Well, I am back home now. We got things done while I was there, but it was plain to see that my daughter-in-law was tired. When we found out that my son was returning home sick, I had this quiet niggling fear that she was getting whatever he had.
She was.
In the meantime, I managed to start coming down with the cold William was recovering from when we took everyone out for my daughter's 45th birthday the previous week.
A plague of plagues.
The girls enjoyed crafts.
I showed them how to make a jack-o-lantern that stood on its own and and had different faces.
We collected pine cones to make these:
We did not actually get them done. The eyes for ours will be made from acorn caps, and the wings are made from paper hearts cut in half lengthwise.
We did make bats.
Even our simple plan to go to dinner Sunday night when my on-the-mend (we thought, anyway) son began throwing up.
In the end, I took my sniffles and body aches home. It was a long drive, but I got here. As I feared, my daughter in law is currently flat out with whatever my son had. I am hoping not to get it.
I came home to quite a pickle. One of our tenants moved an acquaintance in. He is having mobility issues. We were shocked because we know this person. She has a drug history, and she has a criminal background that goes along with a druggy lifestyle. Burglary, disorderly conduct, assaults, possession. 17 pages of it. She has been incarcerated. She has 5 counts on an open case which will be heard on Oct. 14th.
Most alarming is that she was taking care of her mother during her final months and had a history of taking advantage and manipulating her. She was part of a drug trafficking scheme out of the old lady's home.
All of a sudden, there were security cameras going up on our house. Tim caught her smoking dope twice in the same week on the back porch.
The issue became security. Providing a safe place for the two elderly tenants in the duplex. She is always there, so I tried to message the tenant with our concerns. Much to my surprise, she took his phone saying that it was better that I talk to her. At that point, we feared that she was intending to control the situation with the tenant just as she had with her own mother.
It is not the pot. It is her history, a history that the tenant is well aware of. Somehow, she convinced him that she had changed. He needed in home assistance. She was going to help him.
After discussing it with the police, we made the decision to start the eviction process. We gave her 30 days. She should receive the paperwork today. The tenant is upset. We feel bad. In the end, we feel like it was the only way to handle it.
The other Tim continues to improve. He is on a regular diet again. Amazing.
You two are too nice of landlords to have to deal with such a person. Hope it resolves quickly and peacefully. Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteWe will see, I guess.
DeleteI have only had to evict a tenant twice in 40 years. Once for nonpayment of rent and once because the couple kept on having so many children that eventually there were 8 people living in a 918 sq. ft. duplex. When the city ihspect9or said there were too many people living there, I asked him how many is too many and he said he didn't know for sure, but for sure, eight was too many. (Small town government?). I gave them 2 months' notice and said the fire marshal said the occupancy would not meet their safety requirements.
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh. Small town government indeed.
DeleteSorry that sickness intruded on your visit but at least you got some cute crafts done. That's a worrying situation with your tenant. Sounds like you know what needs to be done.
ReplyDeleteIt is not something we feel good about.
DeleteLife is never boring around you Debby, there is always a tale to tell. Good luck with the tenants, shame it had to blow up that way. Still you have your Halloween creatures to make, may soften the edges!
ReplyDeleteMy goal is to have a bit more 'boring'. I did plant 6 raspberry plants in my 'berry patch'. Next project is planning a strawberry bed.
DeleteI love those ghosts and they look easy enough that I could do them. I think Jack and I will give them a go.
ReplyDeleteWe all have something similar here a few weeks ago. I couldn't decide if we had Covid or the flu but my husband and I were sick and the recovery took a long time. I hope your son and daughter in law are feeling better soon.
I would be angry as hell that someone was invited to move into without your permission. It's always just one more thing. I hope you're able to get rid of the woman without too much hassle.
We were mostly dumbfounded. Our tenant must be really struggling to be taken in by this.
DeleteThere is an awful lot of history there to have changed from and with outstanding issues, I think you are doing the right thing to move her on.
ReplyDeleteFingers crossed you only have your cold to contend with health wise.
People can change. Generally we expect to see evidence of this before permitting a tenant too move in.
DeleteYou are doing the right thing with your rental. We used to have rental properties, but it just got to be to much. We had to evict one family for a few reasons. It was a very nice house, and we replaced the carpet before they moved in. When they moved, they rolled up all the carpet and took it with them. Never heard or found them again. We sold the house. Hope you are and the family are all well by now.
ReplyDeleteGees. There's a problem we have not dealt with!
DeleteSounds like the best plan to evict. I hope it goes smoothly.
ReplyDeleteWe will soon see, I imagine.
DeleteI'm so sorry everyone was ill for your visit. I hope your son and his wife recover soon. At least they have lots of food in the freezer! And I'm sorry you became ill, too. I know you enjoy spending time and doing activities with your grands.
ReplyDeleteWhat a mess with the tenant. I do feel for the guy with mobility issues. And I am sure this woman is a master manipulator. But you don't need to have a criminal ring on your property. I commend you for starting the eviction. And once she is out, you can get a restraining order to keep her out. I know your tenant is disappointed but he isn't seeing the forest for the trees. I wonder if some agency in your state could help him with an aide for a few hours a day or maybe a few times a week? Someone they could provide who has had a background check!
