Last day of September. Hmm. Well, I should be very happy because I made $3500 this month. Yes, that means that I’m finally back at 10k with about $10,600 in my accounts! I’m back to five figures for the first time since May and it should feel very good. Kylie Ray paid the money she owed and it worked out (for now). I should be very happy but, as with all good news, there’s gotta be a little bit of bad news.
Libby, the elderly upstairs tenant of property Beta, sent me a text on Sunday morning:
“Hi Roger, sending you an email and a text re 30 days notice for property Beta. Please call if you have any questions or if email is insufficient, thanks”
Most people text like idiots but I got the general idea of it. Damn. Libby’s moving out. Looks like I won’t be extending that “same tenant” streak to 2 years. I accepted her 30 day notice and inquired as to why she was leaving. She responded that she'll call me in a few minutes. When an answer to that question can’t be simplified in a text, I knew something was wrong.
At first when she called, Libby said it was due to health concerns. She said climbing up the stairs to the second floor everyday was becoming too much for her, as her arthritis is getting worse. While that was a fair explanation, I knew there was more so I continued to ask politely. After a while she finally admitted that one of her “small” problems had to do with the downstairs tenant, Carver. She said that, while he’s a really nice guy, he would invite his friends over and her apartment would smell like an ashtray because their cigarette smoke would seep up into the second floor apartment. She also said that he would sometimes play music too loud. They always made sure to turn the music off at around 6pm, but it was still very loud. Before I could ask her why she never told him about these things, she said: “Now I know this is my fault because I should have spoken up for myself, but I really didn’t want to cause a fuss because he’s a nice man.” Idiot.
At first I was pissed at Carver for having people smoke in his apartment and for playing loud music. Property Beta’s neighborhood is nice and quiet, and I don’t need him screwing it up. On the other hand, Libby should have said something. Carver is a pretty reasonable guy and I’m willing to bet he would have accommodated Libby. So they’re both at fault. Libby should have stuck up for herself and Carver should’ve known better. And now I have my first turnover in over a year. I’ve always said that the most important thing to be good at in property management is the art of the turnover. If Libby’s apartment is in good condition, I should be able to rent that place out two weeks after it's rental ready. That’s my goal.
As soon as Libby knows when the movers are gonna get her stuff, she’ll let me know. After that, I’ll stop by to get an idea of what I need to replace or fix. My best guess is that I’ll have to replace the windows and the dusty rug that runs down the front staircase. Other than that, I shouldn’t have to do much more. But getting that place rented out sometime in October is my goal. As far as money goes, I guess my quota for October will be 12k. That might sound like an easy task but it’s really not. October is the month I’ll have to pay about $1000 for the Nigeria Trip. I’m taking my MDX into Wally’s Auto for a checkup. The downstairs Indians of property Alpha are having yet another wedding in my backyard on the 7th, so I'll have to make sure Lamore mows the lawn like he's supposed to. They've invited me, which means I have to find a place to go after work to avoid them. And who knows how much fixing up Libby’s apartment is gonna cost me? With these variables in play, October looks to be much different from September. The fairy tale is over and I finally have stuff to do besides overtime at the jobs. Let’s get to work...
P.S.: A small part of me is glad that Libby is moving out. Not just because I don't like tenants who can't solve a problem as simple as communicating with a friendly tenant on their own, but also because I feel a bit rusty when it comes to renting out an apartment. Not having a turnover for over a year has made me too complacent and lazy. I need to keep my turnover skills sharp, so this is a good opportunity to see if I still have what it takes to get an apartment rented out in good time. The more properties I get, the more I'll have to deal with turnovers. Keeping my skills honed will make it easier to handle in the future.
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