All Forum Posts by: Carol Venolia

Nice! I'm guessing you know that a red front door is supposed to be good Feng Shui? Makes that chi wanna flow right in there.

Though I hadn't thought of it as such, my "trademark" seems to be "burnt almond" exterior trim color. I'll do the body in any of a number of colors, but that burnt almond seems to make everything look better--to me, at least.  ;-)

@Martin Carty, @Josh Autery, @Marcia Maynard, @Wendell De Guzman, @Jay C., @Deanna O., and @Darron Stewart, thank you all for the helpful input! I've been caught up in dealing with it all, so apologies for not responding sooner. 

Your experiences, insights, and advice are all very useful! I've read every word and am taking them to heart. Because this is a public forum, I don't think I'll say more about the particulars of the situation. But know that you are heard and appreciated! Blessings to all.

 That's a helpful perspective, Aly. In this case, things were already pretty bad and the legal threat was all I needed to stop the nonsense and give 30-day notice. 

Thanks, @Aly W.! I like the idea of having a contractor that my tenants can call, but they have to get my blessing except in a true emergency. 

Because I'm 3 hours' drive from my rentals, I always tell my tenants, "Let me know if there's anything that needs to be fixed--and be sure to include your assessment of the urgency. If it can wait a week or two, we'll handle it. If it can't, I'll call my local people."

Thanks, @John D.! I'll keep that in mind. Let's hope the guy I'm using is swift and sure.  :-)

I've been thanking you all individually, but now I want to give you some blanket appreciation and an update.

Appreciation: Y'all have been better for me than even my closest friends! You've given me everything from sound advice to emotional comforting to sharing your stories so I can see (and feel) how others have struggled and survived similar situations. You are all a big part of how I'm getting through this current crisis. And especially those of you who firmly advised me to bring in legal help and move forward with eviction! I'd been thinking, "I should be able to handle this myself--but now I have to really study up and make sure I don't do anything wrong, cuz now this precious squatter is threatening me with legal action--AND I want to avoid lawyer's fees." But many of you helped me cut right through that with your strong suggestion that spending the money is well worth it. Thank you, bless you.

Update: Hm, maybe I shouldn't say much because this is a public forum and I've begun legal action? So I'll vaguely say that the person in question has escalated things, and I now have a legal dude taking over for me. I felt kind of weak until the illegal occupant stepped up his outbursts and threats to the point where he made me strong again; there's no more grey area ("oh, maybe I should give him another chance; maybe I should spend more time looking for reasons to accept his application..."); he has shown his hand, and I'm rising up tough.

I'm back in the saddle, and nothing's gonna stop this cowgirl! Thank you for riding the trail with me. And thanks to the founders of BP! Where would we all be without this forum?

@Jeremy S., it's great to hear that hiring a PM renewed your enthusiasm for REI! I feel your non-pain! :-)

@Aly W., thank you very much for your thoughts on "middle-of-the-night availability." I've struggled with those same concepts. If I give a tenant a list of people to call in an emergency, they could abuse that privilege; I sure prefer to always be in the middle of that conversation. And, yeah, what subcontractor is going to answer their phone in the middle of the night?

Sounds like my best bet is to show tenants how to turn off utilities in case of an emergency (which I do in our beginning walk-through), check messages even during my off hours--and not worry about what happens while I sleep.

@Jerry W., yes, I've gotten lots of helpful advice and soothing here, but that doesn't take away from the beauty of what you wrote! I deeply appreciate your words of comfort and the way you put things in perspective. Yep, getting overwhelmed sucks. Yet when we own multiple rental properties, I suspect that even the best planning can't keep overwhelm from happening sometimes. So we look for coping strategies, eh? And I'm getting lots of them from you and others, so hallelujah. Your encouragement means a great deal to me.

@Jay Hinrichs and @John D., actually these properties are in Calaveras County. Probably a similar demographic, but also probably a bit far from a Nevada County attorney. But I really appreciate your offer of referrals (or to buy the place!), John!