Cat Lady

Ah, the joys of my job as a property manager. Don't get me wrong, I love the job and business and am good at being the go-to person for both the tenants and owners.

I manage a property that's a condo in South San Jose. Our tenants moved in the first of July. The next door neighbor is a cat lady and has been feeding five feral cats. These cats are not spayed or neutered and have been using the front patio of the unit I manage as a litter box. My poor tenant not only has to clean up cat poo every day, but she cannot use the patio, nor even open the door, lest the odor of cat feces wafts into her home.

Supposedly the cat lady has been trying to get rid of the cats, but wait, there's more!
I wrote a letter to the HOA asking them to address the problem in mid-July. Their next meeting wasn't until tonight. Hearing nothing from them, I attended their meeting. Seems reasonable to me.

The cat lady is the manager of the association and was at the meeting. She was clearly angry and combative with me. Accused me of meddling in the affairs between two neighbors. (Um, that's my job - the owner hired me to take care of this shit - pun intended). The short story is that that HOA informed me that they have no jurisdiction over the patios, as they belong to the homeowner. Okay, we'll call animal control and get some traps - probably should've done this long ago, but I was trying to do things right and be civil.

The cat lady just wanted to fight with me, which made all of the board members visibly uncomfortable. I thanked them for their time and listening to our problem and told them I wouldn't take any more time and they could get back to their meeting. This is not over and I've made an enemy for just doing my job. I asked her to be a good neighbor and not feed the cats. She just told me she will continue to feed them. Argh. Thank goodness my tenant is very tolerant and a very nice woman. We'll get some traps and get rid of the cats.

I have to say, I am an animal lover and we regulary contribute to the Humane Society, so don't accuse me of being an animal hater. I'm just trying to be a responsible landlord and give my tenant "quiet enjoyment" of her home.

We also live in a condo. Thank GOD we have great neighbors and don't live next door to the cat lady.