Taking my finger off the self-destruct button

Wordsmith

chevalier wrote: »

i was just wondering if selling the hovel to move back might bizarrely be easier to sell....

It's a good thought, but there wouldn't be much chance of selling it. The property market in Ireland is abysmal (but great if anyone is thinking of relocating ...). There are numerous up-together houses standing empty, a zillion sites for sale, and many, many more attractive hovels than mine - all been on the market for aeons. Of course, it takes only one person to want my particular hovel in my particular position ... but sadly I think I was that one person!

miggy

Just dropped in to catch up and I see some hugs :grouphug: are in order. I am currently worrying about my Mum's house which needs work so you have my sympathy.

Moo2moo has a point - get rid of the tenants and you get rid of several problems at once - on the other hand, mind you, where do you then find the income to pay the mortgage? Though you might not have to - if they want it and it's on the open market they might just pull their socks up and actually buy it?

I hope today goes a bit better and Brian gets back to his normal self.

You WILL get through it, just take one thing at a time as much as possible, and ignore the other stuff that wants to be worried about out of turn. Its time will come but while you are dealing with short-fuse client the house and chimney are still as they were and not requiring extra worry.

Wordsmith

moo2moo wrote: »

Alternatively you could not extend the tennants contract at all. You owe them nothing. You could put the house in the hands of an estate agents with instructions to sell it at auction or by tender as a vacant possession with instructions not to accept anything under whatever figure you choose. That way you don't need to do anything about the chimney or the mortgage company and your problems are other.

I know you are right. This is likely what I will do. But although it doesn't make any financial or business sense, I do feel guilty about the tenants as they have made it their home and I know they love it there. I was once renting a house I loved but had to leave because it was being sold, and still remember well how I felt at the time. I got over it, of course, and so will my tenants, and as you say I owe them nothing ...

Everything would have been hunky dorey if Mr Tenant hadn't been such a twit, to use Chev's term, although personally I wouldn't have included the "w".

moo2moo wrote: »

Meanwhile - the chimney.... if the tennants are happy with it and two lots of surveyors are happy with it why the !!!! are you worrying about it? It ain't going anywhere. Yes of course it "could" fall off and crush someone but the likelihood of that is akin to you winning the lottery.

I know you are right about this, too (it's not often I admit to anyone being right once, let alone twice in one post - you'd best keep this for posterity). And I wasn't overly worried about the chimney. But then I posted on another bit of the forum - about the chimney and about the mortgage difficulty. I don't normally venture out of the diaries because it is scary. There are some awfully stern folk on some of the other threads. I have nothing against sternness when, in my humble (but correct;)) opinion it is necessary (are you reading, SA?), but some of them made me out to be a criminal - I am committing fraud, I am putting my tenants at risk of being evicted, I should just get rid of them and move back in (oooh, easy peasy), I should cough up and pay what is necessary (... lemon squeezy). There were some sensible and nice folk, too. And why don't some people read the question before answering? Call me unadventurous, but I won't be venturing out of the diaries again for a while.

moo2moo wrote: »

Hope you cope with the short fuse client without exploding at him!

I didn't explode at him and he didn't explode at me.:D Mainly because I was tucked away in the broom cupboard and he was busy in the kitchen. Unfortunately, though, I didn't get the work finished and so I have to ring him today to see whether he definitely needs it by tomorrow, in which case I will have to go again this evening. I got away with not asking him yesterday because when I was about to leave he had gone to take one of the waitresses home (oo, er, missus ... except it was his missus so there was probably no oo, er about it) and so I delighted in taking the coward's way out and wrote him a note. I'd better phone soon, actually. I am such a wimp. I hate scary phone calls.

I am tired, tired, so very tired. Lots of late nights working and lots of stress. I am not going to come up with a cunning plan today as I am too busy. But soon I will, soon.

I had a rude awakening this morning as Finn took a swipe at my prettily slumbering head upon the pillow (which could possibly have looked a bit more like I was dead to the world, drooling with my mouth open) and scratched me just below my nose and on my top lip - it was very painful, but did get my attention.

I have left Finn at home for the first time today. I leave him there when I am at the restaurant, but I close all the windows so he can't escape and bully cats can't get in - the problem with this is that Brian and mama cat can't get in or out either. Yesterday, I shut Brian in with him; when I got back at about 11 o'clock Brian was waiting inside the front door and shot out like a bullet - like me, I think he finds Finn's company for that many hours a bit too much to cope with. The fire guard had been pulled down, so I think he may have tried to escape up the chimney. I was going to bring Finn into the office today, but he was all cosy in his fluffy bed and I knew that by 11 o'clock I'd be posting his picture up on a "free to good home" website, so I took the risk of leaving him with the bathroom window open. :eek: I don't think he can get out of it yet, although it won't be long before he can, but I am still worried about a bully getting in. Brian is no doubt pointing out the open window to them right now.

I have just been phoned up and asked to send someone an invoice. I am not going to pass up the opportunity to do that, so I'm off now. Although that does mean that I have to make the phone call soon.

Wordsmith

I made scary phone call! I made scary phone call! (Gosh, it is so debilitating being a wimp.) He wasn't cross at all, and even said that I didn't need to go in this evening. I just hope I can get the work finished on Monday when I am in for my normal day. _pale_ Maybe I should go today? No, I am too tired. And I need to take my compost for a drive.

chevalier

Take your compost for a drive? The mind boggles
chev

Horace

I won't ask...

copperjar

Hi Wordsmith Just been catching up on your diary. I remember you first getting the offer from your tenants to buy the house, can't believe its come to this. My brother is just about to rent out his flat and thought it would be difficult to get agreement from his mortgage company because 1) he's in negative equity 2) he has big debts 3) I'm sure there was a 3 but I can't remember it now! But all they said was that he needed to write to them and say he would be renting it out and they were fine with it! Why have your mortgage co. said no (if you don't mind me asking!!). !!!!!!s.

copperjar

Wow, I can't say b uggers!

RosaBernicia

Wordsmith wrote: »

although it doesn't make any financial or business sense, I do feel guilty about the tenants as they have made it their home and I know they love it there. I was once renting a house I loved but had to leave because it was being sold, and still remember well how I felt at the time. I got over it, of course, and so will my tenants, and as you say I owe them nothing ...

Um, maybe I am being particularly mean but this no longer makes emotional sense to me after the way they've just treated you.

If they really loved the house, they wouldn't risk it by playing silly games.

(apologies if sounding really grumpy - in short I am, thanks to a rotten time at work!)

Rosa xx

miggy

Wordsmith wrote: »

And why don't some people read the question before answering?

Is that what you're meant to do? I would never have guessed from some of the stuff I've read...