To be honest, I really didn’t want to write this post. I hate writing about my failures, but I know that I have to in order to learn from them. The upstairs unit of property Alpha is still vacant, even after I lowered the rent to $800. It’s getting close to the deadline and I think I’ve found the two big reasons why I’m having so much trouble.
The first big reason is that it’s winter. The premium time to rent out an apartment is from April through August. I’m renting out a three bedroom, so I’m most likely looking for a family. With school starting in September, it’s in a responsible parent’s best interest to get moved in before their kid’s semester begins in September. Also, not many people are willing to move in the winter because it’s fucking cold. Even though it’s unseasonably warm so far, people are already in that winter mentality. Whatever problems they have in their current apartment they would most likely tough out to get through the winter, and then look for a place once the season is over.
The other big reason is the apartment itself. The bedrooms are too small for what most people are used to. The bedrooms are 11 by 8, 9 by 12, and 9 by 5 respectively. One prospective tenant said that the third bedroom looked like one of her closets. The ceiling height is only about 6’5”. It’s also an upstairs apartment, and people with kids know that it’s better to live in a downstairs apartment so that they don’t get complaints that downstairs tenants can hear their kids running around. So even with the shiny floors, the huge backyard, the new kitchen, the lowered rent, new bathroom floor, and the utilities being included, it remains a tough sell.
The first prospective tenants on Wednesday were some loud ass Liberians, followed by couple of trailer trash girls. I didn’t want to rent to them and they didn’t want the place, so it was a mutual distaste. On Thursday, a couple of college looking white guys came by to look at the place. They didn’t want it due to the fact that it would be three dudes driving three cars with only one parking space. Yesterday, a pregnant lady came to look at the place and she said she’d talk to her fiancé. I really wanted her to take the place, as it’s the perfect size for a young couple with child but I don’t think she’s calling me back.
The next prospective tenants were some trailer park garbage. It was a mother with her boyfriend and their three rambunctious kids that had no self control. They, of course, LOVED the place and they were both getting SSI. SSI is basically money for disabled people who cannot work. Most people on SSI under the age of 55 are simply screwing the system and can actually work, but you can’t discriminate against them because they are “disabled”. As the mother was talking about getting into a fist fight at the food stamp line, I drifted off into thought wondering what it was going to take to get good tenants in here. By the time they left, I started scratching myself. As it turned out, one if not all of those dirty bastards had fleas or bedbugs. I had to take a shower and wash all my clothes. From now on, I have to do an in-depth phone interview with these prospectives. The second they say they are on SSI, I have to set the appointment for a few days later. With any luck, they’ll forget and simply not show up. I wish I could write “NO SSI ANIMALS” in the ad, but that would be illegal.
A black lesbian couple showed up today and I really wanted them to take the place, but the bedrooms were too small for them. You know, this sucks. The only people interested are shitty prospectives that don’t work, and it’s killing me. At first I was thinking about renting out to the best of the trash but I quickly dismissed that thought. I’ve learned from the Laurie/Annie situation at property Chi, and I’d rather the place be empty for years than to move anyone with assistance in. Whatever money they’d give me, I’d have to eventually spend it on lawyer fees and repair costs when I have to evict their nasty asses. Plus, I can’t risk losing the downstairs Indians. If I can get lucky and rent the place out to good people before the end of this month, it would be a relief and an end to this rent-out nightmare. I’m no longer looking for profit. I just want an end.
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