Landlords

I need a safe place to vent so here I am. I told the landlords via text that I am having surgery so I was dropping off the June and July rent checks. In that same text, I told them about the bats in the chimney, updated them about the termites, said the dehumidifier that’s stopped working and asked for confirmation that I pay the pest control company bill for the next year. One of them is super nice, kind and always answers. The other is a narcissist who thinks he’s really nice, but he’d bite your head off in a heartbeat if you asked him to pay for anything when it comes to upkeep of the house. And yes, we’ve battled before, but the nice one comes to my rescue.

So when the phone rang yesterday after being ignored for the last few months by Mr. Narcissist I took a deep breath and answered. I never know what he’ll bring up when he calls because he’s always got an ulterior motive beneath a badly disguised fake caring. And so it ensued with him telling me that if the kids or I need anything that he’s a phonemail away. (Meanwhile he never answers texts for help or to answer any questions or even to acknowledge that he knows the rent check is in his mailbox every month because yes, I drop it off to his house, on time, every single month even though he sometimes doesn’t cash them for months…seriously?! But I digress…

He casually mentions that he didn’t want to tell me, but that they want to sell the house. Immediately I’m on high alert. Like I need a freaking heart attack right now? Seriously did he think it a good idea to tell me that after he just finished peppering me with questions about the surgery and heard that it would be 8 weeks post-surgery before I will be back to myself. And let’s not forget I’ve been the ideal tenant. Mostly I take care of everything myself and never bother them. I’ve never given them any problems, never in 5 years been late on rent, never asked for covid relief, even had the funds ready when he took 3 months to cash my rent checks. And I put up with their workmen coming and going on the property all the time because they put up a shed where they store stuff.

So I asked when he wanted to sell. He said sooner rather than later. Ok, so what does that mean to me? Luckily without knowing any of this I had already given him the June/July rent so I have until hopefully August? He brushes it off and doesn’t really answer except to say that he wants to put it on the market for $700K and would give me the first refusal if I wanted to buy it. While that’s nice, this place is a dump. They don’t keep up with repairs. The foundation is cracked and there’s no central air so it’s hot as hades in the summers. Never mind there’s no insulation. I didn’t answer him about buying it. Instead I just thanked him and said I had to get off the phone.

This was a good place to land after the divorce, but obviously my time is up. I’ve been looking for a few years for a new place for us, but I have yet to find it. Rentals are hard to find these days and the housing market is so over priced that I couldn’t afford anything decent. One more thing to add to my worry list. Just when I thought I could quietly have the summer to heal.

And I get that they want to strike while the market is hot so that they can make a profit by selling the house. It just comes at a really bad time for me. So wish me luck. I knew this day would come, but its timing stinks.