Looking out the front door.
Less than two years ago we bought a rental home that came with a tenant. He had lived there for years and was a solid guy. He worked in construction. But then he had a heart attack and his wife left him the same month.
He told us he could no longer afford rent on disability and without his wife’s income, too. He inherited a house in Puerto Penasco, Mexico and decided to move there.
After he left, we put a lot of work into the home. It needed carpets ripped out, new flooring, paint, yard work, you name it.
Our realtor found us a new tenant who checked out great on paper. A woman with a credit score in the high 700s. My husband called and texted her, wanting us to meet our new tenant in person. She never replied. We drove down three separate times to meet her. It’s a 45-minute drive each way. She was never home or at least wouldn’t answer the door.
That was the first sign something was off.
We decided to let our realtor collect the rent and Venmo it to us. She was communicating with him. She lived there for five months and then May came. She didn’t pay rent. When she didn’t return our realtor’s calls and texts, he went to the city and filed for eviction.
Thankfully in Arizona, it takes five days to get someone out. I can’t imagine how long it takes in California. My husband and realtor met the Constable, who handles evictions, at the house. The Constable was 6’5″ tall and armed.
The tenant left before eviction day.
Not only did she leave — if she ever lived there — but the place was a mess. And strangely there were mattresses all over the floors in every room. There was also a peephole drilled into the garage door fitted with a fisheye scope. Because the front door is recessed (photo above) they couldn’t see who was outside — so they rigged the garage to keep an eye on the exterior and street.
What do you think the was going on at this house?
