Jetty Deposit - Security Deposit Replacement

[Ronda R.]

My great tenants of 6 years are moving so I am getting ready to advertise and start screening. In my market research I found a house that is in the same neighborhood and they are requiring renters get Jetty Security Deposit replacement. I have never heard about an insurance in place of a security deposit. I am wondering if anyone who has used it has feedback. Please share what your experience with it has been, good, bad or ugly.

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Ronda R.:

My great tenants of 6 years are moving so I am getting ready to advertise and start screening. In my market research I found a house that is in the same neighborhood and they are requiring renters get Jetty Security Deposit replacement. I have never heard about an insurance in place of a security deposit. I am wondering if anyone who has used it has feedback. Please share what your experience with it has been, good, bad or ugly.

 This is increasingly common. Many states are starting to impose limits to how much a Landlord can charge for a deposit, some don't allow you to charge last month's rent, and some are requiring Landlords to allow Tenants to make monthly payments in lieu of paying a deposit in full.

I am preparing to do this in my property management company. If I have a high-risk Tenant wanting to rent a $1,400 home, I would normally charge  a double deposit or $2,800. To ease the burden, I may choose to offer them a monthly non-refundable fee of $30. They are paying me for the risk, and they are still liable for any damages when they leave. 

Most tenants prefer this because the small amount is easier to absorb. And contrary to what you may suspect, they typically leave the home in great shape because they know you'll come after them if they don't. When Tenants pay a large deposit up front, they often forget it or assume you'll steal it anyway, so they don't bother to take care of the place, they try to use it as the last month's rent, etc.

Check out Obligo. It's a similar process that I've been using for three years, very easy to work with and it doesn't cost you anything.