The New Owner by Donald Bartheleme

Rent is due...and so is your sanity.

Renters are often at the mercy of their landlords and consider yourself lucky if you find one in today's housing crisis (at least here in Toronto) that is isn't a complete scumbag. In Donald Bartheleme's "The New Owner", the narrator's precarious living situation is made even more problematic by a ruthless new landlord who’s exactly the kind of person renters dread. True to the title, this guy is all business: slashing costs, making drastic changes, and caring little about how miserable his tenants are due to selfish greed.

It’s a tenant's worst-case scenario, but the narrator’s witty vitriol produces some funny moments. That's pretty much the story's only redeeming quality. Oddly enough, compared to Barthelme’s usual experimental and playful style, this story is as conventional as it gets. While it does have its fair share of humor and accurately conveys the frustration as a renter, it doesn’t quite add up to much in the end. 

"The new owner stands on the roof, where the tomato plants are, owning the roof. May a good wind blow him to hell."