Well it's time for a check in and check up. I feel like it is the calm before the storm time.

In The Impulsive Purchase the tenants upstairs moved out a few days ago. They paid me for 1/2 of the month and now its empty. They left it completely bare. I love them. After living there for 14 years I thought they would leave a ton of junk. But they didn't even leave 1/2 used cleaning products.

The tenants downstairs told me they will be out by the 1st. They have not done anything that I can tell. They lived there for 16 yrs so I am hoping they leave it as bare as the upstairs. That would be sweet.

Demo is set to begin on the 1st. I am trying to schedule a walk through with an architect type so we can submit floor plans for permit approval. My contractor has been wishy about if the floor plans are really necessary- he has an excellent eye for layout himself- but he wants me to spend the money for easy permit approval and an easier process of outlining things to plumbers/elecricians and holding them to estimated budgets. So I guess the floor plans will be the first of many big expenses.

For my current home- the tenants upstairs just caught up yesterday. The one guy who never paid me his 1/2 of August had thought the "overage" they had given me the month prior would be used as 1/2 a months rent- and I used the overage as half their deposit (which they had not given me yet). So I applied the overage to August rent and we worked out a payment plan for their deposit. A DUI and Parking Boot prevented them from being able to pay it all at once. So they will pay me in installments over the next 6 months. A bit of a headache to keep track of but its all ok.

In other news I had my 1 yr review at work and got a 3% raise. I was hoping for a title promotion and a big jump in pay but that didn't happen. But the position I was hoping for is still wide open- as of yet I still have no supervisor!

I used the raise and increased my retirement contribution by 2%...the extra 1% will be "fun money"(partying money lol).

And...WE GOT ANOTHER DOG! We rescued another Rottweiler. Her name is Tai. Shes 4 yrs old and very sweet. We were not looking for another dog but my SIL heard of a family divorcing and the wife surrendered their rottweiler to the animal shelter. The shelter is a kill shelter so the dog was given a limited time to be adopted. After 2 days in the shelter the families cousin got the dog out of the shelter but then needed a family to take her. Since we have lost 2 rotties and love them- SIL called us. Lucky for us Tai is working out very well. She gets along with our other 2 dogs well. She's just huge. Our dog food consumption is going up.



Thats about it. Wow- thats a lot.

Things are progressing. Giving the renters 3 month notice to vacate was the right thing to do and has so far worked out well. One renter plans to be out a month and a half earlier than the move out date, and the other renter called to tell me she is waiting to find out if she is chosen for a rental house and will be moving out immediately if they get it.

So the renters are all set. Now I am scrambling to speed up the HELOC process. I dont want the duplex sitting empty for even 2 days, and dont feel comfortable starting construction until the HELOC money is in the bank.

On the day to day financial front- things are going well right now. Everything is staying steady. Once the renters are out and I'm carrying the mortgage and undergoing construction I am not sure how everything will fit together. It'll be some re-allocating and tight but ok after 5-6 months when expenses calm down. It's the frenzy of purchasing that I am worried about. But I take a deep breath and tell myself there is nothing to do about it now.

BB has scheduled his back surgery. He'll come home for 2 weeks and then return to FL for the surgery. I am very excited for the surgery, as is BB. He is in so much pain it effects his life so severely. I cant wait until he is pain free and can return to a normal life. He's had this bad back for so many years, I may not even know him afterward!

The renters upstairs are going...ok. The 6 month guy has paid his half of the rent but the other guy that I thought was more responsible of the two has not paid for August. And in July he asked for his deposit back because he wanted to take me up on my offer to just pay an extra $175 month for the 6 month lease duration and pay it that way, rather than all upfront. I didn't give it back to him. But clearly he's run out of money. I'm not sure how- he's only been in the apartment 1.5 months. I wonder if they didn't get their deposit back from their previous place. But the more responsible guy is also pretty spacey and it's very possible he hasn't realized its August yet. He's not dodging me. Every time I see him I want to ask for the money but keep hoping he'll bring it up. Next time I'm going to just ask for it.

It has crossed my mind that I have two shaky tenants living in the upstairs apartment. Their rent covers my entire mortgage on the house, and I have 2 very stable tenants who pay the mortgage on the 2nd duplex moving out by September 1st. I need to be prepared to carry 2 mortgages at once. I'm not looking forward to that possibility but I am somewhat prepared for it.

Thats about it. I'm headed to FL next week for a long weekend with BB. Just trying to hang low before the construction starts and turns my life into chaos.