All Forum Posts by: Carol Venolia

@Karen Margrave, thank you so much for that boost! You've got this guy pegged. He's blown up at me in email, and in the background when his girlfriend (my legitimate tenant) was leaving me a phone message. In each case, there was no reasonable provocation, and he knew he was acting against his own interests, yet he blew up anyway. And, yes, I'm concerned that he may trash the place; I've just had to let go of that worry so I can sleep. One day at a time.

I did tell the non-tenant boyfriend that he'd outstayed the legally allowable time for a houseguest and had to leave. His emailed (yess! a paper trail!) reply was that he'd see me in court for discrimination. I don't think he has a legal leg to stand on, and I've swiftly called in my own legal help; action is underway.

Thanks so much for reminding me that I own the place, I operate professionally, and he can't cow me.

@Jay Hinrichs, very interesting observations! My properties are in California's Gold Country--where there are many lovely people, and many low-lifes (oh, did I say that??). I really am beginning to wonder if I've picked the wrong area. My latest theory is that anyone in that area who's responsible and earning a living can afford to buy their own place there, so what's left is a renter pool of marginal folks. Not always, but it's a factor.

Anyhow, your story and your analysis of what works for you are very helpful. And great good luck with the property near the Graton Casino!

@James Wise, thank you so much for the good wishes!

@Dan Vleck, what a lousy experience! I am concerned about that kind of thing, since I'm the "big-city fat-cat landlord" (so NOT!) operating in a small town 3 hours from my home. Everybody knows everybody there, and every felon I've met tells me he has good friends on the police force. I'd LOVE to go on vacation, but with this situation in full swing... I can't really, can I?

@Marcel Bryar, thank you so much for those insights into how to interview past landlords more deeply. This is what I need. Of course, then there are the easy cases, like when I called the last landlord for this guy who shouldn't be living in my rental, and his first statement was "he was full of horses**t." Next statement: "He left the place with $4K worth of damage." Of course, the girlfriend (my legit tenant) says it was the boyfriend's ex-wife who did it...

@Aly W., yikes! How awful! But doesn't that support the notion that the landlord should have been available for that emergency?

@Jack B., I hear ya about being introverted and viewed as outgoing! Thanks for sharing your stories about contractors--ow! Fortunately, my partner is a good contractor, so I'm spared a lot of that mess. I'm counting that blessing right now! I really appreciate your reminder to "remember that YOU are in charge. You are the CEO of your own company. There is no manager above you, no share holders, and no risk of being fired." Yesss.

@Jean Bolger, good advice. I think I've been afraid to outsource eviction--or even do it! But sanity must prevail.

@James Wise, I'm definitely evaluating whether landlording is right for me. If I apply some of the stuff I've learned in this thread, I may be able to enjoy it again. I was in a different entrepreneurial area before, and got sick of it. So maybe I need to change what I'm doing, or maybe I need to change how I'm doing it. I'll decide after I catch up on my sleep!

Again, thank you to everyone. I'm so glad I asked. You're the best! BP is the best!  :-)

@Mike H., thank you for saying that landlording is for everyone--with help. And I love your "You will definitely get some stupid people that you have to deal with. But you can find ways to minimize the amount of contact you have to have with them when they start to become too big a headache." Also "the one thing that helps keep me moving forward is that it reminds that there's a reason that everybody else isn't doing this." And your 10-years-into-the-future view really helps. Your encouragement and sharing your experiences really helps.

@Scott W., I'm so glad to hear that things come in bunches! I've just had such a bunch that surely my coasting period is coming right up!

@Dawn Brenengen, I guess the votes are still out on whether I'm cut out for this. My mentor says I'm amazingly well-suited to landlording, so I think I just need to learn tricks for separating myself emotionally and taking good care of myself--which I'm learning here!

@Michael Boyer: "accelerated notice period for lease violation/unauthorized occupant in many states"--interesting! I'll look into that. Also, great perspective on what kind of units in what kind of location are right for me. I'll chew on that.

