All Forum Posts by: Lora P.

I just dumped the raw data into an Excel spreadsheet.  

In my lease I say, do not flush feminine products, flushable wipes, flushable kitty litter, etc. If they do and a plumber is needed, the cost is on them. Verbally, I say that if it's not toilet paper and they didn't eat it first, it doesn't get flushed.

I'm in the process of working with an Oxford House group to find a property to rent to them. Has anyone else done this? I'd love to share experiences.

Laura Ballard in Bloomington

Definitely connect with your local real estate investor group. There is one in Champaign/Urbana.

A renter of mine with a dog just moved out. No damage at all. There was a slight dog odor (not urine), but cleaning the carpets fixed that. Same deal with a previous tenant who had a dog. I think a great deal depends on the owner.

I guess I'm a bit different than the rest. Are these safety or habitability issues? No (maybe the microwave--I don't know). Are they required repairs? No.

However, I want broken things to be fixed and for things to work the way they are supposed to work. I want to provide a well maintained unit. I don't think these particular requests are unreasonable, and I would take care of them. Blinds are cheap. I would replace them. I've had that issue with a tub before, and that part can be replaced without redoing the bathroom. I'd replace the microwave.

I would also address the light bulb issue, although I might say that one would take me a bit longer to get to since there are other working lights.

I realize and respect that others have different approaches.

I use it for bookkeeping. At the end of the year, I dump the data into a spreadsheet and send it to my accountant. I've gone through this process twice now without any issues. Love it.  :)

I would assess the extent of the lady bugs. I once lived in an apartment with swarms of them around the windows and many flying around inside. I vacuumed up hundreds of them every couple of days. It was bad and horrible to live in that manner.

Try looking on MeetUp. There is one in Springfield, one in Bloomington, and one in Champaign.