An Open Letter to Kendra

I belong to a Facebook group whose sole function is to be somewhat like a mini-Craigslist. People post on there when they are looking for a house cleaner, wanting tattoo recommendations or are wanting unsolicited medical advice (usually along with disgusting pictures of a rash or skin lesion).

My personal opinion is there way too many people on there with a high sense of entitlement on this site because about once every time I look I find someone ranting (and they brag they are ranting) about something in life that just didn't go their way which they wish to take absolutely no responsibility for. And at the end they always close with, "no negative comments," which makes me chuckle because they are posting this on social media but don't want anyone else judge their consequences.

This one from Kendra caught my eye. And yes, it started with "rant".

"Rant: I hate landlords who cheat tenants. We working hard for our money n they cheating us. We $100 or late on rent and they get mad and tell us they are going to evict. If they can afford a house why do they care if we late? We keep da yard good. We do dem a favor."

Major grammar infractions aside, there is so, so much wrong with this.

I am in a space right now where I am fed up with entitled tenants. And though I didn't comment on this I really wanted to. Here is what I would have written:

Dear Kendra,

I think we all dislike others who cheat us, including your landlord. After all, you have a contract with this person to pay what you are contractually obligated to pay, and yet you don't. By the way not paying what you agreed to pay constitutes stealing. I would also bet you are contractually obligated to take care of the yard and the home to a certain extent as well, so I just can't give you brownie points for that one.

Perhaps your landlord feels a bit like I do: they are sick of people taking advantage. They don't want to deal with other's petty dramas. Perhaps they don't want to solve your dilemmas. Or, just maybe they have done you countless favors and are spent because you keep asking for more. That's just a guess.

If your landlord evicts you, he (or she) probably has cause to do so. They can rent the home out for more money and have your baggage and karma out of their lives. You say you are hard working, then you know the value of a dollar. Perhaps you know about investing? That's what this owner did. They invested in a home. They invested in you. Only one of those is permanent. I guarantee the owner has been thinking about kicking you out long before they mentioned it to you.

It seems like if you can't afford the rent, move. Garnering sympathy on social media from like-minded folks does not solve your housing issues.

Sincerely,

A Frustrated Landlord