Last week a Realtor in my office showed a tenant occupied home. The listing agent gave her the key. She knocked on the door a few times. As she opened the door she called out to say, "Hi, it's ----- the Realtor..." before she got the rest of the sentence out of her mouth a naked man over 6 feet tall came running down the stairs and started punching her and calling her names you wouldn't say in public. The buyers grabbed the 5 foot Realtor and pulled her out of the home.
I showed a tenant occupied home today. I met the young husband, his friend and saw their gorgeous blue-eyed baby as they walked out. They were friendly. The happy couple looked so pretty in their pictures. The furniture was new and stylish. It was immaculate. It looked like a magazine picture of a happy home. Perfect staging! I wanted to live in the home!
I had a tenant occupied home that was my listing. The tenants were a dream come true. They were a gorgeous young couple. The perfect couple! I admired them and still do. The wife is a stunning beauty... breath taking! Her husband is a kind, strong loving husband. I wish I had her style for decorating. Every time I walked in the front door I had to stop and just look at how pretty the home was. The home looked like a Pottery Barn catalog. Every time I showed the home it looked better than the time before. New curtains, a new piece of art, a new pillow... always something new and beautiful. They always called me back and nearly always let me show the home at the time and on the day the buyer's agent requested. The investor buyer was going to let them stay. On the Saturday before the Monday closing the buyer's agent called and said buyer wanted them out or they were not closing. It was pouring buckets of rain. I nearly fainted when the buyer's agent told me. I could not believe I had to make that call and tell them that. The couple called friends in their church and would you believe they packed the entire house and all of their beautiful belongings in 2 days and we closed on Monday? It's been years since the closing. I liked them so much I stayed in touch over the years. Now years later we've been looking for a home. I'm so blessed to be working with such wonderful people.
I have a tenant occupied listing now. The couple is yacht-chic. Amazing art and pretty furniture. The family pictures and the way the home is decorated makes you wish you could be friends with them. At the very least I want to have a glass of wine with them and hear about how cool and exciting their lives are. You just know that they have incredible stories of adventure and experiences most of us only dream about. Did I mention their pretty baby? They nearly always let me show the home any time a buyers agent asked. They always return phone calls, emails and text messages. Very, very nice people.
It's not always sunshine and fairy tales. One of my sellers let a friend who got fired stay in the house for free. All she asked was for the friend pay the utilities. The friend didn't return calls, text messages or emails. I had to call the seller for every showing after keeping the buyer and buyer's agent waiting. The weeds grew 3 feet high. Coconuts and tree branches filled the yard. When they let us in there were little cigar poops on the floor in every room. At one showing the friend was blow drying her hair in a bra with jewels glued to it and jeans with cut-outs so that they looked like leather cowboy chaps.
What I normally see as a buyer's agent when I show a tenant occupied homes is between the scary stories and the success stories.
When I list the typical tenant occupied home it has been on the market for years before I get the listing. The homes sell for 1/2 of what they would have sold for had they sold within the first 30 days of being on the market the 1st time. It usually costs about $10,000 to fix the damage caused by tenants. How do you break the electricity??? Mold, holes in the wall, urine soaked carpet and roaches. In one home the urine leaked through the carpet and plywood floor on the 2nd floor and through the drywall in the living room on the ground level. They took all of the appliances, all of the ceiling fans and the smoke detectors. They burned the floor. There were bags of dirty clothes, broken light fixtures, a desk, tables, broken windows, fushia pink walls, navy blue walls.
I remember being a tenant. I would spend a couple of days after moving out scrubbing the refrigerator, microwave, stove, the sinks, that bath tubs. I cleaned the windows, dusted the window sills and ceiling fans. I would clean the inside and outside of every cabinet in the kitchen. I dusted and vacuumed the closets. All the lights had light bulbs. I would vacuum the floors or scrub the floors and dust the base boards. I would leave some paper towels, toilet paper and soap. A good tenant is an incredible blessing. I'm always grateful for good tenants, but I am kind and respectful of all of my tenants whether they choose to be a joy or a challenge to work with.
Maya Thomas, Realtor
Exit Realty Old Island Key West
1511 Truman Avenue
Key West, FL 33040
(305) 522-1398
MyRealPro@gmail.com
www.ShowcasePortfolioProperties.com
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