Well, like my Uncle Don always said:
“It’s nothing a can of gasoline and a road-flare can’t fix.”
I couldn’t believe the amount of old food wrappers piled up on the bed. How can she sleep in that?? Ick.
We’ve talked about this on the boards a lot before. Someone sent me this link this morning and I sent him this: Ask the Adult Child of a Hoarder/Clutterer.
Later in the comments the OP states that there were supposed to be two cats resident in the apartment and that they were afraid that the cats were dead and buried somewhere in the mess so they called the SPCA.
I can imagine that conversation.
“You want me to find two cats in WHAT!”
Damn. That’s really sad. 
Jeezum Crow, my apartment is not near this bad (stacked dirty dishes, clothes and empty grocery bags on floor) but now I’m motivated to clean, clean, clean!
Gestalt
While I am sickened by the sight of that mess and I wonder about the health of the person that created it, I have to wonder if the landlord has any hope of collecting back money and damages from them. I really don’t care that they are morbidly depressed or whatever, someone has to clean that disgusting mess up and that person shouldn’t have to be financially responsible for the cost of rehabilitating the unit- the renter ought to held accountable.
Yes. This makes me very sympathetic for all the landlords out there who deal with pigs like this. What can a landlord do to recoup the costs of cleaning up a toxic waste dump like that?
I can’t imagine that the whole place is not infested with bugs too. I know I get fruit flies when I leave the bananas out for too long. Can you imagine the flies and ants (if not worse) in that place? :shudder:
Speaking as a former landlord (2 rental houses) there’s not much you can do. You can get a judgement, but unless you spend hours and hours and hundreds of dollars it’s very difficult to collect. A judgement in your favor does not equal money in your pocket. You can get a grim satisfaction out of knowing that they’ll never be able to buy property with that ding on their record, but they are probubly not the type to buy anyway.
I’ve had to clean up a mess about half that squalor. Not fun.
Its pictures like this that always make me wary of eating any of the “home cooked goods” brought in by people in the office.
I always mentally picture someone cooking a dozen brownies in that kitchen, cig in one hand, cat in the other, and mixing the dough with their fingers while the cat licks the bowl.
::shudder::
I didn’t eat food from a certain cat person. I pointed out the cat hair in the food to some people at one lunch.
I really doubt any food was being cooked in this place for the office mates.
I don’t spoke, and I never let my bathroom get anywhere near that bad–but that could have been me after my son died.
It makes me wonder… if a landlord discovers a mess like this, is that sufficient reason to start eviction proceedings?? And how can you keep an eye out for stuff like this without invading their privacy? I guess just schedule routine maintenance every so often to make sure your tenant isn’t starting a garbage dump in your house. I suppose being diligent about checking references and contacting past landlords is a good idea.
Good to hear you came through what must have been a very harrowing period of your life, Skald.
Ew. I looked.
Just… EW. :eek:
You know, I am a really messy person. I live quite well in the clutter. But this still made me :eek:.
I make sure dishes are washed and the trash is taken out at least twice a week. I make sure the toilet and bathtub are scrubbed out once a week. I scoop the cat box every day. I do laundry at least once a week. My place still tends to be a mess because I am not one of those people who is bothered by lots of stuff but I simply cannot fathom the mindset a person would have to be in to live like this. I got up and took the trash out before I posted this because I have the willies from those pictures. I am going to do some additional cleaning here in a minute. ::shudders::
I hope the person who lived there is now getting whatever help they need to deal with the mental issues they’ve got going on. I wouldn’t wish that kind of living situation on anyone.
After reading this thread, I walked over to my closet and started cleaning without even thinking about it. Wow.
It was many years ago, but thank you.
Anyway, all I can feel as I look through those pictures is pity. I hope there is someone willing to help the tenant.
Depends on the state you live in. In California, we had a tenant with an apartment like this, but we were able to get an immediate judgement for us without having to go to court, as the woman was declared mentally unstable, and the apartment was a health hazard to the three adjoining tenants around that apartment (to the left, underneath, and diagonally to the left). (She went to the hospital for care, we started cleaning)
Since it would directly affect the three others, we could act immediately on our discovery. However, if she’d been found to be mentally competent, we would have had to issue a 3-day-notice of eviction if the case was the same as stated - no rent paid for a month previous.