05.23.14 Feeling Lucky

This is the first time… we got a new tenant while the unit was still occupied. We've tried it once before but it didn't work out. I thought it was risky. We had not been in the unit for about two years (our handyman had given us more recent good reports). We were in the progress of getting the run around to arrange a maintenance inspection. Making me wonder if we would get compliance to show the unit. For the first time we screened the applicants before showing it, we were able to show it, and we have a holding deposit and paperwork with a new tenant.

This was the first time… we had stiff competition. Our friend own an identical duplex right next door. His same unit is also vacant, at a lower price and allowing pets when we don't. Not sure how, but we still got a tenant while his sits on Craigslist. It could have been a few days timing, or that we are small landlords rather than a property management company, or could just be a fluke.

This was the first time… we let the tenant do the paperwork long distance. We e-mailed the paperwork and picked up signed copies. I call this idiot move #52, it makes me really uncomfortable. Maybe they weren't the ones to sign, since we didn't see the signature process. Maybe they altered the documents. Our only saving grace is that there was a meeting with the tenants early in the application process and we do have copies of ID's.

There's a first time for everything - sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you learn to go back to the old way of doing things.