were collected into other larger buckets and thereafter disposed of into shallow pits that had been dug out in the large fruit orchard.

The waste water from the communal shower and wash rooms which had accumulated in the large cement ‘sump’ during each week, were emptied over the weekends by teams of boys working in pairs, carrying the water in four-gallon tins and emptying it onto the fruit trees in the orchard. Some water would inevitably splash onto the hands and feet of the boys. In the winter months this invariably resulted  in painful ‘chapped’ skin which had to be treated by the application of a home-remedy mixture of candle wax and paraffin.

The washing and ironing of the school and play clothes was done by the boys at some of their development and stay at the home.

Incidental ‘jobs’ Charles remembered having done were:

• Intermittently, looking after the cows. This job involved being released from school for a day and an opportunity to look for snakes and lizards - he could not remember ever having milked the cows or cleaning the fresh manure from the cowsheds;
• Cooking in the big copper pot – Breakfast porridge and lunch stew;
• Sweeping the ungrassed areas of the yard;
• Polishing the stoep areas;
• Sweeping, dusting and tidying the dormitory areas;
• Making up the beds of the ‘small’ children;
• Sickle the long grass;
• Hoeing the weeds from between the fruit trees;
• Making Apricot and Plum jam from the abundant harvest of fruit from the orchard, from which other homes and institutions of the Salvation Army were sometimes supplied;
• Doing the duties of the ‘big boys’ e.g. checking, among other things, that the smaller boys’ hands, necks, elbows, ears, feet and legs had been properly washed, including the inspection for slow-healing sores or boils needing the attention of the Matron;
• Etc…. Etc….

Another not to be forgotten incident relating to this particular teacher was when Charles had been chosen as scrumhalf for the trials of the Johannesburg school team to play in schools’ rugby match against their counterparts from Pretoria.

Mr Viljoen had arranged to take the pupil in his car to the venue at which the trials were to be held. Unfortunately, at the pre-arranged time Charles was still searching for his ‘illusive’ togs while keeping his teacher waiting in the car. In order to teach his pupil a lesson in courtesy and punctuality, Charles found that the car and its driver had left without him. At school on the following school day the lesson was resumed with a ‘jolly good talking to’. Charles subsequently sensed the disappointment felt by Mr Viljoen, as the Johannesburg teams’ ‘second-choice’ scrumhalf had a very bad game on the day of the match. However, in the following year, the previously ‘disgraced’ Charles was to redeem himself when the Johannesburg schools turned the tables on their Pretoria opponents in the return match. Mr Viljoen was all the more pleased that it was the turn of the opposing scrumhalf (the same person who had played against Johannesburg in the previous year) to experience an ‘off day’.

It was also during the English-period literature-lessons given by Mr Viljoen to the Afrikaans-stream scholars in the advanced Grades, when Charles was introduced to:

• The romantic story by Richard Doddridge Blackmore of ‘Lorna Doone’ which was set in the wild country of Devon in England –a place that Charles had the privilege to visit during one of his overseas business trips;
• The humanity found in the stories of the ‘The Adventures of Tom Sawyer’ by Mark Twain; and ;
• The thrilling adventures of Jim Hawkins in ‘Treasure Island’ by Robert Louis Stevenson;

In addition, the following unforgettable English poems:
The Donkey by Gilbert Keith Chesterton
The Burial of Sir John Moore by Charles Wolfe
The Cloud by Percy Bysshe Shelley
The Charge of the Light Brigade by Alfred (Lord) Tennyson

The brass band of the Linden Boys Home
Charles’ first introduction into the brass band was as a very young child, in the percussion section. Charles has a grandson who today is a an accomplished jazz drummer.

His instrument was the triangle that consisted of a steel rod bent into a triangular form open at the one corner. The two ends at the open corner, each bent outwards into a small semi-circle to enable the player to thread a cord by which the instrument is held. It is ‘played’ by striking the triangle with a small straight steel rod. Although Charles’ place in the band was more that of a ‘band mascot’, he was nevertheless able to correctly strike the triangle to whichever ‘beat’ of the music was being played; - whether it be two beats in a bar; three beats in a bar; or, four beats in a bar. From the triangle, he was eventually promoted to a cornet player in the band.

All the De Wet boys were taught to play an instrument in the brass band at different stages of their life at the Linden Boys’ Home:

The eldest boy Jacobus (Jack), played the Euphonium;

The next eldest Johannes (Johnnie) played the Trombone, then;

The next brother, Benjamin (Ben) played the Tenor Horn, and;

The youngest brother, but one, Walter, played the Bass.

With Charles on the cornet, it could be said that the ‘De Wet boys were able to set up their own brass band.

My Dad's history

I have decided to finally publish my Dad's memoirs, I do regret that I didn't get him to type more while he still could! Please add to these if you know him at all!

