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I didn't end up getting that job in Salinas (my management experience wasn't quite there), but now there's a more suitable opening in Monterey. And while the salary isn't quite what I'd want, I'm applying because it's MONTEREY. One of my dream places to live! I am a little stumped on two of the "supplemental questions," though, and was hoping some locals could help me with them. This will be for an adult services librarian, and usually I can answer these questions with my eyes closed... but I'm only familiar with Monterey as a visitor, which doesn't tell me what I need to know. Any ideas on the following?
- What are some issues that challenge Monterey County residents, which could be addressed through library programs? For example, are there segments of the population that don't have easy access to services (like internet/computers or printed materials), lack of amenities we could provide, socioeconomic issues, ??? Again, this is for ADULTS, so please ignore anything specific to children... but parenting-related stuff might be something to address.
- More specifically now, what concerns or issues face Spanish speakers in Monterey County? And how might I reach them? Thinking ESL classes, conversation clubs, citizenship resources, outreach to rural towns, etc? That's kind of my specialty, as I'm the ESL and citizenship coordinator at my current job, and also did that for San Benito County. But would you say the Spanish-speaking population is similar to San Benito County & Salinas, as in lower economic statuses and a lot of agricultural workers? Or are they more diverse?
Sorry for the long questions, but any insight would really help! Just throwing out any social issues you've noticed in the area could at least get me started.
And in the event I end up getting this job, would $65-77K annually be on par with my ~$77-82K (varies b/c I'm not quite full-time) salary here in Silicon Valley? Looking on craigslist, it seems the COL is a little lower (where isn't it?) - but is it THAT much lower, to justify the initial pay cut? Not sure where they'd start me, but there's a chance I would have to start at the bottom and take a few years to move up. I'd just need a 1br place around 700sf+, and my only strict criteria is that it needs to be cat/dog friendly. Currently I'm paying $2100/mo for a 1br duplex in the valley, and I've seen similar rentals in/around Monterey ranging from $1600-2000/mo. Is that about right? TIA!
Yes, I think you are on the right track with your thought process generally speaking. This is especially true when speaking of Monterey County residents, many of which are Spanish speakers with ESL needs. This includes many first generation young adults. Many are migrant workers or family of migrant workers.
Salary sounds about right given current salary in Silicon Valley. You can find much better deals here relatively speaking.
I realized my question was a bit "heavy," so appreciate the response. Their application is open until Sept 15, so I guess it won't hurt to apply. Funny thing is that my current boss sent me the announcement, and was like "It's MONTEREY!! Go for it!" Is that a hint? LOL
In regards to housing, would it save me that much money to commute from Salinas, Marina, and/or Seaside? Monterey itself seems a bit high, even compared to Silicon Valley... but I would love to be near the ocean, so Marina or Seaside would be preferred over Salinas. Also, how pet-friendly is the area? Obviously the choices wane on Craigslist when I enter "dogs/cats allowed," which does make me a bit nervous. That's one thing I absolutely cannot compromise on, and don't want to end up paying monthly pet rents & huge deposits. One advantage to my current place is that utilities AND pets are included in the base rent (no additional charges for either). He didn't even ask for a pet deposit, and that's pretty unusual around here.
Example: Here's one of the only dog & cat-friendly places I've found IN Monterey, which is also under $2000/mo. But the 1br (smaller than where I live now) is $1850-1950 + $50/mo dog rent and $25/mo cat rent (x3 if I'm honest) AND $500 pet deposit. That ends up being more than what I pay in the Valley!
On a separate rant, why do places charge BOTH "pet rent" and a deposit? Wouldn't one or the other be sufficient? There's absolutely no way my one dog causes $600 of damage/wear in a year, on top of the $500 they'll inevitably keep. Almost feels like extortion, since they know us pet (dog especially) owners are desperate enough to pay.
I'm not sure on the whole pet scene with current rentals. So its really hard to comment there. But the area does have a lot of pets generally speaking. Like anywhere that is in high demand though, the owners and management companies have their pick of tenants. Most of the time there are multiple applicants per rental especially for the nicer places. So they can afford to be very picky and sometimes not allow pets at all. We've always preferred to lease directly from owners as opposed to property management companies. But it really does take a lot of time and searching to find the right place. This won't be a thing that happens quickly over night and pets will add to the time needed to find the right place. There's no grand conspiracy against pets or anything. Its just a hot market with limited supply. We started out in a place that was just so/so until we found a *much nicer* one which we've lived in it for the past 8 years.
And yes, being near the coast is really great. Just keep in mind most other people are thinking the same. So there is greater competition for them and prices will reflect that as well.
Derek
Last edited by MtnSurfer; 09-10-2017 at 10:17 AM..
Yeah, the pets are always my issue! But they're family to me, so as I said earlier, that's the one thing on which I am NOT negotiable. I honestly have the perfect housing situation right now (even price is "decent" by local standards), so that's one of my concerns about relocating... as I know I won't get anything close to what I have now, in terms of pet-friendliness and cool landlord. Sorry, but landlords around here are SOOO uptight. I understand wanting your rentals to be respected, but a little personal consideration would be nice. Like, just because I have pets, that doesn't mean I'll be trashing the place.
Anyway, thanks for the advice, and I'll let you know what happens (if anything).
Location: Formerly Pleasanton Ca, now in Marietta Ga
10,345 posts, read 8,557,056 times
Reputation: 16679
Quote:
Originally Posted by gizmo980
Yeah, the pets are always my issue! But they're family to me, so as I said earlier, that's the one thing on which I am NOT negotiable. I honestly have the perfect housing situation right now (even price is "decent" by local standards), so that's one of my concerns about relocating... as I know I won't get anything close to what I have now, in terms of pet-friendliness and cool landlord. Sorry, but landlords around here are SOOO uptight. I understand wanting your rentals to be respected, but a little personal consideration would be nice. Like, just because I have pets, that doesn't mean I'll be trashing the place.
