Am I SURE it's not a TRAIN?

Things still haven’t slowed down, and I’m beginning to wonder if they ever will! The duplex still isn’t rented, although I’m starting to get a lot of interest.

Here’s what I’ve learned about that area of town and that income level: For the most part, the people looking for a place to live need to move in 1-5 days. They don’t plan ahead. You & I know several months in advance that we're moving--we look for a place, put down a deposit, give 30 days notice at our current residence, notify the utilities and phone companies, change our addresses, tell our friends...not the people who live in this part of town, with one exception--an Hispanic immigrant family that I met yesterday. Daniel, the father, said that their lease is up June 30th, so he's looking now. I really liked him, and told him that if he wants to rent from me, I'll hold the unit for a month with a deposit. He's the EXCEPTION out of 30 or 40 people who have called or come by.

In this area, people also don't really call to inquire. They drive by. If you are there, they stop. If not, they keep going. If they do call, they rarely leave messages.

They won’t call if you put too much information on the For Rent sign, such as the price of the rent, how many bedrooms, washer/dryer, etc…99% of the time, if they’ve made an appointment to see the place, they don’t show up. They don’t call you to tell you that they aren’t going to show up. If you do happen to call them, they say that they are running late and will be there in a half-hour, then never show up.

They run the other way if they even THINK you’re going to do a credit check. At this income level, credit scores are terrible anyway, and people are afraid of having their credit checked. So, I've learned to simply check for eviction and criminal history. Jose, my plumber, has 5 rentals, and he told me that a credit score isn't going to keep someone from screwing him, no matter how high or low it is. He chooses his renters based on conversations and gut instinct--hence my offer to Daniel and his family.

So, being an adaptable creature, I’ve learned…the For Rent sign only has my phone number and the fact that it’s a 2 BR. All of a sudden I’m getting dozens of calls. If I can, I go right over and show it, and they’ll wait for me if they are already there. I don’t mention credit check, and if they ask, I ask them how their credit score fares. They’ll tell me it’s terrible due to credit cards and other problems, but generally they’ve paid their rent, don’t have evictions, and aren’t criminals. Good enough for me.

I’m headed out to Home Depot right now to get a vanity for the duplex. I don’t think I’m going to be able to make the bigger (free!) vanity work, having it moved over away from the door. I can't figure out how to attach the P-trap at an angle. Jose the plumber is coming out tonight to see what we can do.

I have to make the Home Depot stop QUICK, because between 7:30-9:30 am, the appliance company is delivering the washer, washer & dryer, and fridge that I bought for the units. All that’s left is figuring out how to get the replacement window cranks installed, and the units are done.

What a project! What a learning experience!

Then, tomorrow I’m going to judge a horse show—finally, some KAREN TIME!