I'm Moving. Off line for a few days.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it or not, but I'm moving

I have lived in this apartment building since September 1996.  A few years ago I moved into a 2 bedroom apartment when they did a complete building renovation.  I've been wanting to move for the last 10 years or so, but one thing or another has stood in my way; money and/or health, and moving is such a big job, not to mention expensive (damage deposit, first and last months rent, movers, utility transfers etc.), that it just seemed easier to keep resigning my lease.

I have cats, initially just one, then 2, and from 1998 until this past April, three.   I've never hid my cats.  All the caretakers have known about my cats.  The building manager (the same one here today)  from the rental agency has known about my cats from day one.  I've always crossed off "no pets allowed" from my lease, initialed it and submitted it. I've always gotten back a copy of my signed lease.  The building manager is the same one today as when I moved in, and she's even called me while I was an inpatient in a hospital to give me an update on my cats.  About 4 years ago I noticed that they seemed to have removed the "no pets allowed" from the lease renewal that I sign each year.

So colour me surprised when on September 12th, I get a letter slid under my door titled "Notice to Evict"  by October 31, 2016.  The reason?  It was brought to their attention that I am harbouring a cat, and the smell is in the hallway.

I am meticulous about the litter boxes.  I can't stand the smell of used kitty litter, because it smells like a dead body (no kidding, it really does). I scoop daily or every other day.  And if I'm not able to take the garbage out immediately, I double bag using the thick Glad freezer bags to contain any litter smell.

The litter boxes are in a bedroom down the hall about 30 feet from the apartment door, and the window in that room is open about 3 inches, all year long in order to provide fresh air.   So for the smell to enter into the common hallway, it would have to leave the bedroom, drift down the hallway into my living room and finally out the apartment door into the hallway. 

When I enter the apartment I don't smell cat litter.  When people come over or delivery people show up and see my cats, they are surprised that I have cats and I've even received comments about how I must keep the litter boxes really clean because there is no smell.   Even my neighbour across the hall when I told him about the eviction notice was surprised and told me that he never hears my cats and has never smelled any cat litter smell coming from my apartment.  And I know it wasn't him that made a complaint, if there ever really was a complaint; because he loves my cats and has watched them when I was in the hospital or away.

I called the agency and told them that they have known about my cats from day one, and that I have looked back on the last 4 lease renewals that I signed and no where on it does it say that pets aren't allowed.

Four days after receiving the notice, they sent me another letter rescinding it, saying that it was issued in error.   Since they provided me an eviction notice in writing, I asked for a letter rescinding it in writing.  I faxed them several times over the next week requesting a letter.

Then on September 26th,  2 weeks from the date of the first eviction notice, I get another eviction notice saying that they rescinded the notice in error and that they were unaware that my building had a "no pets policy" in place.  And they said if I got rid of my cats they would rescind the notice, or I had until October 31st to move out.   I chose to move out.

I have health issues and depression, and spend a great deal of time at home.  On occasion my depression has led to suicidal thoughts, and the only thing that has kept me grounded was the fact that my cats needed me to get up everyday to look after them.  And they've been a God send to me and my mental and emotional health. Even if they spend 20 hours sleeping in another room, it's nice to know that there is another living, breathing being here with me.

I found a larger, newer, and nicer apartment that allows up to 2 pets (dogs and cats only). They are added to your lease and each has a $200 pet deposit. The apartment has in-suite laundry and a balcony, and a much larger kitchen with more drawers and cupboards.... and a double sink.

It's a lot of work and I've had to have my sister-in-law come help me pack one day, and I hired someone from Kijiji to do some cleaning, but when it's all done, I'll be a happy camper.

I'm in so much pain right now though.  All the packing and moving of boxes is so hard on my back and hip.  Once I'm moved though, I can unpack at my leisure.

I'm packing up my electronics tomorrow, and I won't have cable/phone until Friday, so I will be off the internet for a few days.  Looking forward to the break actually,  lol



 

Well; sounds like a blessing in disguise really.  Even if they rescinded the eviction again; I don't think I'd want to stay there.  It almost sounds like something is off there; maybe behind the scenes with management.  

I hope you are very happy in your new place!!  And that you have a smooth move. I know it's a pain even when you don't have physical challenges!

Sending you vibes for a smooth move and transition into your new home!

Looking forward to your return! Your new place sounds nice, hope you and the kitties will love it there!

It's really hard to find a rental that will allow more than 2 pets. I have 3 cats & feel I am forced to lie, something I do not do. I feel it's discrimination. Why can't someone have 3 pets? It's not like it's 20. I get they want to keep their place clean & safe, but if you're going to allow 2, 1 more really isn't even mentionable.

Sorry you are going through this but please know that everything happens for a reason. You will probably be much better off at the new place even though it's a major pain to move. I've done it so many times I can't even count them all. I don't just have a suitcase of stuff either. I could fill up a 4 bedroom house will all my antiques, books, music, kitchen stuff & clothes.