Once she is evicted, we will 'trespass' her from the property. You know, the thing is, we have rented to people with pretty serious drug histories. One was a 'front pager'. But the thing is, the history was old. She was clean and sober. She had a steady employment history. We really weighed that carefully, talked to both her and her boyfriend about the situation and in the end, we decided to give them the benefit of the doubt. We were not wrong. This woman? We had no chance to evaluate this woman's situation, and to be honest, given that she had current charges, she could not be considered rehabilitated. We would have never rented to her.
DeleteSorry about the sickness...the real sickness is addiction, isn't it? Sigh. Tough situation. But tough decisions can make life better for all...I think Tim would agree.
ReplyDeleteSecurity has always been important to us. It is especially important when you have elderly tenants.
DeleteOh, dear. So sorry about all the illness. You are wise to start the eviction process now before the situation can become even worse.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
We can't simply sit with crossed fingers that she has changed when there is so much current evidence that she hasn't.
DeleteBeing a landlord is not like raking in easy money. I don't think a lot of people know this.
ReplyDeleteHoney, I hope you don't get sick too but it seems to me that the odds are not in your favor.
What a week.
We have been fortunate, but it certainly keeps us on our toes.
DeleteYou've been more than kind to tenants in the past, now it's time to make a stand, which is what you are doing. Sorry about all the illness, and I hope you miss the bullet.
ReplyDeleteI am over the grandson plague and haven't shown signs of the son plague. 🤣
ReplyDeleterelief!
DeleteI spoke too soon...
DeleteFall is just starting and you are getting all your plagues out of the way early. Hopefully this presages a healthy season for you and yours.
ReplyDeleteCeci
That is the theory I am going to go with!
DeleteSo many problems to overcome..and probably too little genuine help apart from yourselves..but there is a limit
ReplyDeleteThe police weru 23 I wee very helpful actually. They explained the law, in regard to drug use. They understood our concerns about the possibility of elder 'exploitation. They took a report for their files so that if things escalate, there are background notes. The district magistrates office was very helpful, providing the paperwork, advising us how to serve it so that it couldn't be challenged. The son of the woman with dementia arranges her car. He had no idea our 'tenant' was 'helping' his mother. He is notifying the carers of the situation. I think everyone here sees the potential.
DeleteNeither the illnesses nor rental situation is pleasant.
ReplyDeleteIt is not pleasant, but it seems best to figure out the best way to over each one of them. The cold: aspirin, hydration, rest. The unvetted tenant needs to be removed.
DeleteAbuse of the frail and elderly is real and more common than you can imagine! People you would not believe to be anything but honest and compassionate , who have the guts to put themselves in a pew in church every week, rob the elderly blind. A history with law enforcement is an additional warning sign. Yes, there should be an agency in your state which can help sort out getting assistance with activities of daily living. Check with your local Area Agency on Aging as well as your Medicaid programs. There are also private companies which will come to the home and assist. Hospitals and other health professionals may have some resources they can recommend. Good Luck!
ReplyDeleteI do not know how people can do such a thing. Especially to their parents. But they do. We had an issue in our family, for heavens sake.
DeleteNOT the sort of tenant you want, especially as she wil be intending to continue her manipulation and probable symphoning off of money etc, quite apart from the history of drug abuse and likelihood of using your apartment to continue do this from. I hope she is soon just a memory.
ReplyDeleteAs for the bugs, various, hoping you don't come down with any more. The sickness one doesn't sound at all pleasant. Oh dear, just read your reply to gz . . .
You have quite a bout of it there. I just read about Jon and Tam.
DeleteIs there anything keeping the unsuitable tenant from claiming wrongful eviction? She hasn't done anything wrong "yet," or has she by moving someone else in? -Kate
ReplyDeleteWe have no lease agreement with her. She is an unauthorized tenant. There was also illegal activity happening that she did admit to in her text with me.
DeleteAh. Thanks for clarifying that for me. Good luck with it all. -Kate
DeleteYes Debby, you are doing the smart thing in getting rid of her. we had a bad tenant that took about 9 months to finally get out, no rent paid either, we just got a judgement, not worth the paper it's written on. But she was finally gone. Gigi
ReplyDeleteIt isn't something we feel good about it, but we'd feel much worse if we ignored some pretty obvious warning signs.
DeleteOh Debby, talk about "when it rains, it pours!" I’m so sorry the bugs made their rounds through the whole house.
ReplyDeleteThe bat and pinecone crafts sound like a bright spot in a chaotic visit, but man, what a mess to come home to. You and Tim did what any responsible landlords had to do. Intercepting his phone was chilling—you’re protecting everyone involved, so don't second-guess that eviction for a second.
Thrilled to hear the other Tim is eating real food again! Rest up, kick these germs, and take it one day at a time.
That is such a cool idea to make those fun Halloween ghosts.
ReplyDeleteYou are both such great landlords. We have a small house we rent out, but we had to hire a small dad and son company to handle caring for it.
Oh, that tenant situation sounds bad. It sounds like you've made the right decision. Be sure to give us an update!
ReplyDelete