Charles Andrew de Wet 

Very shortly after his birth on 31 December 1920 (or possibly even during his mothers’ pregnancy) Charles’ parents marriage broke up. Charles was christened ‘Charles Andrew’ by Ds. L E Brandt in the school hall of May Consolidated Mines Germiston. -P.N. Janse van Rensburg and Aletta Wentzel officiated as witnesses at the ceremony. 

In view of the breakdown of her marriage, Charles’ mother, Hester Catherina de Wet, was forced (after a vain struggle of about 18 months) to safeguard her children by placing all of them into childrens’ homes that were run by an organisation which was acceptable to her.

It should be noted that in those times divorce was severely frowned upon and that women who were caught up in these circumstances, were considered a disgrace to their family and, at most times by others, even as ‘shameful and wicked’. The worshipers in her church were particularly staunch in their views in this regard; and, in truth, it may be said that it is more than likely that she may even have shared these views had she herself not been an unhappy ’victim’ of these circumstances.

The organisation approved by the childrens’ mother was the Salvation Army ‘a world-wide Christian evangelical, social-service, and social-reform organisation, originating in 1865 in London (England). It has military titles for its officials; is renowned for its brass bands; and, at that time, for its weekly journal, the ‘War Cry’. The Salvation Army was (and still is) particularly qualified at caring for children whose parents had fallen on hard times and who were thus unable to provide their offspring with the essential quality fosterage. 

Except for Charles and his third eldest sister Judith, the Salvation Army were able to accommodate all six other children: - the two oldest sisters; in their Driehoek home for girls, and the four remaining boys –at their ‘Driefontein Social Farm’. In 1923 these boys were transferred to ‘Firlands’, the Salvation Army’s newly built Boys’ Home in Linden.

Charles, who had barely been weaned from his mother, was placed in the Louis Botha home for children, in Pretoria until approximately 1926, when he was considered old enough to join his brothers in the Salvation Army home for boys in Linden - his mother having graciously turned down an offer submitted by an influential Pretoria family to adopt her child a year earlier.

Some interesting historic notes on the name of CHARLES:
The name of seven Holy Roman Emperors.

• Charles I Charlemagne -Charles the Great; (c742 - 814), king of the Francs, founder of the Holy Roman Empire and, in legend, hero of the Chansons de Gest. In 771, on the death of his co- ruler, his brother Carleman, Charlemagne became the sole ruler of the Francs and began to extend the kingdom. In response to an appeal by Pope Adrian I, he waged a successful campaign against Lombardy in 773 - 74. Bavaria was annexed in 788, and the Saxons and Avars (on the Danube) were subjugated and Christianised after some 30 years of war. In 800 Charlemagne was crowned emperor by Pope Leo III. From his court at Aachen he not only controlled an efficient administrative system, but also fostered the Carolingian cultural renaissance, which spread through much of present- day France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Holland and Belgium.
• Charles II Charles the Bald (823 – 877) reigned as the king of the Francs from 843 and as Holy Roman Emperor from 875. Numerous revolts and invasions troubled his reign. It was the last great reign of his dynasty and culturally the last flowering of the Carolingian renaissance.
• Charles III the Simple ( 879 – 929), grandson of Charles II. 
• Charles IV the Fair (1294 – 1328), king of France, reigned from 1322.
• Charles V the Wise (1337 – 1380), king of France, reigned as regent 1356 – 64 and as king from 1364 –1380. Frail and poor in health, he nevertheless put down th Jacquerie uprising and various plots by his nobles. He regularized taxation and the increased revenue to build up his armies. He declared war upon England in 1369 and before his death his armies, under the great commander du Guesclin,had regained most French territory occupied by the English. 
• Charles VI the Mad (1368 – 1442), reigned as king of France from 1380 to 1422. He began a disastrous reign at the age of 12. Subject to frequent and severe fits of madness, he allowed corrupt advisers to reign in his stead. England overran most of the north of France once more and Charles was forced to name Henry V of England as his heir (1420).
• Charles VII (1403 – 1461), reigned as king of France from 1422 to 1461. The early part of his reign was marked by his unwillingness to challenge the English occupation of France, even to the extent of allowing Joan of Arc to be burned as an heretic. With the influence of new advisers and the end of Burgundian alliance with England, Charles introduced tax reforms, rebuilt his army and regained all occupied territory – except Calais. 
• Charles VIII (1470 - 1498), reigned as king of France from 1483 to 1498. 
• Charles IX (1550 – 1574), who reigned as king of France 1560 – 74 was dominated by his mother Catherine de Medicis, who instigated the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre*.
  *The killing of French Hugenots which began in Paris on 24^th August, 1572. Jealous of the influence of the Hugenot de Coligny on her son king Charles IX, Catherine de Medicis plotted to assassinate him. When this failed Catherine, fearing Hugenot reaction, persuaded Charles to order the deaths of all leading Hugenots. On the morning St Bartholomew’s Day thousands were slaughtered. Despite Government orders to stop, the murders continued in the provinces until October. 
• Charles X (1757 – 1836), reigned 1824-30. He returned to France from exile after the restoration of the monarchy, becoming king on the death of his brother Louis XVIII. He was exiled again after the 1830 revolution, largely provoked by his autocratic rule. 

