- @fcn Yahoo Pipes into GReader. 50 news sites filtered to max 50 items/day–all on topic. in reply to fcn #
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- It's a sad day when you find out that your 3 year old can access anything in the house. Sadder when she maces herself with hairspray. #
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- Enter to Win iPod Touch from @DoughRoller http://tinyurl.com/y8rpyns #DRiPodTouch #
- Arrrgh! 3 year old covered in nail polish. And clothes. And carpet. And sister. #
- Crap. 5 sets of 5 pushups. #30dayproject #
- Woo! My son just got his first pin in a wrestling meet! #
- RT @Doughroller: Check out this site that gives your free credit report AND score without asking for a cc# or social… http://bit.ly/bRhlMz #
- Breaking news! Penicillin cures syphilis, not debt. https://liverealnow.net/KIzE #
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So You’re Getting Evicted…
Last week, I had the opportunity to visit eviction court, though not for anything having to do with my properties.
It was an interesting experience. Eviction court is a day when nobody is at their best. Landlords are fighting to remove bad tenants, sometimes questioning their desire to be a landlord, while tenants are fighting to keep their homes, often with no backup plan. Occasionally, you get someone who just wants to get out of their lease because the landlord is a creepy peeper who digs through the dirty laundry.
Nobody goes to eviction court in a good mood.
If you ever find yourself in eviction court, here are some things to remember:
Everyone
- If you don’t show up, you lose. Period. Landlord or tenant, judges don’t like waiting around. You will get the worst possible outcome if you stay home.
- The first day is a hearing. The judge will either accept a settlement between the two parties, or he’ll check if there is a valid reason for a full trial. The trial will be schedule for another day. In Minnesota, that happens within 6 days of the hearing.
- Don’t make faces at the other side while they are talking to the judge. Do you want to go to jail for being a smartass? It’s called contempt of court.
Landlords
- Fix the mold, rot, and other habitability issues. You’ll have a hard time getting your rent back if you are a slumlord forcing your tenants to live in a biohazard.
- If you’ve got an automatically renewing lease, don’t file the eviction notice with the renewed lease for violations that happened under the old lease. If you do, you’ll be handing a win to your tenant.
- Make sure you lease has an eviction clause. If it doesn’t, you may not have the right to kick out your tenant for any reason.
- Your tenant’s dirty underwear is not a toy for you to play with. Creep.
Tenants
- Pay your rent. If you are withholding rent to get something fixed, you’ll be expected to put that in escrow the day of the hearing, so don’t spend it on vodka or a new stereo.
- Read your lease and the filing. It may have a backdoor that lets you escape the eviction.
- Try not to get evicted. An unlawful detainer can make it hard to rent again for a couple of years.
- Dress nice. I’m amazed by how many people showed up in ratty jeans and uncombed hair. Look professional. The judge will appreciate the effort.
All in all, it’s best if landlords and tenants try to keep each other happy. The whole business relationship will go much smoother if you do.
Chains of Servitude Update
It’s been almost exactly one year since I told my wife that we were either going to take control of our finances or file bankruptcy.
At that time, we were spending at least $500 more each month than we made, and often, it was $1000 more. We had more than $5000 accumulated on our overdraft line of credit, more than $30,000 in credit card debt, $2500 on a student loan, $12,000 on a car note, and our mortgage.
Our savings were nonexistent. We had automatic deposits established, but we’d transfer the money out right away to cover other expenses. Everything that came up was an emergency and a surprise. We had no real idea how much our lifestyles cost or what it actually took to maintain.
Maintaining our finances took several hours every payday to balance the checkbook and pay bills.
Fast forward 1 year. The student loan is gone, the line of credit will be gone next month, and the car loan will be paid off before the end of the year. We’ve reduced our total debt load by more than 20%.
We have a useful emergency fund and we’re meeting our other savings goals, including a college fund for the kids. We don’t have extremely high balances, but it’s reassuring to have more than a couple of months of expenses in our savings accounts.
We’ve automated almost everything and gone to a cash-only system. I now spend about 20 minutes a month balancing the checkbook and less than 5 minutes paying bills.
A year ago, we were in a hole, digging as fast as we could. Now, we can see the end of the debt tunnel and we are rushing as fast as we can to get there. According to my debt spreadsheet, we will be completely debt free in just under 4 years, ignoring any money coming from our side-hustles and work bonuses.
We’re making better progress than I had hoped for, and it keeps getting easier. Smart spending is becoming a habit, instead of a just wishful thinking.
Update: This post has been included in the Carnival of Debt Reduction.
Missing Money
Last week, I checked my credit card account only to discover I was over budget by nearly $1000.
What.
The.
Heck?
It threw me into a bit of a panic. How could we possibly have spent an extra grand without knowing it?
We didn’t buy new furniture. We didn’t buy new computers. We didn’t buy a new car. We didn’t take any trips.
Oh, wait.
I did take a trip. I went to work headquarters for three days. That’s about a $500 mileage allowance, plus three days of restaurant meals.
I forgot to file my expense report.
That’s where my money went.
Somehow, in all of life’s wonderful hustle, I neglected to ask my company for the almost $1000 they owe me. That’s an oversight, for sure.
Luckily, we keep that much padding in our other accounts, so I don’t have to pay interest on that money, but still.
That’s my money and I forgot about it.
I’m so not happy with myself.
What’s worse, is that even though I figured out the problem last week, I still haven’t gotten that expense report filed.
It’s not procrastination, I swear. I’ve just been absentminded and keep forgetting to do it. Right now, I’ve got “EXPENSE REPORT” written on my whiteboard to remind me to file it.
Cuz I’m going to do it tomorrow.
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3 Worst Things About Being Financially Responsible
Everybody talks about all of the wonderful things that happen when you’re saving money and being responsible. I know I do. It’s true, good things do happen. There’s really nothing like the feeling that you’re suddenly not living paycheck to paycheck.
But what about the other side of the coin? What sucks about staying in the black?
1. You have to make choices. When you’re living on credit, you can buy a car, charge an expensive dinner every week, and go on vacation. If you’re not spending real money, then who cares? When you’re living for real, you have to prioritize. Do you buy groceries or video games? Do you buy sexy lingerie or a fancy dinner? Braces or college? You’re given a lot of choices, but you can only pick the ones you can actually afford.
2. You’re no longer the Joneses other people are trying to keep up with. The guy down the street, with the fancy car, big screen TV, and artificially perfect noses on his teenagers? You’re not him, anymore, but that’s okay, because he’s financing his lifestyle 9.9% at a time. Yes, a bit of incoming envy can give you a warm, tingly feeling, but it doesn’t put food on the table.
3. It’s boring. Taking a trip in a fast car and picking up an entourage for a 10-day party is fun. Balancing your checkbook and spending 6 months saving up for your kid’s braces is not. If you’ve been living like a rockstar, rolling back to a responsible standard of living is going to come as a shock, but it’s better than suddenly running out of money and having your world come crashing down around you.
Being responsible comes with a lot of downside, but it’s all superficial. The benefits are real, and long-lasting. What’s the worst thing you’ve had to deal with by being responsible?
