They say that all good things must come to an end. I suppose that's true, but it can certainly be sad to see the good times end. Unfortunately, as I sit here tonight, I'm in that spot.
For the past 6 months, I haven't had a single eviction. Moreover, this past month I have been at 100% occupancy. In the space of one day, that luck has completely fallen apart. It started with a phone call this morning, when one of my tenants called to say that they were moving. No notice. No rent for this month. They can't afford the rent and they'll be out in the next 3 days.
Then, later in the day, I started getting that uneasy feeling that another tenant was avoiding me, indicating to me that she wasn't going to pay the rent. This is a Section 8 tenant who in my opinion is somewhat mentally ill. While I was in town collecting the final few rents, I stopped by her apartment and knocked on the door. It sure sounded like someone was at home, yet no one answered the door. As I was leaving the house, the next door neighbor (who looks iffy to me) asked me if I was looking for the woman that lives in that apartment. I responded that I was. He proceeded to call her a "slutty crackhead" along with just about every nasty name he could think of. He said that she had sold all her belongings to buy crack and that she was broke. That explains why she was avoiding me.
To tell the truth, I feel a little bit sorry for her. I think the truth of the situation is that she's being taken advantage of by the druggies, which often happens to people who are retarded (mentally ill). This type of crime is a real shame and my opinion is that the scumbags that prey on the mentally ill should be thrown in jail and the key thrown away. However, the reality of the situation remains and I won't allow her problems to become my problems. If she's doing illegal drugs and/or not paying the rent - SHE'S GOTTA GO! I'll take a 3-day notice to her tomorrow and will contact Section 8 on Monday.
As if all that wasn't bad enough, I have one other tenant that I'm concerned about. He is living in one of the apartments at the pink elephant and also has not paid rent. His rent is paid by a payee, so I'm a little concerned that it hasn't arrived yet. I'll also take him a 3-day notice tomorrow.
So, after 6 months of no evictions and one month of 100% occupancy, the fun has come to the inevitable end. I is impossible to have several dozen rentals and not have evictions, sudden move-outs, and tenant problems. Back to reality!
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2 comments:
Mike, have you ever had tenants take things when they move out? I just evicted a family that took all the miniblinds, the medicine cabinet, shower rod and curtain and even the shower head. I've had apartments trashed before, as this one was, but never anybody just straight out steal property. Do you call the cops if this happens? Will they even care?
Ryan,
Yes, I've had tenants steal things on several occassions. I had one tenant steal the stove and others have stolen a variety of other things. I bought one duplex where the tenant stole the furnace from the other half of the duplex, along with all the duct work, and sold it for scrap.
I always call the police and take pictures of the damage/location of the stolen items. The police take a report and that's it! They won't do anything about it because they don't know who stole it.
Mike
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