Thursday Thoughts # 63
from Dead Point, a Jack Irish thriller by Peter Temple:
"I was under a three-metre-long table made of red cedar cut in Northern New South Wales before World War One. I was examining the perfect fit of the wooden buttons that fixed the tabletop to the frame and would allow the timber to move seasonally for a few centuries until it stabilised."**
** How's that for craftsmanship?
from Make Me, a Jack Reacher novel by Lee Child:
"...a couple of bullies with the combined IQ of a bucket of primer."
Today's Thoughts
There's been plenty of articles on TV, in those current affairs type shows, about tenants who trash their rental properties.
Yesterday, we saw the other side of the story. People paying decent rent amounts, (what I call outrageous amounts) and being ripped off by the landlords because in many cases the 'homes', are uninhabitable or badly in need of repair or simply not as advertised. And the landlords won't fix things.
We were shown a two story house advertised as having reverse cycle ducted airconditioning throughout and there was a unit attached to the house, but vastly inadequate to the point where only one room could be heated or cooled.
We saw homes with mould in living rooms, many homes in various states of disrepair and one where a woman and her daughter were living in one bedroom and a porch and a second bedroom was padlocked by the landlady, so inaccessible.
One spokesperson said tenants did not need to meekly put up with this. They should stand firm and go on "rent strike" (not pay any rent) until the landlord has fixed what needs fixing.
Does he really think that's what will happen?? Landlords fixing things? Maybe a few would..
I can see it now; all over the country tenants will stand up to the landlords and declare they are not paying another cent until......and the landlords saying, "fine, pack your things and get out".
Imagine the chaos!
I personally know a few people who stay in poor quality houses because they cannot afford to move and they're afraid to ask their landlords to repair anything because the landlords may then raise the rent to recover their costs.
On the weather front; we've had some warm spring-like weather, followed by a few quite hot days, which is normal, then yesterday we had a late afternoon thunderstorm.
Heavy clouds, thunder, lightning, sheeting rain, you know how that goes.
But in Adelaide's eastern suburbs, they had it so much worse.
Flash floods, heavy hail and snow.
That's right. Snow. In the suburb I used to live in.
I saw it on TV. Roads with cars stranded, up to the top of the wheel arches in water; yards and house roofs, businesses too, covered so thickly in hailstones it looked like snow. People sweeping water out of shops and homes.
And we (I) saw kids making and throwing snowballs at each other, others making tiny snowmen.
Ah, Adelaide in the Spring (*~*)
"I was under a three-metre-long table made of red cedar cut in Northern New South Wales before World War One. I was examining the perfect fit of the wooden buttons that fixed the tabletop to the frame and would allow the timber to move seasonally for a few centuries until it stabilised."**
** How's that for craftsmanship?
from Make Me, a Jack Reacher novel by Lee Child:
"...a couple of bullies with the combined IQ of a bucket of primer."
Today's Thoughts
There's been plenty of articles on TV, in those current affairs type shows, about tenants who trash their rental properties.
Yesterday, we saw the other side of the story. People paying decent rent amounts, (what I call outrageous amounts) and being ripped off by the landlords because in many cases the 'homes', are uninhabitable or badly in need of repair or simply not as advertised. And the landlords won't fix things.
We were shown a two story house advertised as having reverse cycle ducted airconditioning throughout and there was a unit attached to the house, but vastly inadequate to the point where only one room could be heated or cooled.
We saw homes with mould in living rooms, many homes in various states of disrepair and one where a woman and her daughter were living in one bedroom and a porch and a second bedroom was padlocked by the landlady, so inaccessible.
One spokesperson said tenants did not need to meekly put up with this. They should stand firm and go on "rent strike" (not pay any rent) until the landlord has fixed what needs fixing.
Does he really think that's what will happen?? Landlords fixing things? Maybe a few would..
I can see it now; all over the country tenants will stand up to the landlords and declare they are not paying another cent until......and the landlords saying, "fine, pack your things and get out".
Imagine the chaos!
I personally know a few people who stay in poor quality houses because they cannot afford to move and they're afraid to ask their landlords to repair anything because the landlords may then raise the rent to recover their costs.
On the weather front; we've had some warm spring-like weather, followed by a few quite hot days, which is normal, then yesterday we had a late afternoon thunderstorm.
Heavy clouds, thunder, lightning, sheeting rain, you know how that goes.
But in Adelaide's eastern suburbs, they had it so much worse.
Flash floods, heavy hail and snow.
That's right. Snow. In the suburb I used to live in.
I saw it on TV. Roads with cars stranded, up to the top of the wheel arches in water; yards and house roofs, businesses too, covered so thickly in hailstones it looked like snow. People sweeping water out of shops and homes.
