Within a few hours, I had received a dozen phone calls from people who had seen the apartment for rent ad I displayed. I began to keep a list of their names and phone numbers saying that I would get back to them. I didnt want to show the apartment until the weekend, which was still several days away. Two days after announcing that I had an apartment for rent, I had more than sixty phone calls. I was getting quite annoyed and was seriously considering asking more for rent. I now had fifteen people lined up to examine the apartment. The sound of the phone ringing was now irritating me.

I was also amazed that some people had the nerve to call at the most inconvenient hours. There was no way Im talking to someone about an apartment for rent at midnight. I didnt even bother to take that insensitive persons information, I just hung up angrily. I contacted the newspaper the next day and requested them to remove the apartment for rent ad. I was in no condition to deal with another fifty phone calls. Sure enough though, when I arrived home, my answering machine informed me that I had eighteen new calls. I could not believe that an apartment for rent was so much in demand. I called the current tenant and asked her to remove the sign from the apartments window.

That weekend, I started to display the apartment and I was struck at the quality, or lack of, that people showed. Some of them were unable to provide any references. My favorite was the young girl who didnt have any references or job, and said that her married boyfriend was finding her a new apartment so she could be closer to him. I couldnt stop myself from wondering if her married boyfriend was someone I knew. By the end of the weekend I decided that the apartment for rent sign would not be displayed again, as I have found a few desirable tenants. Next time though, I'll make sure that I ask for more rent.