I Told Him So

Though I don't have any ill-will towards Mr. Ex-Partner, I did sport a smug smile when I was playing with Zillow the other day and saw that the home I warned him would be vacant if he didn't listen to me, still is.

The back story of this house is simply, Mrs. Roebuck was living there at a reduced rent. Before we split the partnership, I had explained to Mr. Partner why Mrs. Roebuck was living there--and he was on board. It is a hard-to-rent home. It has one bathroom. It is on a busy-ish street. It is in a neighborhood that is declining. It wasn't a wise investment. We were stuck with it, so instead of trying to find someone who will ruin the place (because we had already gone down that route), let's just put a reliable person in and give a discounted rent and take the tax loss. At least the house will be safe. The loss in rent is much better than paying for vandalism and theft--which we had done before.

About 97 seconds after the partnership split, Mr. Ex-Partner went to town on Mrs. Roebuck. After all, Zillow says the house should rent for some wild number that I have never gotten for that property. But Zillow can't be wrong!

Subsequently, Mrs. Roebuck moved. The house has been vacant ever since. The pictures show it is missing a stove. But then again, the pictures were taken six months ago. By now it is probably missing a bathtub and an air conditioner too. Incidentally, the air conditioner at this house has been stolen in the past. Twice.

I wish Mr. Ex-Partner well. But I am resisting the urge to call him and say, "I told you so!"