Anyway, thanks for the advice, and I'll let you know what happens (if anything).
I'm sure you are a very good tenant with pets, but look at it from a landlords perspective. They are letting you use a property worth several hundred thousand dollars and it doesn't take much damage to go well into several thousand dollars. As a landlord I can tell you you only need to get burned by one tenant that you gave a break to having pets and you won't do it again. With a huge pool of tenants without pets why take the risk?
The last tenant I had worked for a Vetenarian. I thought she would take care of the property and her pets. Instead it cost me a lot of money replacing all the hardwood floors from the urine and poop, the carpet that was destroyed, the doors from being scratched by the large dogs pawing at the doors, the yard that they tore up, the things I went through to get the smell out-full repaint and had to bring in a fire and water damage company with ion air scrubbers. The damage and rental loss while it was vacant while being rehabbed was far more than the rent she had paid for the three years she was there. I would have been money ahead if I just left the place vacant collecting no rent.
I know you aren't that person, but as a landlord with a choice of tenants, why gamble after that? That tenant and others like her sours landlords for other pet owners like yourself.
I'm sure you are a very good tenant with pets, but look at it from a landlords perspective. They are letting you use a property worth several hundred thousand dollars and it doesn't take much damage to go well into several thousand dollars. As a landlord I can tell you you only need to get burned by one tenant that you gave a break to having pets and you won't do it again. With a huge pool of tenants without pets why take the risk?
The last tenant I had worked for a Vetenarian. I thought she would take care of the property and her pets. Instead it cost me a lot of money replacing all the hardwood floors from the urine and poop, the carpet that was destroyed, the doors from being scratched by the large dogs pawing at the doors, the yard that they tore up, the things I went through to get the smell out-full repaint and had to bring in a fire and water damage company with ion air scrubbers. The damage and rental loss while it was vacant while being rehabbed was far more than the rent she had paid for the three years she was there. I would have been money ahead if I just left the place vacant collecting no rent.
I know you aren't that person, but as a landlord with a choice of tenants, why gamble after that? That tenant and others like her sours landlords for other pet owners like yourself.
Excellent post, aslowdodge! I'm glad a home owner, landlord provided an actual real world example of the what sometimes happens. I'm sorry to hear about your bad tenant experience and loss. As a prior homeowner, I sympathize with you and contemplated leasing our own home out in Colorado vs. selling when we moved here. But the risk was too high for my taste. I know other home owners who've experienced tenant problems which are not too uncommon unfortunately.
Its not like homeowners are sitting on a big pile of money they can draw from whenever their places get trashed, need extra repairs, etc... Many times renting is a break even proposition or even net loss. Is it 'fair' to potential good renters like the OP who have pets to have such rules? No, not necessarily. Is it 'fair' to you to risk losing all that money again? Absolutely not. Is life always 'fair?' Obviously, no, it isn't. Its helpful for renters to see the reality of the other side of the fence. Its not a conspiracy against renters just like destroying someone's home with animals is not a conspiracy. Bad things sometimes happen to good people. So its just a matter of protecting one's property and income from potential loss through minimizing the risk. In your case you learned the hard way and I don't blame you for arriving at the conclusion you have with your property.
Derek
Last edited by MtnSurfer; 09-11-2017 at 08:06 PM..
Location: Formerly Pleasanton Ca, now in Marietta Ga
10,345 posts, read 8,557,056 times
Reputation: 16679
Quote:
Originally Posted by MtnSurfer
Excellent post, aslowdodge! I'm glad a home owner, landlord provided an actual real world example of the what sometimes happens. I'm sorry to hear about your bad tenant experience and loss. As a prior homeowner, I sympathize with you and contemplated leasing our own home out in Colorado vs. selling when we moved here. But the risk was too high for my taste. I know other home owners who've experienced tenant problems which are not too uncommon unfortunately.
Its not like homeowners are sitting on a big pile of money they can draw from whenever their places get trashed, need extra repairs, etc... Many times renting is a break even proposition or even net loss. Is it fair to potential good renters like the OP who are good tenants and have pets to have such rules? No. Is it fair to you to risk losing all that money again? Absolutely not. Is life always fair? Obviously, no, isn't. Its helpful for renters to see the reality of the other side of things. Its not a conspiracy against renters just like destroying someone's home with animals is a conspiracy. Bad things sometimes happen to good people. So its just a matter of protecting one's property and income from potential loss through minimizing the risk. In your case you learned the hard way and I don't blame for arriving at the conclusion you have with your property.
Derek
Thanks. just so you know, I will still rent to pet owners, but have much stricter standards, some of which everyone complains about, but I like to think of the tenant having skin in the game. If I take on the extra risk of a pet, then I want to renter to also be at risk too.
It was pretty dissapointing experience. Number one was to trust someone and have that trust shattered. Number 2 was that those tenants would take such poor care of her pets. Number 3 was that I had to come up with a huge amount of my savings all at one time to fix the property. I would imagine that if a tenant had to come up with an equalivant amount equal to over 3 years of rent, it would be a hardship for them.
I know Gizmo980 from this forum from a long time ago here. I know she is a very conscientious pet owner and she would not be they type to wreck a property. Unfortunately other landlords wouldn't know.
Thanks for the acknowlegement. Tried to rep you but forum wouldn't let me
Good luck, OP! I hope it works out. And I agree with you--IT'S MONTEREY!
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