The name of an Italian ruler. 

• Charles I (1227 – 1285), king of Naples and Sicily from 1266, first of the Angevin dynasty. His last years were marked by a struggle to retain Sicily. As count of Anjou and brother of the French king, his reign laid the basis for future French claims to Italy.

The names of the Stuart kings of Scotland, England and Ireland.

• Charles I (1660 - 1649), came to the throne in 1625. His absolutist beliefs and Roman Catholic sympathies alienated the Puritan dominated parliaments. Forced to dissolve parliament in 1625, 1626 and 1629, he ruled without one until 1640, when increasing fiscal problems made him call the long parliament, which sought to curtail his powers. This precipitated the Civil War in 1647. Charles was defeated and captured in 1647. His continual duplicity in dealing with his captors led to his trial and execution. 
• Charles II (1630 – 1685), returned from exile to succeed his father in 1660 after the death of Cromwell. His pro–Roman Catholic foreign policy, reflecting his own sympathies, made him distrusted, but he was more tolerant in religeous matters than his parliaments. A shrewder man than Charles I, his political expertise and cynicism kept him much of his power. In the end he retained the Country’s affection, if only for his flamboyant private life.

The names of four kings of Spain .

• Charles I ( see Charles V, of the Holy Roman Empire)
• Charles II (1661 – 1700), last of the Spanish Hepsburgs, reigned from 1665. Feeble and degenerate, he could not produce an heir, and named Philip of Anjou, grandson of Louis XII, his successor, causing the war of the Spanish Succession.
• Charles III (1716 – 1788), reigned from 1759. A strongly abolitionist monarch, his attempts to expand Spanish interests in South America met with defeat at British hands. His enlightened domestic policy reducing the power of the Church and Inquisition and the introduction of administrative reforms, was considerably more successful.
• Charles IV (1748 – 1808), during his reign between the years 1788 – 1808 , Spain was largely ruled by his wife, Marie Luisa of Parma and her lover, Chief Minister Manuel de Godoy. Defeated by France in 1795, Charles allowed Spain to become a satellite of Napoleonic France, and was forced to abdicate in 1808.

The names of fifteen kings of Sweden.

• Charles I to Charles VIII (see kings of the Holy Roman Empire).
• Charles IX (1550 – 1611), reigned from 1607. 
• Charles X Gustavus, (1622 – 1660 ), reigned from 1654. He campaigned in Poland and Denmark, winning Sweden’s provinces from the Danes.
• Charles XI (1655 – 1697), king from 1660; established an absolute monarchy and rebuilt Sweden’s military and economic power.
• Charles XII (1682 – 1718), king from 1697, routed Russian invaders at Navra in 1700 and embarked on a series of expansionist campaigns. His death during a siege ended his autocratic monarchy and Sweden’s hopes of empire.
• Charles XIII (1748 – 1818), reigned from 1809.
• Charles XVI (1818 – 1844), ruled Sweden and Norway under this title. His birth name was Jean Baptiste Jules Bernadotte.
• Charles XV (1826 – 1844), reigned from 1859

NEXT CHAPTER - My Dad - Education, graduation and childhood

I'm still here!

Hi there! I'm still out here plodding along trying to blow some life into the Real Estate market!

I can't believe I have not written in 6 months - time really flies when you turn your back or maybe it is just when you get older and appreciate time.

Well the good news is that things are truly getting better in the market and I have sold a couple of properties since I last wrote on this blog. Unfortunately I have not really earned much money because the fabulous striking municipal workers are not doing their work (since November) and our properties are not being registered.

Fortunately my investment are also starting to look better and I am still surviving out here. For those of you waiting for the conclusion of No good deed will go unpunished, I am waiting for the results of an audit before I write the conclusion. I should have it in about a month's time. Thanks for reading it and the feedback!

On a personal level, my dad has entered a new phase of his life and it has been quite traumatic to witness! My dad will turn 90 on 31 December 2010 and has started aging fast. He has been getting slower and slower over the last couple of years. He became ill in early April and we were quick enough to get him to hospital before it became too serious but he did eventually get pneumonia - luckily in the hospital where they pumped him full of antibiotics and he could recover. He has subsequently come home but was moved to frail care after 1 day at home and has been there since, I don't think he will get strong enough to go home again. He is quite happy being there and he is being treated well by the staff.

Charles is still in South Korea and will come home in October, he says only to renew his visa and work permit to go back again - I really miss him but am very proud at how well he is coping on his own.