@Stephen Haynes, yeah, I'm about an hour from Sacramento, so I'll check out Gary Link. Thanks for the recommendation!

@Ingrid J., thanks for that great reminder about tapping friends and family for support.

@Joe Bertolino, "If it is eating you up, Outsource it." is great advice!

@Jake Stenziano, I didn't know about The E-Myth--thanks!

@Gino Barbaro, thanks for your thoughts on PMing--and for saying that being emotional is great. I was beating myself up a bit. The opportunity I see is that I'm learning like crazy!

@Zana Blue, I'm sure considering those options.

@Marcel Bryar, thanks for the sympathy! Do you mind sharing the questions you use when you interview prospective tenants? I have the feeling that that's where I really could improve my process.

WOW! Y'all are awesome! Really. You've done much more to lift my spirits and clear my head than most of my friends could.

@Michell P., you gave me some great perspective--really put things into place.

@Logan Hicks, I'm taking notes and adding those phrases to my lease! And I like your point about not getting belittled every day.

@Marina Shlomov--yes! Vacation! And I love your idea about saying I work for the landlord.

@Mike Cumbie, you cracked me up. Bourbon AND family! The combo should snap everything into perspective.  ;-)

@Marcia Maynard, I FEEL your emotional support! And thanks for referring me to those resources. Yes, I do have a clause about unauthorized occupants, and I just sent a letter enforcing it. I'm also talking with an attorney about eviction support, should that become necessary. I thought I had a good screening process (apparently more thorough than many landlords in the rural area where I operate), but this mess has taught me to be even more thorough.

@Nicole A., you make a lot of great points. It really helps me just to know that you, too, were once "too involved" and agonizing over things--and how you learned to put some stress-reducing distance into the process. It honestly hadn't occurred to me to be less available (except in an emergency). When I first read your statement, "Disconnect emotionally. Run your business like a business," I thought, "But caring is what makes this interesting for me!" But the more I think about it... clearly, the way in which I've been caring has been setting me up for misery over and over. So... yes! Oh, and yes, this non-tenant has directed his anger at me--over nothing. Like I pointed out that as part of his application process he had to provide proof of car insurance, and he blew up at me and threatened to look into the legality of my practices.

@Account Closed, I just might!

@Aly W., funny thing is I do have a mentor, and I'd have folded long ago without his guidance, but he has a tendency to be too trusting and naive, and that's part of how I got into this situation--following his advice. None of us is perfect! And I like your idea of having office hours and putting them in my lease. Somewhere I got the idea (from someone here on BP) that a landlord has to be reachable 24/7. That's just not good for me.

I'm one year into being a landlord, and I loved it for about the first six months--in spite of numerous challenges. I could handle it! My motto was "Nothing's gonna stop this cowgirl!" I rode high in that saddle.

But then a series of unpleasant tenant things happened, and too many units needed to be rehabbed and rented out at once. I got physically and emotionally depleted, and I rarely had time for any life outside of rehab, rent, deal with tenant problems. 

Now I'm worn down--and NOW I get my worst tenant situation of all, involving a felon with serious anger problems, who moved in with a seemingly good single-mother tenant, without my permission. 

Dealing with the problems themselves is one thing, but I'm really struggling to not collapse emotionally. I'm female, I'm sensitive, I'm somewhat introverted... is it possible I'm just not cut out for landlording, or are there good tricks for riding above the storms?

Thank you for your input. I'm going to slither to the floor now.

Congratulations, @Josh McCullough! I don't know about most deals, but I think deals like yours happen more often than many people realize. I've acquired mobiles in the same price range; I'm holding and renting them, but based on recent sales in the same park, I'll bet I could sell them for a good price. (At this point, I prefer to hold them, cuz they'll pay for themselves in 2-3 years and keep on generating income.)

This is not to take away from your good fortune, but to say that this is a repeatable success under the right conditions. You go!

@Franklin Romine, thank you so much for posting your Addendum in FilePlace! It came at just the right time for me. 

I see you've also posted lots of other docs. You're an angel! Muchas gracias!

"Nothing's gonna stop this cowgirl!"