Possibly Terrible Tuesday

VarunaTT

My management company is sending a real estate appraiser through the building today.  I sent the company an email.  I really hope they're not selling.  I can't imagine any other company being as awesome as they have been.  They're responsive to tenant concerns, the maintenance team is responsive and top notch, and they keep their rents reasonable.  There's no way I get away without my rent bouncing to over $1600 if another company takes over -- and that would still be $1/sq. foot, which is still cheap.  Plus our internet is fully included, not capped, and it's a dedicated fiber line.  People are long time residents because of all of this (I'm at almost 9 years total, 7 in this apartment, 2 in another) and I'm not the longest tenant here.  At least 2 others are over 10 and there are people who have been here for 3-4 as well.  Keep your fingers crossed for me.

I'm leaving work a bit early today.  I need to drop by Mom's to check on her ear and help her get the new pressure pads on them and then off to a movie.  Otherwise, SSDD.

I have a lot of downtime in this job.  I was remembering another job that was this way and I disliked it  But I was younger and it wasn't very good money. Now I'm older and the money is right and I'm enjoying not being stressed at work.  I really did love that last job, but I had been wondering if I could continue to do it into my 60s.  While I'm still not happy about how everything went down, I seem to have landed as gently as I could have.

levioosa

@VarunaTT is there any rent control where you are? Or would that only be for renewed leases, not new owners, regardless? Hopefully it's just for their insurance policy or something.

At work and I'm so tired. This COVID fatigue sucks. I ran all of four errands yesterday (one of which being nails where I just sat there for an hour, and the other I just went to the grocery store and bought one thing), and it just destroyed me for the rest of the day. My stamina is absolutely shot. 

Otherwise, SSDD. There are some bad fires out here. Nothing that is threatening us personally, but the air quality is terrible and it's still 100F out. I feel like everyone has become so comfortable with "fire season" and I want to shout that "fire season" isn't a thing--it's climate change and it never used to be like this. 

banana468

Oh @VarunaTT I hope your situation doesn't change for housing.

Our town is going through a situation where an apartment complex not far from the beach was recently purchased and rents are skyrocketing for those renewing by up to $900/mo.  It's awful.

VarunaTT

@levioosa There's no rent control here.  They couldn't change it until my lease renewed, which thankfuly was just this June.  I also really love this space.  I do a cost analysis every year and with the space and the benefits, I've never been able to find cheaper.  I'm waiting for @short+sassy to come on and tell me if I need to worry or not,  I didnt think of the insurance option, hopefuly that's it.  I feel like this has happened once before  They did own the building next to us and they sold that one, but I can see it not being as profitable as this one,  Also, I'm so sorry, that covid fatigue is hellish.  I had it as well and it was so hard to deal with.

short+sassy

@VarunaTT, it's possible they are just refinancing.  Banks require appraisals for that.  If the appraisal was for a buyer, you all probably would have been notified about showings and inspections already because those come first.

But if it is a real estate agent getting comps, at best they are at least thinking about selling.  Crossing my fingers for you it stays the status quo!

It's been a bad day for me and I'm annoyed.  I just found out they are moving me again at my work so that is unexpectedly what I'll start doing this afternoon.  I'm also unhappy about having to train another person to "help" me because there have been some new developments.

I was hoping he was going to be a help for me when I was extra busy and a back-up, like if I was on vacation.  But it turns out he doesn't have much other work.  So he's always going to be around until that changes.

Not even a week after I started training him, I found out another company was in the process of being hired to do the fabricating for one of my big projects.  So months of work I had lined up for now and in the future, disappeared.  If I'd known that, I would have discouraged brining someone in to train.

I'd say in probably about another month, I'll be completely caught up and won't need any help anymore.  I was too nice the last time this happened and gave the other person some of my work, even while I was worried about my own lack of it.  But I'm not doing that again, especially since I want to look as needed as possible for my official 100% WFH request.

The cherry on top.  I originally approached the woman I previously trained.  But she said she was way too busy to help and didn't know when that would change.  She just came to me last week and said her one project finished early and she could help me for a few weeks.  Argh!!!!  I can't even believe the irony of how perfectly bad the timing was.  If only she had been available when I first asked her.  Or knew she could start helping in a couple weeks.  I wouldn't have had to spend all this time training someone that's just going to be albatross around my neck in another month.

As things start to slow down, I'm going to approach the client's Procurement manager for this project.  He seems to be impressed by me, even though I haven't done much for him and has talked to me in the past about helping them.  Most of the client's employees WFH and in my wildest dreams, maybe I can finagle myself becoming a direct hire.  Or at least have them rely on me enough that they will also put pressure on my company to allow fully remote work.

mrsconn23

I have been highly annoyed since the start of this day.  I had a work situation I've been trying to resolve for awhile now implode this morning. I am so, so angry.  I'm ready to rip a couple of people a new one because their incompetence  And then the people I'm trying to get to assist me are being the most passive-aggressive asshats and have tried to blow me off.  So I'm caught between a client being irate (for good reason) and people who want to point fingers and DGAF.   I was YELLING to DH about this because I am so pissed. 

