I’m kind-of in shock.
My mini ranch in Grass Valley, that I loved so much, looks like it has been abandoned.
My previous tenant was promoted in his legal firm and therefore had to travel often. Consequently, he moved his horses into boarding. Since he was gone a lot, and there were no horses, the pastures are way overgrown with a mixture of grass and tall weeds. The barn has cobwebs everywhere. The tack room is dusty and dirty. The light in the barn seems dull because all the fixtures are covered in dust.
As for the house, the exterior is dirty and messy. Stuff laying around. A major dump-run has to happen. I did already send over 3 guys to weedwhack. They spent 3 days just cutting back all the growth to get fire defensible space.
Wow.
I’m heartbroken that the place looks so sad. Even with a clear path of 100 feet around all the structures, everything looks dull and forlorn.
Hubby and I are going to take a few days to travel to Grass Valley and do all the things we can do. I’m looking for a handyman and fence guy right now – to do the things we cannot do.
All of this weighs heavily on my mind right now because I went to GV to hand over the keys to the brand new tenant who was moving in sight-unseen (based on the photos and her friend taking a tour of the place)… but she backed out today after “sleeping on it”. She had seen it yesterday and changed her mind.
I was so surprised… probably because when I look at the Grass Valley house, I remember how it was and how it can be. She just looked at it as a place that needs too much work.
I could maybe understand since the place is very sad looking IN THIS MOMENT…but it just needs some horses, some love and a deep clean. All that can be achieved easily.
So now, my lovely, wonderful, horse-heaven is waiting for us to arrive and fix it up – while we wait for another person to fall in love with it like I did.
Gwen grazing with Sam behind her, Wrigley by the fence and Bodhi by the bumper of the car.
The barn. I love that barn.
My sweet, small but perfect house.
It is such a lovely place. I associate all the animal tales to it of when I first found the H & M site and that makes it pretty magical besides looking at the property. I think that it will be a blessing to someone who will see it’s beauty and what it offers for a family with different pets to love. The big attraction is that you are getting it trimmed and spruced up so that someone can fall in love with this special place.
thank you
So sad. I would take that rental in a heartbeat but during the lockdown it’s simply not possible to travel from my state to California. I fell in love with the Auburn-Grass Valley area years ago.
Really good realtors will tell homeowners thinking of selling this little slogan (from the top Coldwell Banker residential real estate broker of all time) and it sure applies to rental situations – which I observed every time I wanted to rent out one of my properties, not that I had to very much as always was blessed with truly lovely tenants: “the buyer (or renter) sees what there is to see, NOT what the seller (or landlord) “thinks it COULD be.” It is a rare buyer or prospective tenant – both often severely pressed for financial or available time reasons including relating to employment and relocation constraints – who can see the possibilities beyond the cobwebs.
I feel bad for you. I however am very happy to not be a landlord anymore having sold my own rental properties over the years as health issues began to cut in on landlord duties.
Good luck and I truly hope you find a new tenant who is as great as the ones I had in the past. It’s a lot harder with equestrian properties because unfortunately not everyone has the same standard of care that you provide for your own horses!
I think there is someone out there who needs it more, and will love it more. That’s how I feel this morning.
However, it is still sad. A big, great project. I will make it even prettier this time! Than you for writing to me.
This is so sad. There are other things that I’d want to say, but it seems trite. It’s just very sad. It’s a special place.