New Rule

Last year when my agent started getting involved in what I was doing, every once in a while she would call me and say "new rule...." and then proceed to tell me what I was going to do. I didn't take offense to this, as she is just helping me grow my business.

My bookkeeper got involved and she also says "new rule" when it comes to some of the zen accounting practices she was dealing with early on. (for the record, my accounting practices were zen--which does not mean unscrupulous or illegal).

Now, I have another house I am trying to sell and I have run into an interesting situation. The tenant purchasing the home has a judgment on her credit. A judgment means she cannot get a loan until the judgement is paid off. This isn't my rule. This is the lender's rule. My new rule is not to take tenants who have unpaid judgments.

One for the Books

Whatever happened to that casual acquaintance who moved to Birmingham and wanted us to buy a home for them to rent? Well, somewhere in the middle of their lease, they decided to up and leave to some other state. They didn't have to move. They just wanted to. They broke the lease, left me with a vacant home more than 1,700 miles from me and, from what I understand, left the house smelling like dog. They didn't leave on bad terms with me necessarily, because I didn't want them to trash the house. However, I don't return anyone's deposit when they break the lease and the lease says so in black and white.

Essentially, they weren't an ideal fit for what we are trying to accomplish. I didn't know that at the time. But, without them we wouldn't be where we are today. For that I will always be sincerely grateful.

Today, I got an e-mail from this casual acquaintance asking about our program. She didn't write her name on the message. The reason I know it was her was because her e-mail address is in my Outlook program! I am astonished at her audacity. I know she looked at our site. And, she must have seen her own testimonial. I can't tell if she is playing me for a fool or if she is just didn't put two and two together. She has seen my logo before--at least once when she got my certified letter saying I wasn't' returning her deposit and why--and she should recognize the phone number as an Arizona number on the site. Then again, she may not recognize what our company is--but only if she hasn't been paying attention--and why should she?

Here is what I would like to write to her:

Thank you for your request (I can't help myself, it just came out automatically). However, as you abandoned your lease with me I have no desire to take another chance you won't pack up six months from now and move to Bangor Maine, leaving me with yet another vacant home. Please be advised that my good humor and check book only go so far. Best of luck to you and your family. Please do not contact me again.

It seems pointless to write her back. Calling someone on the carpet for a lack of integrity never goes well. So most likely, nothing good would come from an e-mail exchange. But, I don't like leaving this hanging. In any case, I will figure it out. I never thought this would be my latest weird event. It sure beats dealing with plumbers.