Ms. Popularity

Yesterday morning, I was one popular landlord.

One of my favorite tenants is moving out. Drat! I am sorry to see him go. He wants out of his lease early because essentially he can't afford the rent any more. I like this scenario a lot better than having me hunt him down next month when he is hard on his luck. Or worse, him deciding just to live there indefinitely for free.

Before I gave him an answer, I asked him some basic questions: What kind of condition could I expect to find the house in when they move out? Were there any repairs? Did the dog do any damage I should know about? Were there any unfortunate bathroom fires that were never reported? Was there a meth lab in the garage I need to know about before I re-rent the house? You know, the very basics.

Yes, I will let him out of the lease. But, I won't give him his deposits back. He is breaking the lease.

Also yesterday morning, Mrs. 508 called asking for advice. Apparently she thinks I moonlight as a counselor. She even told me I should. I happen to like Mrs. 508, so talking to her doesn't bother me. However, the real reason for her call was to confirm when the rent was really due (check the lease!).

Mr. Partner once mentioned contracts are for when times aren't good. Not for when times are easy. This is so true.

Incidentally, Mrs. 508 and I are now on the same page about the whole rent thing. Somehow, she was just under the mistaken illusion she had a few extra weeks before the rent came due. I am sure this happens all the time with tenants who have lived in my home for MORE THAN A YEAR. I can see how this can get confusing. Nevertheless, despite her delusions, Mrs. 508 is pretty ok.

I also got my weekly e-mail from Ms. Betty. This time the furnace isn't working right. But, I am sure Clay can handle it. Which is what I told her. Call his company.

The dishwasher delivery folks looking for Ms. Betty also called me from Ms. Betty's home. They couldn't get in touch with her. And, if they didn't hear from her in the next ten minutes they were hauling the dishwasher back to the store. Turns out she was in the house. I am pleased to say Ms. Betty got her dishwasher.

In addition to all this, Mr. Partner e-mailed me with tons of questions. When could he do his taxes? When would he be getting an update? When was the price of coconuts in Madagascar going back up? Ok, maybe not that last question. Maybe.