"100% of people who do not save money do not have any!"--Dave Ramsey

[Xist]

...over 3 years.

For some reason the Better Business Bureau's site went down for hours, right after I started reading reviews.

This says they are horrible: https://pestakeholder.org/news/progr...ng-conditions/

They had 26,000 houses in 2018, but have 85,000 now.
Invitation Homes had 80,000 in 2017 and 83,000 now.
They also have a 2.7/5 rating and 954 complaints, so they sound bad, but not nearly as bad as Progress!

I couldn't find the owner of the house with a Zillow application and the one that I liked the most isn't registered with the BBB.

Then one is with Invitation and 2.7/5 with 954 complaints sounds bad.

Once again I was planning on driving down today, but since I had hosed off the floor mat with the pancake syrup I wanted to vacuum the carpet before putting back the mat.

My portable upholstery cleaner happened to be right next to my shop vac and I needed to clean it before donating. I figured that I might as well use it one last time before cleaning and donating. It pulled up dirty water, but I filled up the clean water tank and maybe used a couple ounces with my passenger seat and the floor in front of it.

In theory I could clean my entire car and still be about full, so I dumped out the water on my passenger seat and the carpet, and half-filled the dirty tank with dirty water.

I seemed to get just as much water with my shop vac after using the upholstery cleaner, but I sure wish I had cleaned the shop vac before I got it wet!

Then I started receiving e-mails from Progress and looked up their reviews.

Do that first, okay?

[JSH]

From your link:

“I speak with Progress Residential tenants across North Carolina, and every year their rent is going up, it’s hard to reach the management company, and the routine maintenance and minor repairs are the tenants’ responsibility,“

None of that is unusual if renting a single family home. The renter is usually responsible for routine maintenance like mowing grass and minor repairs like changing light bulbs or unclogging a toilet.

EDIT:

Looking at the actual BBB complaints - a lot of that is normal rental complaints / disagreements. My ceiling fan doesn't work .... my tub was clogged .... I was evicted because I was late on rent but the check is in the mail. There was a water main break and they didn't pay for a hotel (no - that is what renters insurance is for)

500 - 600 complaints a year for a place with 85,000 homes for rent doesn't sound that bad to me.

[redpoint5]

I don't have a lot of experience with other owners, but people who rent tend to be dirtbags. That isn't to say they all are, just that they are renters for a reason, and that reason is typically because they don't make good decisions or take responsibility for their life. In response, owners are programmed to treat renters like dirtbags.

[freebeard]

So if you own the bag and rent the dirt does that make you a half-dirtbag? A dirtless bag?

...and that reason is typically because they don't make good decisions or take responsibility for their life.

Else reluctance to enter the house-flipping, inflationary 'real' estate game?

In response, owners are programmed to treat renters like dirtbags.

Sounds like a case of staring too long into the Abyss....

edit:
Once again Youtube is reading my posts.

California Politician Wants To Amend Constitution To Make Housing A Fundamental Right

Who defines 'housing'?

[JSH]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

I don't have a lot of experience with other owners, but people who rent tend to be dirtbags. That isn't to say they all are, just that they are renters for a reason, and that reason is typically because they don't make good decisions or take responsibility for their life. In response, owners are programmed to treat renters like dirtbags.

I wouldn't go that far. It is just that professional property management companies have heard every excuse and seen every scam. They aren't swayed by emotion and follow the letter of the law. They actually have to do that because if a property manager gives one renter a break and not another they can be sued for bias.

The company that manages my properties flat out said as much. If a renter is a day late on a rent payment they file papers for eviction. The renter then has so many days to make the payment per law but the clock starts at day 1. If they strictly follow the law they can't be sued for bias - but they are also called heartless.

Same with applications. There are minimum criteria for credit scores, time of employment, time from a prior eviction, etc. Those criteria are not flexible. If an applicant's credit score is 1 point below the minimum they are not approved. There is no flexibility like someone might get with a mom and pop landlord that doesn't know that being "nice" opens them to legal liability.

[redpoint5]

Renters have all the advantages. If a renter is dissatisfied, they can leave at any time. A landlord cannot immediately evict someone.

A renter served an eviction notice who then pours concrete down the drains will suffer no penalty except possibly loss of deposit.

I once allowed an extension for rent payment, and when they missed that deadline proceeded with eviction. They took a hammer to the walls.

This is why I now rent rooms instead of the whole house. Renting a room, one can legally discriminate for any reason whatsoever. You can then just pick among the best rather than be forced to accept the first person who just barely squeaked by the minimum legal requirements.

As an aside, I'm against all laws requiring non-discrimination, because it's antihuman. I say this as someone that was rejected on my first rental application because of my felony conviction 20 years ago. They don't have to rent to me, and I have no interest in forcing them to even if a law existed saying I could. Ended up in a way more ideal location in a brand new unit anyhow... where I observed the dirtbagness of many of the hundreds of other renters.

There are good reasons why someone who isn't a dirtbag rents. A coworker didn't have any of those reasons, and was a dirtbag. He made a lot more money than me, but needed a loan on several occasions to make rent because he was a dirtbag with money. Had a brand new Dodge Charger Hellcat, but not enough money for rent. I drove a 1996 Subaru Legacy with 240,000 miles on it.

[freebeard]

From an outsider perspective, you either rent from the government, or rent from someone who rents from the government.

Any Californians want to comment on the link in #1384? Apparently their State Constitution empowers government instead of binding it down with chains, like the Federal Constitution.

https://www.monticello.org › research-education › thomas-jefferson-encyclopedia › two-enemies-people-are-criminals-and-governmentspurious-quotation
The two enemies of the people are criminals and government...
Quotation: "The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first." Variations: None known. Sources consulted: (searching on phrases "two enemies of the people" and "chains of the Constitution") Papers of Thomas Jefferson Digital Edition

[Xist]

The company that owns the house for which I applied keep your deposit and last month's rent if you break your contract.

Yes, you could then take a hammer to the walls and pour concrete down the drains--thank you for those ideas.

I forget what show I watched, but they could also take every door knob, light bulb, sink, and anything else that could be sold for a dollar.

In "Fun with Dick and Jane," their lawn was repossessed, so he stole the neighbor's lawn.

Imagine renting a sod cutter and stealing the grass!

For some reason many rentals in Arizona have gravel, so you could steal that, too.

I spent good money for gravel, but it was backbreaking to move, and I had help.

You could take the doors!

By the way, I searched for "If a renter is dissatisfied, they can leave at any time," and every result I saw was about being evicted.

[redpoint5]

My friend bought a foreclosure and the person living there wouldn't leave. Not wanting concrete down the drains and hammered walls, he attempted to introduce the idea of leaving over time and building a report.

When the day finally came to leave, the guy had a bunch of people over taking everything, including the barkdust and gravel in the landscaping.

My friend is much more patient than I am. I'd have moved into my house on the day I owned it, and created an environment so annoying they would be figuring out how to leave as quickly as possible. Not 1 rock would be removed as they left.

Originally Posted by freebeard

From an outsider perspective, you either rent from the government, or rent from someone who rents from the government.

Correct, but it's usually cheaper and there's less rules as middlemen are removed.

[Xist]

I cannot imagine a scenario where someone could convince me to help them steal mulch and gravel.

I mentioned things that I could take, but I would never do more than joke about it.

People complained about forgetting things when they moved out of Progress homes and were charged, for example, $10 for throwing away a roll of paper towels.

Leave things better than you found them.

Don't leave anything that wasn't there when you arrived.

Generally, I don't believe that other peoples' actions justify me acting irresponsibly.