03.28.07

I’m going to get kicked out

Posted in Finances at 10:37 pm by Paloma Cruz

I just know that i’m going to end up being evicted from my apartment complex. My brother refuses to even consider that we may be even a little bit at fault for the complaint. He wants to go to the apartment manager and demand more information (which I tried, unsucessfully).

He’s upset and angry and ready to do something stupid.

My concern is that I’m still unclear on why why neighbors complained. We don’t play music, loud or otherwise, especially afterhours. What does “excessive noise” mean? Did I slam a door? Did I have the TV on? Did my restlessly going up and down the squeaky stairs late bother them? What was it?

If I don’t know exactly what the problem was, then how can I make sure that I don’t do it again?

And what will I do if I end up evicted?  Is it even possible to get another apartment after that? Will I be in default of my lease here, then? Would I have to pay off the remainder of the lease, whether I live here or not?

I have to admit, I’m more than a little worried. I have very bad luck. I have very very bad luck.

Send me your good thoughts.

why aren’t you rich?

Posted in Finances at 10:30 pm by Paloma Cruz

Jeffrey Strain gives us 10 Reasons You Aren’t Rich, just in case you were wondering:

  1. You Care What Your Neighbors Think
  2. You Aren’t Patient
  3. You Have Bad Habits
  4. You Have No Goals
  5. You Haven’t Prepared
  6. You Try to Make a Quick Buck
  7. You Rely on Others to Take Care of Your Money
  8. You Invest in Things You Don’t Understand
  9. You’re Financially Afraid
  10. You Ignore Your Finances

Of course, Jeffrey give explanations, details and stuff. :-)
(Found via Get Rich Slowly.)

03.27.07

mistakes with money

Posted in Finances at 10:36 pm by Paloma Cruz

Get Rich Slowly has a great post listing 10 Common Money Mistakes. The one that captured by attention:

Not saving enough. Glink writes: “Building wealth isn’t about how much money you earn each year; it’s about how much money you don’t spend.” When you’re just starting out, it’s difficult to find money to save. But even a little is better than nothing. Work to build an emergency fund. If you have the surplus, by all means max out your retirement plans!

more on lease violation

Posted in Finances at 1:52 pm by Paloma Cruz

I spoke to my apartment manager about the lease violation/noise complaint. I told her that I’ve never received a complaint like this before and wanted specifics.

The specifics are vague. Basically, the complaint is that we were playing music and making excessive noise after hours. What the excessive noise was remains a mystery. And I don’t recall either of us playing music Sunday night (the night the complaint was made, via phone).

I have to talk to my brother to see what he was doing that night, but I’m pretty sure that we weren’t playing music. Regardless, I still don’t know what the “excessive noise” referred to, other than it was something besides the alleged music.

I told the apartment manager that, without knowing specifically what the cause behind the complaint was, it increased the likelihood of my inadvertently repeating the behavior. She made sympathetic noises and offered no real advice.

At this point I’ve been told that I can write a letter to refute the complaint, which will be added to my file.

What happens if we receive another complaint? I start looking for a new place, whether I want to or not. Maybe now is the time to start looking for a lawyer.

03.26.07

lease violation

Posted in General at 11:08 pm by Paloma Cruz

When I came home from work today, I found a notice from my apartment manager notifying that I’m in violation of my lease. Apparently, one of my neighbors complained of noise, or music or something during “inappropriate hours.”

I’m shocked. I’ve never had a complaint against me in all my years of apartment living.

My brother is livid. He’s the one that plays music late, and he’s probably the one who has caused the noise they’re complaining about.

I had to talk him down from making it a bigger deal than it is. I will call the office tomorrow and get more details on what happened. I’d like some specifics, so at least I know what to watch out for in the future.

We have new neighbors. They have small children. We keep late hours and are… on occasion, noisy. I’m pretty sure that we’re just being too noisy too late. At least I hope so. Three complaints will get me evicted.

03.15.07

side effects of war

Posted in Family, News at 10:27 pm by Paloma Cruz

As my brother prepares to leave for Iraq, stories about the war in one way or another catch my attention. In my weired humor, I found this funny:

Number of gays discharged from U.S. military plunges
Pentagon figures show a steep drop, which critics slam as ‘hypocritical’
– reported by the Houston Chronicle