 Those of you who know me know I've been looking into renting a house. I wasn't initially planning on moving, but the opportunity presented itself, and my lease is up in a little over a month anyway. My rent will remain largely unchanged, as will my number of toilets. I will, however, gain 2 bedrooms (up to 4 from 2), 800 square feet (for a total just shy of 2000), a HUGE garage with shop (the ad says '3 car' but it's a gross understatement), and a location much more to my liking than where I am now (it's in BFE).
There are only two problems I've discovered about the house over the past week or so. One, there is no broadband internet access available. I'll make do with satellite. Supposedly WildBlue sucks the least of the satellite providers, so I'm planning on going with them. Two, the house is being rented by a property management company. This means I get to deal neither with the actual owner nor with an intelligent, rational human being. I get to deal with a realtor. Her name is Marilyn. I'm rather surprised she graduated high school let alone managed to get her real estate license.
The first indication I got that she wasn't the sharpest crayon in the box was when I faxed her my paystub for income and employment verification. She lost the first fax, so I sent it again. I made sure to circle "Pay Rate" and "Pay Frequency," which for me is "Semi-monthly." Shortly after sending the second fax I received a call. It was Marilyn. She was curious as to how I was going to afford the house if I got paid at the rate stated on the paystub, but only once every other month. I sat there in silence for a minute... making sure I'd heard her right. Semi-annual, semi-circle, semi-interested. How in the HELL can someone older than the age of 12 NOT know what "Semi-monthly" means? I explained to her that this meant I got two checks a month. She seemed less than convinced but didn't press the issue.
Then today was the "pet inspection." This was new to me. Marilyn wanted to stop by my current apartment after work to look for "signs of pet damage." Okay. I told her up front that my cat, Tora, has torn up the edges of some of my carpets. She seemed okay with this over the phone. She seemed less okay with it once she saw the damage. The fact that I've since curtailed his destruction thorugh the use of SoftPaws didn't seem to convince her of much. She asked if I would be averse to paying a higher security deposit. I countered by asking why it was needed with a pet deposit of $500 and a lease that states I'm responsible for all pet damage. She then mentioned that she might have to inspect my house twice a year, instead of the normal once.
That really got to me. It didn't hit me until she left. But to her I'm nothing but a liability. I can make her money, or I can lose her money. She doesn't give a fuck about me beyond that. There is no trust here whatsoever. I feel I've been honest and upfront with her in every way: informing her of the damage my cat has done at my current apartment, what to expect from my credit report, etc. I get nothing in return. I'm treated as if I showed up at her office wearing a week old pair jeans and a t-shirt smelling of urine. I go in to sign the lease tomorrow. I'm paying no more than the advertised security deposit. I won't accept an inspection more than the normal once a year. If I can't be trusted to hold up my end of the contract, how can I trust her to hold up hers?
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