However, just because I learned from the experience it doesn't necessarily mean that I will change the way I do things. Sometimes I can be soooo damn stoopid and I will think...Oh, I just know it will be different this time. It's someone new! They wouldn't treat ME like that!
I bet you are thinkin' I am talking about matters of the heart, don't you?
Nope.
I am a landlord.
I really, really don't do landlord well. Probably no better than I am doing this parenting stuff. It's tough for me to be stern and confrontational with my tenants, especially those I've rented to over the past few years because in nearly every case, they were (emphasis on the WERE) friends of the family. If I could stress one HUGE thing I've learned as a landlord, it would be....
NEVER, EVER RENT YOUR PROPERTY TO A FAMILY MEMBER OR CLOSE FRIENDS OF THE FAMILY!!!!!
I just can't tell you how many times I've done exactly that, while knowing better and it's turned into a disaster of major proportions. EVERY. DAMN. TIME. Month after month, after month. For some inexplicable reason, they always think that they don't have to pay you the rent on time, or they don't like it when you tell them that the County has threatened to fine me because of the mess they've made on the property and if they don't clean it up they'll have to move, etc. It seriously ruins friendships.
If I were a good landlord, I wouldn't have let my current tenants get to the point where I had to serve them a 3 Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit today! Yep. Their rent was due on February 1st and I've had every excuse in the book on how and why it hasn't been paid yet, including...the handy-dandy, "We've been there 5 times to pay it and you weren't home!" Right.
Well, once I confronted them, they certainly didn't rush over with the rent that is due, that they claim to have, but instead told me what a crappy landlord I am and how the place is "falling apart" and they "have photos and they will see me in court!" Yes, these people are...well, were family friends.
I'd cry if it wasn't so absurd.
But one really good thing has come from this life experience, that I choose to have over and over again. I think I've finally learned my lesson!
Let the games begin.
Posts
My stepsister and her husband Rent out a house they own. They have lost THOUSANDS over the last few years to different tenants who couldn't pay the rent.
ReplyDeleteI am also bad at learning lessons. maybe I'll get it right in another life lol!
Sometimes we repeat the lessons til we learn them! We are incredibly slow to learn some things. But slow, doesn't mean we don't eventually learn them! Congrats.
ReplyDeleteyes, i am a landlord too- and that is exactly why we let the real estate agent handle it..groan
ReplyDeleteOur renters were a godsend for a long time: Times were hard, and the $275 a month really helped us out. Then the old trailer house they live in started to deteriorate, and we could see it might get to the point where we put more into the place than we were getting back. Honestly, I'd love to see them move. The place is an eyesore. But obviously they're happy here.
ReplyDeleteSo Cliff told them that the trailer house is theirs. We won't raise their rent, but they have to pay for repairs themselves.
Not many people would be willing to do that, but they are as happy as clams.
I still wish they'd move! But they pay their rent like clockwork, so I guess we'll all get along.
I am so sorry you have to deal with such an ordeal right now. I hope you don't have to suffer through it for very long and they come to there senses and either move out or pay up!
ReplyDeleteWhat a trial!. It definitely makes be glas I am not a landlord. GOOD LUCK
ReplyDeleteLinda
Oh my. Every time my wife and I were seriously considering buying a rental property, we changed our minds for exactly that reason (tenant/landlord relationship). The only suggestion I have and I don't know if this is something you're in the position to consider financially, but why not hire a real estate company (maybe recommended by someone you trust) to manage the property for you. The fee usually costs between 10 & 20%, but is certainly negotiable & might alleviate all the grief you've been experiencing (NO more "friends").
ReplyDeleteNo good deed goes unpunished. You're right.
ReplyDeleteugh. it sounds like you really need a hug, sweetie. i could never be a landlord. i would be waaaaay too bitchy.
ReplyDeletewhy don't you get a management company to handle this? is the rent so low you cannot afford one? how much do they cost. we were thinking of renting this place out if we couldn't sell it we were going to get a HUD certificate, that would guarantee rent. good luck with the games.
ReplyDeleteLuckily for me, when I owned a rental I didn't know anyone who lived or wanted to live in the area of my rental. I had to use a property manager after a few years and that worked best in my situation. Unfortunately I let MR Big Ex talk me into selling the home and the money of course went into his retirement which he had me sign a release saying I wouldn't touch the retirement as part of the divorce. At the time, my health and sanity came before money. I guess they still do as I'd rather have the peaceful divorce than fight for what was my money from my home.
ReplyDeleteOh, I don't envy your situation at all.
Monica
Very good advice. Also, I would add: Don't loan money to family or friends.
ReplyDelete