Quick Links
Categories
Archives
XML/RSS Feed
Statistics
Total entries in this blog:
Total entries in this category:
Published On: Mar 17, 2007 02:40 PM
Total entries in this category:
Published On: Mar 17, 2007 02:40 PM
Boarders
A look at the boarders we have had living with us
and some of the frustrating and bizarre situations that
developed.
I never really wanted to have a boarder in my
home. In fact, I thought that since I was married and had a kid; that I would
finally no longer have to deal with one of the immense problems that people
have--that is "Roommates"! Things were going along great for my husband and I
when we first bought our home. We were both working full-time and had so much
money that we really didn't know how to spend it all. Then when my husband's
business closed in Feb. of 2004, we had only one source of income and that
wasn't enough to make ends meet. So we embarked on an often jaded and
misunderstood process called "getting a boarder". We had an available, furnished
guestroom and we certainly needed some extra income. Wouldn't it be a great idea
to simply rent out a room in order to help pay the mortgage? Boy, were we
woefully unprepared for what was about to happen. (All names have been changed
in order to not fully embarrass the people who have lived in my
home.)
Our Preparations
I pride myself on being organized and I made sure that we had all of the usual things setup for a boarder. We had a rental agreement. It specified when rent should be paid and the penalties for not paying rent on time. We also asked for the first and last months rent from our new boarder. We also asked out local real estate agent for any leads and we thought we had found an ideal boarder. I also made sure that the room was nicely furnished with towels and bedding. We even set aside a spot in our pantries and refrigerator for the new boarder.
Joe
Joe was over 70 years old and he had just sold his home in Davis. He only needed a place to stay for the next few months. We thought that he would be the perfect boarder. He was old, so I figured that we wouldn't have to worry about any crazy parties going on at our home while we were gone. We also figured that old age would bring reliability and that his rent payment would be regular and painless. He was an extremely nice guy and he was fairly easy to get along with.
Then one morning while I came downstairs (at 5AM) to make myself some tea I saw a very naked 70 plus year old man walking around downstairs. I have seen many things, but the last thing I want to see at 5AM is a wrinkled, naked old man walking around my house. Ack! What a way to start the day! Things continued in this fashion... My husband was downstairs reading a book in the family room. Joe came in completely naked to get himself water. He didn't notice that my husband was in the room. He squatted to get his water from the water cooler, farted and went back to his room. Ahh, naked, farting, wrinkled backsides...lovely!
I had to talk to Joe and tell him that he could wear (or not wear) whatever he wanted in his own room. However, that if he left his room he had to at least put some shorts on. He complied after that and quickly found his own apartment in Fairfield. Crazy guy!
Sam
Our next boarder was someone I had known since he was 10 years old. He was a good friend of my brother and a friend of the family. We figured things would be easier with him. He knew us well and was younger (in fact he was 24 at the time). We set things up differently with him. He had rent to pay, however we would subtract from the rent for every chore he did. We also did not collect the first and last month's rent from him--which gave us problems later.
Sam was very nice and we liked having him around. Unfortunately his 45 year-old girlfriend decided that she could also move in. The first weekend that he moved in found his 45 year-old girlfriend sharing his bed. Whenever the two of them left his room, they accumulated dishes for me. There were about 10 wine glasses piled high next to my sink by the end of the first weekend.
I had to quickly tell Sam that our agreement was only with him and not his 45 year old girlfriend. She was not allowed in the house. I also mentioned that he was to do his own dishes and eat his own food. Sam stayed with us for a few months, but he didn't like the restrictions that were placed on his girlfriend--so he moved in with her in Hawaii soon after. (And promptly broke up with her a few months thereafter.) The only unfortunate thing that happened when he left is that his sheets had never been washed the entire time they were here and they had holes in them now. He had also managed to bleach my navy blue towels which now had some strange orange-yellow streaks on them. I should have collected some money for damaged property before he moved in!
Janice
With my husband shipping out with the Army, I thought it would be a good idea to have a boarder in my house again (what was I thinking?). I figured that I could use the help and the company even if I didn't necessarily need the money. I asked my church if there was anyone who needed a place to stay. Eventually I was hooked up with Janice, a 22-year-old student at UC Davis. I told her that she could have free rent, free food and even use my car. All that I was asking for was two chores a day.
During the first week that Janice moved in she had bronchitis and had mid-terms. She didn't help me out with any chores. However, I figured that she was too sick and that she would certainly pitch in once she got better. I was wrong. No help and certainly no change from her once she was better and mid-terms passed. I found myself begging her to drive my daughter to school in the morning and here she was getting free rent from me!
