Fergie

Fergie was actually one of my early tenants, brought to me through a friend of a friend of my tenant in my first rental home. This was the first home we bought with Vance. Her home, a newish four bedroom stuccoed drab beige home with a pink roof, was in a-then up and coming section of Phoenix, where she wanted to live to be near family and friends.

At the time I hooked up with Fergie, I didn't recognize the signs of a bad renter. I can honestly say, if Fergie and I crossed paths today, I wouldn't need her application to know she would be trouble. Now, I realize warning signs were bright enough to land a 747 on a foggy night.

Fergie was a single mother who wanted the best for her and her children. An opportunity came along for her to live in a home that was in her means--if she budgeted accordingly--and she took it.

I should say, Fergie really tried. That is, tried to keep the roof over her head and more to the point, tried my patience. The real issue was Fergie's lifestyle were much higher than her monthly income. I suspect there are many people I run across who fall into this category. I can spot them better now than I could then.

From about month three, Fergie would call every month some new crisis that would make the rent late. It was always something that, if she had put a roof for her children first in her priorities, would have kept her as a thorn in my side much longer.

My favorite excuse for why her rent was going to be late was when she called me to tell me she was short because she had to buy school supplies for her kids. “What school supplies do you need?” I had asked. Pencils. She replied. A pack of pencils didn’t cost a month’s rent, I pointed out.

Eventually, I let Fergie out of her lease. It saved me a lot of grief later on. And, it probably saved her a lot of heartache too. One of the really great things about her was she left me a clean house. And, it was the one Vance and I turned around with a great profit. That profit gave me other homes in Alabama. So, not only did I learn a considerable amount about property management from Fergie, I also was able to expand my business.