Also, I was snoozing away this morning before getting out of bed and one of the suctioned baskets we use to hold shit in the shower fell and made horrific crash.  I really wanted that extra 20 min in bed.  Ugh. 

*sigh*  SSDD otherwise?  LOL  

Effing Tuesdays, man. 

charlotte989875

We are still in the midst of a Baby J sleep regression and it’s tough. I’m so tired. 

M has been asking for a dress to twirl in. I found one with dump trucks and excavators and cement mixers on it. Super adorable. H is being weird about it. M asked if he liked it and H said “sure”. Then M wanted to wear it to school and H said no, M started crying. I never thought H would make a deal about a dress. So we have to address that tonight. I’m so tired I just don’t want M to feel bad. Ugh, parenting. 

Also here he is in his dress. 

mrsconn23

Awww @charlotte989875! 

First of all, the dress is adorable.  As is the kid.  

Second, PANTS DON'T TWIRL damn it. 

Third, ugh...Why are men? Especially in these situations.  

I keep typing supportive or justification statements (like, my nephews had their nails painted last time they were here), but it doesn't freaking matter. They're KIDS exploring the world FFS.  Let them wear what they want, play with what they like, and express who they are.  

charlotte989875

mrsconn23 said:

Awww @charlotte989875! 

First of all, the dress is adorable.  As is the kid.  

Second, PANTS DON'T TWIRL damn it. 

Third, ugh...Why are men? Especially in these situations.  

I keep typing supportive or justification statements (like, my nephews had their nails painted last time they were here), but it doesn't freaking matter. They're KIDS exploring the world FFS.  Let them wear what they want, play with what they like, and express who they are.  

Thank you!! He was so so excited. 

I’m genuinely surprised H cared at all. But exactly it doesn’t matter. It makes him happy so let him do it. It’s hurting zero people and it’s fun. His best friends in his class have twirly dresses and he wanted one too. That’s all. 

Also twirling is fun. 

levioosa

@charlotte989875 hugs. Dresses are fun and they twirl! Why are men so friggen fragile? Ugh. Kids like to explore new sensations, fabrics, colors, etc. It's all developmental. Let them express themselves and take joy in absolutely everything they can before they start to grow up. 

VarunaTT

NO PANTS is the best.  Someone once asked me if I wore dresses every day for religious reasons,  Nah, I like having freedom to move and sit comfortably.  Plus, once decision to make for clothes.  Put dress on, accessorize.  It's efficient and comfortable.  

one of my favorite memes was Clothing doesn't have gender if you're not a little b!tch about it.

I hope the convo goes well for you @charlotte989875.  It shouldn't matter, it's just a piece of fabric.

short+sassy

VarunaTT said:

NO PANTS is the best.  Someone once asked me if I wore dresses every day for religious reasons,  Nah, I like having freedom to move and sit comfortably.  Plus, once decision to make for clothes.  Put dress on, accessorize.  It's efficient and comfortable.  

one of my favorite memes was Clothing doesn't have gender if you're not a little b!tch about it.

I hope the convo goes well for you @charlotte989875.  It shouldn't matter, it's just a piece of fabric.

I also find dresses/skirts more comfortable.

I previously had a job that didn't require women to wear pantyhose, if they wore a dress.  But it was a formal enough place that most women did.

I bought a few skirts that hit more mid-calf so I could wear knee-highs.  I didn't really think about how conservative it looked, until I also had a couple people ask me if I wore longer skirts for religious reasons.  I would always joke, "Nope!  I just don't like to wear pantyhose."

VarunaTT

Well, they are looking to buy the building.  Apparently my property manager forwarded my email to them.  I was like, Hey...a lot of us have lived here for 5+ years and love it, don't screw with our rent.  They just laughed.  I'm a leeeetle glad it wasn't our actual property managr, b/c I would've gotten caught with Harley.  They were in and out in about 2 minutes.  I guess I can just wait and see.

CharmedPam

Hoping it’s just for insurance reasons @VarunaTT.  Let us know if you hear anything about it.  Every time you describe your place I daydream about renting again, if I could have that.
@charlotte989875, hope that talk goes well.  Maybe H was worried about other kids making comments at school about it? Lol at @mrsconn23, with pants don’t twirl. Nope they don’t.  I get chub rub so bad on dresses I have to wear shorts underneath anyway, which is why I rarely wear dresses and skirts.

Yesterday at work, I turned my head and opened my mouth to ask my boss something but she was rushing out the door in a hurry.  I clamped shut and said goodbye.
She called me at 6:10 last night but I was in a movie (don’t go see Long Legs, stupid AF) and didn’t know she had called until today.  I was dreading it because yesterday she said I could skip the conference we’re putting on this week and I thought she had called to change her mind and she did want me there to represent but nope.  She was like “yesterday it looked like you had a question. Did you?”
”nope.  We’re good.  I can catch you tomorrow”.
It was for her to log into costco travel since I heard they had the best cruise deals.  You need to be a member to see prices and I wanted to see if it was worth a membership renewal. Actually she’s bombarded till this conference is over, so maybe I’ll wait till it’s over to ask. Lol. 

