woes of home ownership....

last night I decided to skip class....mostly because I had a pretty shitty day at work (but that's a different story)....i got home and heard rushing water in my house, but couldn't find it anywhere....so, I took jack out for his walk and noticed water coming out of the house under the tenant's kitchen window.

I key into her place, and there it is...water spraying out of the cabinet under the sink and about 2-3 inches of water....i get one of the valves shut off, call a friend to see if her dad can come help me, and the tenant....the dad can't come over and the tenant didn't answer. I call the plumber and the gas company. The tenant's gas has been off since last week, for nonpayment- awesome. the electricity, longer....I pay $300 to the gas company for them to change the name on the bill to mine and to come out on thursday to turn everything back on. the plumber explains to me that the circulating pump on the furnace runs on electricity, so the heat has not been working since the power was shut off....a new fact for me to know....he then explains all the possible things that could be wrong-panic sets in.... I pay the plumber $135 to come shut off a valve I could have shut off myself, if I knew where the damn thing was and for the slight panic he has given me....he explains how to heat up the apartment, so there is no more damage.....

I call home owner's insurance- they don't cover damage when there is no heat. i sent the tenant's lease to my brother in law for help....what are my rights? he has a lawyer review it and tell me what to do next....write a letter, highlighting all the places in the lease that show she is liable for the damages and repairs.....put together the total of the repairs- 855 plus carpet replacement....i won't see the money i am sure unless i take her to court....which i am pretty sure i will do....

the best part-i had to clean up the dirty apartment (see pictures) in order to get the carpet dried out....it was gross and no one should have to do that....i put all her crap into plastic bags, placed the bags in the bathroom and left them there....

here is part of the broken sink

the plumber was able to turn my water back on and fix the broken parts today....it only cost 135 and the damage was minimal....as he said to me, "you got lucky this time."

i love my house and owning it...and i love that i have a way to supplement the mortgage payment....but i need to find a way to weed out the idiots....