PHOTO: Liz Harris.
When you’re pregnant with a full-time job, most people would tell you it’s not the best time to take on a major new project. But Christchurch woman Liz Harris isn’t most people.
It was 1984, and an opportunity came up to buy an old house in the city, divided into four flats. By converting a shed-with-toilet into a fifth tenancy on the property, and upgrading the other flats, Harris soon was making a profit, despite an all-time high interest rate of 22 per cent.
Tough work but good returns
Managing the tenants was tough while she had children but, by creating five individual income streams, the house paid its way – and more.
“When I first did it, I wasn’t setting out to be involved in property, I just thought I’d give it a go,” she says, laughing.
“After I bought my first one, rents went up, I had a bit of a surplus, and I thought, ‘Sh**, this is not bad’.
“It’s ideal for a mother to do, because you can work it around the children to a certain extent and run it out of your own home.”
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