How did Dad do it all those years?

I'm not sure how Dad did it all when he was younger - manage the apartments alone, that is.  Mom helped for a lot of those early years.  Both of them cleaned, painted, collected rents, posted eviction notices.  But in the later years mom couldn't do the physical stuff. 

Clear up until three months before he died he was still responding to calls for plumbing emergencies, no heat, etc.  He poured his heart and soul into those apartments.  I'm not sure if he enjoyed it or just did it because it was his retirement.  He was self employed most of his life and there was no 401k, no defined benefit plans, no PERA.  Just hard work. 

The biggest problem that we face with the apartments now is that Dad didn't really do it for the last 10 or so years. Not for lack of trying, but climbing ladders, painting, and cleaning trashy apartments is really more than should be expected of any 78 year old man.

So the maintenance issues just piled up over the last 10 years and Dad either did things just enough to get by or just ignored problems completely. But it's caught up with us now.  I've thought that I might have grieved more over his death if he hadn't left us such so much work to do.  Sounds kinda heartless, but honest.

So we spent the day getting #8 ready for a new tenant.  We did a walk through first then I scraped tile,  dug the nasty grout out from the bath tub and installed a new smoke detector.  Diego worked on some leaks under the kitchen sink and fixed a leaky bathtub in another unit that we discovered.  We called the glass company to measure windows to replace cracked glass. 

We're hoping to take tomorrow (Sunday) off from the apartments, but stuff just keeps stacking up. While we were working in #8, the gal from #1 said her oven door won't open and the garbage disposal won't work. We found the leak in the bathtub in #4, and Louise in #8 has a broken window.  Yikes!

Who knew? The Pit Bull and the Screen Door - Part II

One of our rock-solid paying tenants moved out last weekend.  He was such a nice guy.  The tattoos and piercings were scary looking, but he was polite and friendly.  His apartment was always spotless when we had to be in it for some reason.  But he refused to get rid of the pit-bull dog.  And since he said it was either the dog or him...we waved goodbye. 

He left the apartment clean and brought the keys back - just like you'd hope a tenant would.  So, what's the catch?  The other tenants in the building are dancing with joy.  It was only when he moved out that they started telling us about the parties, the noise, the tons of people who were always hanging out there and the fact that his friends would take up all the parking places.  I need to vacuum the front yard to get all the cigarette butts! 

Why wouldn't they tell Jana or us?  They didn't want to cause trouble.  Were they afraid of him?  Or are they afraid of us?  Or are they just nice people who don't want to make waves?  Regardless our remaining tenants are happy campers.  Now if they'll just pay their rent ...

The new meaning of Tax Season

Tax time has meant various things to me over the years, but in landlord speak it means paid rent.  "Huh?"  Really. Two of our tenants were desperately behind in their rent.  In fact, Jana posted a 3-day eviction notice on one of them.  The very next day she walked in the door with $1,770 in cash.  The other tenant also walked in with a wad of cash to catch up.  Both said it was a tax refund. 

Don't get me wrong.  I am very happy they are caught up and we desperately need the money to pay bills and make repairs.  But I am concerned whether they will be able to remain current.  I'm trying not to borrow worry. 

Here's this weekend's to-do list:
#103
Replace medicine chests in both bathrooms
Replace light fixture in stairway
Paint upstairs bathroom
Replace bath faucet
Replace valve stems in lavatory faucet
Buy new drip pans for stove
Fix evaporation tray in refrigerator
Replace smoke detector
Spray paint the stairway and closets
Paint bathroom vanity
Check window coverings and replace if needed
Replace light fixture in kitchen and dining room

Ugh...that's not all, I'm just tired of listing things. 

The Pit Bull and the Screen Door

One of our most reliable tenants showed up with a pit bull.  We actually saw the dog about two months ago and told him the dog had to go. No Pit Bulls.  Well, that fell on deaf ears!  But bless our dear property manager's heart!  She confronted him when he paid the rent on Feb 1. 

He said if the dog goes, he goes.  She said, "don't let the door hit you on the way out."  I love it!  Then she sent a follow up letter confirming his intent to vacate before March 1.  YEA!  Although I'm sad to lose a steady tenant, the other tenants were complaining and it's all good.

Also, our dear property manager has worked miracles!  Remember our dear Courtney?  Rubber bands in the drain? Tub wouldn't drain because the lever was down? Two big dogs?  Jana found them a new place to move effective April first.  Meanwhile, they got ride of the nasty dog, took down all the signs and paraphenelia that screamed "Beware of Dog."   She's a miracle worker.

Call the plumbers, would ya?

A plumber responded to #4 on New Year's Eve to fix a bathtub that wasn't draining.  Here's the bill:

Tub not draining. 

Put lever down.

Drains fine

$49

Help me! 

Speechless!

It's amazing, and stunning, and unbelievable.  We did, indeed, talk with our fabulous property manager and decided to proceed with evicting Courtney and her dogs.  Jana posted her 3 day notice today and tonight I was getting cell phone calls from Courtney on my cell phone.  When I didn't answer I received a text message. 

I responded that I was unavailable and she should call Jana with any issues.  Here's her response (verbatim):

" K i hope ur okay i just had a question if u or ur husbend had a problems with my dogs...i'll let u know how everything goes."

I am speechless!

Puppies, paint and panic

1.  Puppies (aka DOGS)  I've had it.  The property manager and I never did get together to confront Courtney but I'm SO done.  Every time we're over there the dogs - the big dogs - are alone in the apartment, barking like crazy, clawing at the window.  There is big poop all over the little back yard that they've wire-tied together.  Now they've posted a "Beware Of Dog" sign. 

We had resolved that we would have to wait until we rented the vacant apartment next door before we started eviction notice on Courtney and Trinidad for their dog violation(s).  What to do?  We aren't getting enough income from the rented units to cover the expenses.  Do we evict a paying tenant?  AAARRRRGGGGHHHH.

2.  Paint:   We're working like crazy on Mom's house for the kids.  They're planning to move in asap, but target date is Feb 15.  Diego and I both took Thursday afternoon off work to work over there.  We taped and masked the ceiling and floors in prep for spraying drywall texture.  The sprayer must stay parallel to the wall - well that's just fine between 3-5 feet off the floor - but at floor level and ceiling level?  Squat, stand, reach, stand, squat, repeat.  Who needs Work Out West?

We vowed to spend Friday night doing nothing, but Saturday we were back at it.  We sprayed primer in the morning and paint in the afternoon.  Same technique for spraying paint:  squat, stand, reach - keep the sprayer parallel to the wall.  I was exhausted. 

What's left?  Bedroom ceiling trim, bedroom base moulding, fix acoustical ceiling tiles, closet shelves, install bi-fold closet door, repair carpet in bedroom and living room, build new counter top with new laminate, install new kitchen sink, paint second coat on dining room walls, and a few other things.  Individually each task isn't bad, but as a composite - Yikes!  None of this takes into account what the kids have on their own to-do list: grout tile back splash, finish final touches of paint on cabinets, install new cabinet pulls, replace cabinet doors paint living room, etc.,. etc,. etc.  Even after they move in they'll have a long to-do list. 

3.  Panic:  A new tenant moved into in the 8 plex this weekend - Thank God!  Wednesday night I had a dream that he backed out of the lease because he was told there was asbestos.  I woke up at 3:30 a.m. trying to decide if it was real or a dream and worried in a half-conscious state til morning.  Good grief!