Tenant behind on his rent

[John McKee]

I have a tenant that has ghosted me.  They are behind in their commercial rent by about $15K.  Do I kick them out legally and pursue the 15K or do I just kick them out and move on and not worry about the money.  Anyone ever pursue a bad tenant for funds owed?  This is a mom an pop flex tenant.  Love to hear your thoughts on this.

[Joel Owens]

If they are truly broke it's a waste of time. If they are not responding they might not know how to dig out of a perceived hole with the landlord.

If their business is no longer viable then maybe trying to get a payment for settlement in full.

When tenants mom and pop try to go out in retail centers the goal is to try to collect enough to cover attorney fees for an (offer in compromise).

If it was flex space they likely had little money. Most of these small business owners live hand to mouth and are not worth chasing. You could do a letter or something not much time and cost to see if they bite. If they have to be pursued constantly sucking away time and money then usually best to let them go.

To me time is money about 3,000 an hour. I rarely have any tenant defaults these days on commercial side as credit is super strong and I am picky on deals I buy. I like looking at the lake in my backyard too much to want to eat time chasing default business owners who owe money.