It's Business

The person I kicked out, left. More or less. She and her kids vacated the property two days after she received notice. However, she left a portion of her belongings in the house. She also e-mailed me saying she wanted to get them two weeks ago. Her things are still there.

I don't regret my decision to kick her out. Only that I had to make it. Truthfully, I should have done it months earlier. But, I kept waiting with stale optimism for her to want to fix the problem.

It is sad, but I can now recognize the "you are going to be kicked out of your home" pattern. The calm before the storm starts with calls/e-mails being returned to me, with promises from the tenant to get caught up by a certain date. Then, the dates pass with a simple, yet feasible sounding excuse. An excuse that makes a tremendous amount of sense or plays on my parental nature--like a child being sick. Then there is the second promise, followed by another due-date. If that due date passes, the payment is usually late by a week or so, or it is completely ignored. Then the phone calls and e-mails stop completely.

There are three families who have broken this pattern. One is still teetering. Another is scraping by--but pays and stays in touch. She always comes through and does what she says she will do. And for that alone, I give her more chances. The last one calls before I find out from the bank there is a problem. The jury is still out on these folks, though I think they have the right intentions.

My new formula is gone in 60 days. A harsh change from my former bleeding heart. But, it is business. These people have to pay for water, electric, food, etc. It is time they took it seriously about paying for the roof over their head.