Pay to make it go away
So, I'm down here in L.A., well, Pasadena, really, to deal with my condo. The tenants I had in here last were here for years - so many years I've lost count. The property manager I had before moved to the Midwest, so I've been an absent landlord for the last eight months, and I detest being that. It seems more irresponsible than anythning.
About a month ago, my tenant called me and told me there was water running down the walls in the condo. Turns out, the water heater from the condo above mine had burst and was dumping water as fast as the plumbing allowed. I expected to walk into the condo and see a big water spot and drywall damage, which is one of the reasons I drove down here: to carry all of my tools, so I wouldn't have to buy a second (sometimes third) set.
Instead, I walked in and wandered around the condo, unable to find the location of the burst water heater draining into the condo, the accident which cost the insurance company of the owner upstairs $3000. No, I didn't receive more than a 1/5 of that money, and not even that much.
After looking around, however, I did realize just how much work I'd need to put into the condo to bring it back up to rentable condition. All of the walls needed painting. The plumbing fixtures were all leaking, including the toilet. The carpet needed replacing throughout the place. And, oh, boy, I don't even want to talk about the kitchen.
I spent about 10 minutes wandering about the place, near wanting to cry, before lying down in the middle of the livingroom floor, where a coffee table had been, so it wasn't nearly as worn as the rest of the room. I lay there for a short while, feeling overwhelmed. Finally, I weighed my options, pulled out my computer, connected to my bluetooth model (gosh, do I love that n95), googled for local property managers and started dialing with the other cell phone (wow, aren't I glad I have two cell phones now?).
I figured I could be in a panic for the next three days, trying to get all of this work done by myself, completely stressed with both work projects and this condo, or, I could pay to make it go away.
I chose to pay to make it go away.
I don't usually make that choice, but, oh, my, was this the right decision for me at this time. I don't have time to fix the place up, and I don't want to be an absent landlord. I need someone else to manage this property right.
The rest of the weekend should be pleasant.