And we (I) saw kids making and throwing snowballs at each other, others making tiny snowmen.
Ah, Adelaide in the Spring (*~*)
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Spring does like to flirt with us doesn't she. A few blissfully warm and sunny days, and then she invites winter back in again.
ReplyDeleteWarm here. And we could do with the rain. Gentle rain.
You are so right about the negligent (greedy) landlords. Faults on both sides, but we usually only see one side. The side of the 'haves'...
For a few sentences, I thought you were writing about places in southern Detroit, Michigan, or places in Tijuana, until I read Adelaide. I don't know if we will ever see autumn!
ReplyDeleteWe're having very light sprinkle here...it started during the night. I wish it'd stop mucking about and just rain!!
ReplyDeleteIt's very easy for someone aka spokesperson saying tenants should "stand firm" etc. Easier said than done...easier said when said spokesperson most probably lives comfortably in his/her own home.
As you say..."imagine the chaos!"
It takes all kinds...and boy, there certainly are all kinds of humans!! If you know what I mean..... :)
Elephant's Child; usually after Spring's first burst of heat, we get a week or so back in the cooler temperatures, even a thunderstorm, but never hail and snow such as we had yesterday. Perhaps some of it will head your way and you'll get some gentle rain, but probably not enough.
ReplyDeleteLandlords come in good and bad just like the rest of us.
Susan Kane; perhaps autumn is taking a year off and you'll wake up one day to full winter instead.
Lee; light sprinkles are good for a while, they open up the soil enough to be able to absorb a heavier fall, sadly that heavier fall often just doesn't happen. When it does, and we haven't had the light sprinkle first, the sudden deluge just runs away across the surface. I noticed the 'spokesperson' did seem to have a nice house. He's been doing a bit of research on the problem, we saw him at his desk in a room piled with books. Neatly piled stacks of books everywhere in the room, even on his desk, not much space left for his laptop at all.
Yep, all kinds.
Spring is capricious for sure.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like an incredible storm Adelaide had.
We've experienced both types of landlords - good and bad.
And, complaining to the estate agency that handled the rentals, was pretty much useless - they worked for the landlords, so they were "toothless tigers" and their hands were bound to a certain extent.
The wooden table sounds like something my husband's father would have done. He understood wood, and its need to move and settle over the years. True craftsmen are few and far between these days, sadly.
More than a light sprinkle here as I struggled out with heavy bins last night, in the dark. For 30 years our bins went out on a Thursday night but changed 10 years ago to Wednesday night and I can never remember.
ReplyDeleteMy sister moans about her rent but the landlord has been fantastic. New cupboards, floor tiles, heater, cooler, hot water service and in return she paints the walls and does the garden.
I saw a little footage on tv of your weather. I initially thought it was more coverage of the floods in Utah.
ReplyDeleteThe agent we used to let our flat through was very particular about tenants rights, at times going to far and we had to speak up. One tenant asked for a second one year lease but would not return it signed. He was stringing it out to as late as possible so that he would have a year from when he signed it and so delay any rental rise one the lease had expired. The agent was reluctant but we insisted they withdraw the offer a new lease.
Vicki; the storm was bad enough where I am, but a couple of suburbs over all hell broke loose. Mother Nature really went to town there. The whole thing was over pretty quickly though. A bit less than two hours all up.
ReplyDeleteIt's very sad to see the demise of craftsmen. One of the problems is no one wants to take the time to learn those crafts and by the time someone does, maybe years later, the old ones who could have done the teaching, have died. Then there's the cost of hand made quality furniture. Many can't afford it, especially if it is real, solid wood. (not that veneered MDFstuff).
JahTeh; perhaps in another ten years you will remember the new schedule?
I think most people moan about their rent, but your sister's landlord sounds like a gem.
Andrew; that's the sort of tenant you want to see the back of. At least he didn't trash the place. And of course your agent made sure any necessary repairs were properly done.
A lot of the trouble seems to be with rentals that aren't through an agent. Although some of those are troublesome too. An agent may inform a landlord that something needs fixing and the landlord will refuse.
Lovely weather here in Sydney but saw your hail storm on the news last night that was a bit severe, it cooled off here today and we are expecting rain.
ReplyDeleteYou get bad tenants and bad landlords, both should have references not just the tenants.
Merle............
Merle; when renting I usually find it best to go through an agency, but even there you sometimes strike trouble. Luckily I never have.
ReplyDeleteThat storm was fierce wasn't it?
we moved in somewhere once where the huge garage was locked. We asked for the key. After about 2 weeks of asking the agent it turned out the owner was storing their entire household furniture in there and basically we were guarding it for them. It was the main reason we rented the place, the huge garage. Then they went and put the house on the market! We thankfully broke our lease and found somewhere else. Renting can suck.
ReplyDelete