Edit: oh no, our posts crossed, Varuna. Maybe you’ll still be ok?

levioosa

Also I regret to inform those who are interested....that the Nuface Microcurrent Device and the hella expensive PCA eye gel seem to be helping in a noticeable way. RIP to my wallet. 

CharmedPam

levioosa said:

Also I regret to inform those who are interested....that the Nuface Microcurrent Device and the hella expensive PCA eye gel seem to be helping in a noticeable way. RIP to my wallet. 

I did not need to hear (read) this!!! 

I just bought some new organic balm that’s also supposed to work under eyes but now I’m 🤔 
also, does nuface zap you? I have that sculpting device all over tiktok but the ems function zaps me.  Doesn’t hurt - but I don’t like the feeling. 

levioosa

@CharmedPam If I'm using enough gel I basically don't feel it at all. Which made me suspicious for a minute (is it doing anything?). But then when the gel starts to dry out it definitely is not pleasant. Probably don't have to use their stupid expensive gel though. Next time I'm going to buy regular old ultrasound gel. 

short+sassy

VarunaTT said:

Well, they are looking to buy the building.  Apparently my property manager forwarded my email to them.  I was like, Hey...a lot of us have lived here for 5+ years and love it, don't screw with our rent.  They just laughed.  I'm a leeeetle glad it wasn't our actual property managr, b/c I would've gotten caught with Harley.  They were in and out in about 2 minutes.  I guess I can just wait and see.

Oh no!  Sorry to hear that.

At least you recently signed a 1-year lease, so your rental amount is safe until then.  Hopefully they also have good management.

If the longer-term residents are a good bit below market rent, there is unfortunately a good chance the new company will raise it closer to market as leases renew.  But you never know and they may not do that right away.  If you know your complex's current prices for a new resident, probably closer to that.

There's a website called Rentometer that will look up rental comps.  I have an annual membership with them if you'd ever like me to look that up for your neighborhood.

Commercial real estate...apartments fall under this also...usually take a looootttt longer to close on than residential.  I've heard it's typically at least 6 months and that's after there is a Purchase Agreement between the buyer/seller.  But haven't purchased my first complex...yet, so I can't speak from experience on that.

The residents' security deposits get turned over to the new company at closing.  If you don't already have move-in pictures from when you first moved in, take pictures of your apartment's current condition as it gets close to closing.  It's doubtful you would ever need something like that, but doesn't hurt to have it as a "picture in time" of what your apartment looked like around the time of purchase.

VarunaTT

We are definitely below market, but the market here is stupid for rentals right now.  We are probaby the cheapest lofts in downtown that are still nice and don't have a horrid management company.  What the previous company has done is every time a tenant moved out, they bumped it up to market value, but even then, we were still decently priced.  Ive got a few hundred dollars wiggle room, but if they bounce up to $1+/sq foot, I'm priced out.  Not only that but the market for downtown is stupid, because any new buildings have gone the way of dorm rooms: you rent a bedroom, bathroom and have a shared living space.  So it's not even a true market for what we all have.  I'm also the longest tenant in this particular apartment because it is huge, but it's a one bedroom.  You're either a couple or make enough individually to rent it.  Not only that but almost all of the newer places are "luxury" and are ridiculously priced to start with, then have 3% increases every year.

All I can do is keep my fingers crossed.  I guess I should start looking as a just in case.

charlotte989875

VarunaTT said:

NO PANTS is the best.  Someone once asked me if I wore dresses every day for religious reasons,  Nah, I like having freedom to move and sit comfortably.  Plus, once decision to make for clothes.  Put dress on, accessorize.  It's efficient and comfortable.  

one of my favorite memes was Clothing doesn't have gender if you're not a little b!tch about it.

I hope the convo goes well for you @charlotte989875.  It shouldn't matter, it's just a piece of fabric.

I laughed a little too hard at this. Thank you!! Really! 

charlotte989875

Thanks everyone. The first pass at the conversation went poorly. H said he wasn’t a fan of the dress and didn’t like it. I asked him why and he couldn’t answer. 

We talked about it again later and H said he was wrong, he was a little surprised about the dress and didn’t handle it well. Said he saw how happy it made M and he was sorry. This morning when M asked to wear it again H got it out and put it on for him. Progress exhausting progress. 

CharmedPam

@charlotte989875, glad H is seeing the light.  But more importantly, can he get any cuter?!?!?

VarunaTT

@charlotte989875 What a wonderful resolution!  When we're confronted with our own internal biases it can be a slap to yourself.  I'm always shocked when I find somthing inside me that I'm like WTF is THIS?!  One of my favorite learning tools is "Your first reaction is what society taught you, the 2nd is the one you've worked to unlearn the first".  I'm glad he was able to get to the 2nd.