Eventually I had had it. I talked to her two times about the chores she was supposed to do. When she hadn't followed through on her end I posted up a list of chores and a checklist so that she coudl mark off two chores a day. I also let her know that I would be charging her $450/month rent and that if she did all of her chores that the rent would be free--otherwise she would pay a portion of the rent. She started to suddenly do her chores after that.
I guess having a boarder is never an easy task. Having to live with anyone other than yourself can force you into situations where you have to mature and work with other people. But it also adds another layer of stress on your life. And for me personally I have had a little too much stress lately. Maybe it is time to finally say goodbye to "Boarders".
Our Preparations
I pride myself on being organized and I made sure that we had all of the usual things setup for a boarder. We had a rental agreement. It specified when rent should be paid and the penalties for not paying rent on time. We also asked for the first and last months rent from our new boarder. We also asked out local real estate agent for any leads and we thought we had found an ideal boarder. I also made sure that the room was nicely furnished with towels and bedding. We even set aside a spot in our pantries and refrigerator for the new boarder.
Joe
Joe was over 70 years old and he had just sold his home in Davis. He only needed a place to stay for the next few months. We thought that he would be the perfect boarder. He was old, so I figured that we wouldn't have to worry about any crazy parties going on at our home while we were gone. We also figured that old age would bring reliability and that his rent payment would be regular and painless. He was an extremely nice guy and he was fairly easy to get along with.
Then one morning while I came downstairs (at 5AM) to make myself some tea I saw a very naked 70 plus year old man walking around downstairs. I have seen many things, but the last thing I want to see at 5AM is a wrinkled, naked old man walking around my house. Ack! What a way to start the day! Things continued in this fashion... My husband was downstairs reading a book in the family room. Joe came in completely naked to get himself water. He didn't notice that my husband was in the room. He squatted to get his water from the water cooler, farted and went back to his room. Ahh, naked, farting, wrinkled backsides...lovely!
I had to talk to Joe and tell him that he could wear (or not wear) whatever he wanted in his own room. However, that if he left his room he had to at least put some shorts on. He complied after that and quickly found his own apartment in Fairfield. Crazy guy!
Sam
Our next boarder was someone I had known since he was 10 years old. He was a good friend of my brother and a friend of the family. We figured things would be easier with him. He knew us well and was younger (in fact he was 24 at the time). We set things up differently with him. He had rent to pay, however we would subtract from the rent for every chore he did. We also did not collect the first and last month's rent from him--which gave us problems later.
Sam was very nice and we liked having him around. Unfortunately his 45 year-old girlfriend decided that she could also move in. The first weekend that he moved in found his 45 year-old girlfriend sharing his bed. Whenever the two of them left his room, they accumulated dishes for me. There were about 10 wine glasses piled high next to my sink by the end of the first weekend.
I had to quickly tell Sam that our agreement was only with him and not his 45 year old girlfriend. She was not allowed in the house. I also mentioned that he was to do his own dishes and eat his own food. Sam stayed with us for a few months, but he didn't like the restrictions that were placed on his girlfriend--so he moved in with her in Hawaii soon after. (And promptly broke up with her a few months thereafter.) The only unfortunate thing that happened when he left is that his sheets had never been washed the entire time they were here and they had holes in them now. He had also managed to bleach my navy blue towels which now had some strange orange-yellow streaks on them. I should have collected some money for damaged property before he moved in!
Janice
With my husband shipping out with the Army, I thought it would be a good idea to have a boarder in my house again (what was I thinking?). I figured that I could use the help and the company even if I didn't necessarily need the money. I asked my church if there was anyone who needed a place to stay. Eventually I was hooked up with Janice, a 22-year-old student at UC Davis. I told her that she could have free rent, free food and even use my car. All that I was asking for was two chores a day.
During the first week that Janice moved in she had bronchitis and had mid-terms. She didn't help me out with any chores. However, I figured that she was too sick and that she would certainly pitch in once she got better. I was wrong. No help and certainly no change from her once she was better and mid-terms passed. I found myself begging her to drive my daughter to school in the morning and here she was getting free rent from me!
Eventually I had had it. I talked to her two times about the chores she was supposed to do. When she hadn't followed through on her end I posted up a list of chores and a checklist so that she coudl mark off two chores a day. I also let her know that I would be charging her $450/month rent and that if she did all of her chores that the rent would be free--otherwise she would pay a portion of the rent. She started to suddenly do her chores after that.
I guess having a boarder is never an easy task. Having to live with anyone other than yourself can force you into situations where you have to mature and work with other people. But it also adds another layer of stress on your life. And for me personally I have had a little too much stress lately. Maybe it is time to finally say goodbye to "Boarders".
Posted: Fri - March 3, 2006 at 10:37 AM