my parents as landlords
My parents bought a different house in the same neighborhood a few years ago. So they decide to rent out the old house. They didn't put much thought into it. A couple rents the place, signs some sort of contract. Well, come to find out they are smokers. Nothing about smoking in the contract. My dad asks them to please not smoke in the house. Whatever. Eventually my dad agrees to a 30% reduction in rent, and they are consistently late, end up trashing the house, and used the "use my deposit as rent" trick (which my parents accepted).
So they learned their lesson. After a bunch of repairs, they bring in a new guy. I ask, what does he do for a living? "He works at Arby's." Can he afford the rent? "yes. He has good references." Now come to find out he hasn't paid rent in two months and connections at Arby's say he is about to move. He gave my parents a check the other day and said "it's no good." He offers to pay 75% of the amount owed and my dad decides "that's alright." Apparently he's a hardluck case, raised in foster care, deserves a break.
My response: "evict him now."
Do you sometimes wonder how it is that you share the same genes with your relations? <sigh>
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