I got so tired of moving that the last few times I ordered moving guys to do everything. I'll pack the boxes & they'll move them & drive them to the new place. Another good thing about moving is being able to get rid of a lot of stuff you really don't need. I always donate to the local Salvation Army.

Hope the move goes well

The "2 pet rule" most places have almost always only applies to dogs and cats. One should always ask specifics about the pet policy when touring a new apartment or housing that has rules and regulations like co-ops and condos. The rule generally does not apply to small animals and birds and fish and the like but one should be sensible about how many pets can comfortably fit into the home and whether the pet may be a nuisance to the neighbors. A large parrot may seem like a great pet but a constantly screeching one would likely annoy many people

My brother's small parrot (a quaker) got kicked out of his "pet friendly" apartment building for being too noisy :/. And they had a 10-gallon limit on fish tanks (no matter what was in it). I'm not sure if they had a rodent policy but I know some apartments do, because escaped hamsters can cause a problem :tongue2:. And rabbits and ferrets can cause just as much (or more) damage as a cat or dog. So "small pets" don't always get to skate by!

Hope you enjoy your new place! It sounds nice.

MoochNNoodles said:

Well; sounds like a blessing in disguise really.  

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that the move goes smoothly and you and the kitties love the New apartment!

Take care! I hope everything goes well. 

I hope the move goes well!

I am moved.  The movers were excellent. I found them through Kijiji. They wrapped my furniture so as not to damage it.  And I didn't get a chance to mark all of the boxes.  By the time I got a fat marker, most everything was packed and I didn't remember or know what was in the boxes, so at the new place the movers paraded the boxes by me so I could look inside and direct them as to where to put them.

My brother drove me to pick up my cats at the vet and bring them to the new place. And my sister-in-law stayed with me to help me with some initial things after the movers left:  made my bed, set up the cat boxes and cat food/water.  I was moved in by 2 PM and in bed for the night before 3 PM.

I normally don't mind moving.  But in the past when I've moved from building to building, my health was better and I could do everything myself with energy to spare.  But my health has declined and this was the most horrible experience of my life.   I can't even tell you the pain I was in, and am still in.  On a scale of 10 being the worse, it's at least 100!  And nothing is helping.   I booked a massage for tomorrow. It was the earliest I could get in.  I'm hoping that it will help.

I've been applying ice to my neck, shoulders and back, and using my Dr. Ho's muscle therapy (a TENS machine).  That has helped a little, but not much.

I can hardly stand, let alone walk, so I bought a 4 wheeled walker with a seat for myself.  The hallway in this building is longer than the previous one, mostly because the elevator isn't in the centre of the building and there was no way that I could walk the hallway before, let alone now with the additional pain.

I did a fair amount of unpacking myself, but I hit a wall and just couldn't do anymore.  So my sister-in-law came over the other day to help me. She was my arms and legs.  The only room that is really set up and organized is the laundry room.    Everything is pretty much unpacked, but some things are not put where it belongs yet.  I've slowly chipped away at my kitchen and managed to get part of the counter and the stove cleared off so that I could finally cook a meal a couple of days ago.

I hired a handyman from Kijiji last Wednesday. He put together my BBQ, put the legs on my table and moved boxes around for me so that I could better access them.   Plus he made 7 or 8 trips to the dumpster. 

As I've been unpacking I've been washing things so they are clean when they get put away, and I've been aggressively downsizing.  Living in an apartment prevents me from being able to donate to charity because unless you are donating furniture or large appliances, they won't come to your door to pick up. They want you to leave stuff downstairs by the front door.  I checked and this new place doesn't allow you to do that either because it's unsightly and a fire hazard.  My brother took the boxes to his place to be picked up last Friday.  A total of 8 - 2 foot square boxes and 3 large black trash bags were donated. I literally just grabbed the stuff from one half of my closet and put the clothes into bags and boxes.  And I've been advertising stuff on Kijji too.  Sold my portable washer/dryer, portable air conditioner, a slow cooker (I had 2), Christmas ornaments, some electronics, and most of my cake decorating supplies. I still have some things up for sale. If they don't sell by the middle of November, I'm donating them to charity.

On a positive note, I'm loving my new place.  And I'll love it more once things are all put together.  My cats have adjusted nicely.  I'm loving having in-suite laundry.

If I ever have to move again, I'm hiring someone to pack, move me and unpack me at the other end.  I know it will be expensive, but money against the price of the pain I'm in is a trade off I'm willing to make.

Moving sucks, I've done so much I forgot the count. The older I get the harder it is. The only thing I really do myself is pack boxes, I hire movers now & drivers for the truck.

Epsom salt soak will really help with those muscles! Also sea salt, rejuvenates so I always mix half & half.

I hope you're feeling better! Even though the move was trying, I'm so glad that you and your cats love the new apartment.