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Moved in a family who had a previous history of financial challenges, who swore up one side and down the other that things were better now, and they could afford the rent. Since, logically, they could (its reasonable, and includes gas, electric, water, etc.), they moved in.
The first 'full' month (July) they were late. They were late in August, too, and we switched them from a 'monthly' lease to a 'weekly' one, which they promptly screwed up. They were late in September (but only by a few days), and I now have eviction proceedings going on them because I still don't have October's rent.
Turns out the husband has diabetes, and has been hospitalized for it several times in the last few months. Since he doesn't work at a union shop, its 'no work, no pay' and his wife -- well, she says she can't find a job, but had two 'part time' ones when she moved in that should have covered things.
So, they didn't pay October 1st, got served with a 'Notice to Quit' (7 days) and then his youngest brother (age 41) committed suicide on October 8th. I delayed filing the court papers as they promised payment for the next week and a half (dumb, I know), the brother's funeral happened, and the day after, when they were supposed to give me the rent, he didn't go to work, and was back in the hospital for another week. Now he's been told he can't go back to work because of damage to his eyesight, and they found a spot on his lung that could be the scary C word.
The court date for their eviction is next Monday. They'll be given 10 days to get out. They have no money for October's rent, no way of getting November's rent, and it could be months before social security disability comes through for them.
We can't afford to be without the income the rental unit provides (all rent from all units simply pays the mortgage and bills on the property), and I need to get someone into the unit who can -- and will -- pay the rent.
(The property was my parents; after my father passed, it was too much for my mother to manage, so my husband and I took over -- with the Michigan economy being the way it is, it is more a labor of love and duty than profit making.)
They are in despair, and I understand it. They have two children (10 & 12) and a dog. I have compassion for them, but at the same time, they know the system to the point where they are trying to take us down with them, too. They *thought* the eviction process would give them several *months* of a free place to stay, but forgot they had signed a lease addendum making them 'weekly' tenants instead, which lets me get them out by mid November. Sigh.
The sad thing is, if the wife was working 40 hours at a McDonalds, those wages alone would be enough to come close to covering the rent, and if we were seeing some sign of payment (instead of Zero), it would be easier to work with them. However, she's not working (apparently anywhere at the moment), he can't work per doctor's orders, and while I'm willing to offer my floor to them, I can't let the whole property go into foreclosure, making 7 other people homeless, because of them. (The other folks rent smaller units -- these folks have the 3 bedroom place.)
I guess some folks will consider me an evil, heartless bitch. I am.
Sigh.
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