Tenant Late on Rent - Is this the right course of action?

Question

Hello,

I have a tenant who is consistently late on rent payments, but usually pays before the 5 day grace period expires (after one or more reminders from me). This month, she has yet to pay the rent. After multiple reminders, she finally responded to me yesterday to say she would be paying the rent when she got to work. However, the rent is STILL not paid. We use Chase QuickPay, so it's not a question of the check being in the mail. To add some color - tenant is financially in good shape (or at least they were when I rented them the property) and I don't believe cash flow is an issue for them generally speaking. However, they are currently month-to-month and planning to buy a house at the end of the year. Pure speculation on my part, but I suspect they may be trying to garner enough funds to complete the purchase of their new home. I have no facts to back this up, but the longer she takes to make payment, the more I think this is it. She's historically been quite communicative regarding rent, so this time feels a bit different since she has not been as responsive.

I've written a pay or quit notice and was planning to give a little more grace (until the weekend) before dropping it off in person at the property. Am I putting myself at a disadvantage by waiting the few more days, or does it really not matter at this point? Property is in Philadelphia. The notice states they have 10 days to pay or quit, which I think is the right duration for this jurisdiction. Should I reach out to her again to try and get her to pay or just deliver the notice and if she pays great otherwise move forward with eviction process? And finally, if anyone has general advice regarding where to find the latest and most accurate information on evictions in my area, I'd be grateful for the help (and I'll take advice about these types of situations in general). Thanks!

PS - In case it makes a difference - the lease expired in August and tenant is now month-to-month. I visited the development a few days ago for unrelated reasons and I know that they are still in the property.

Account Closed · Answer

@Steve Babiak is right HAPCO is great. I wish the serviced South Jersey as well. Great luck.

Steve Babiak · Answer

I recommend that anybody who is a landlord of property in Philadelphia should join HAPCO; HAPCO is a landlord organization that happens to offer the services of an eviction attorney at reasonable prices.

And regarding utilities - in Philadelphia PGW (natural gas) and Water Revenue Bureau can bot place a lien on a property if those utilities go unpaid, even if the lease requires that the tenant make those payments.  There are some special arrangements that landlords can make, but the risk still is there.

Karen Johnson · Answer

Thanks for all the great information. The tenant paid the rent following my last contact, provided an explanation and says that it will never happen again. I have learned a lot about how to handle it if it does happen again, and also about how to structure future leases to be better protected in the future.

Bill S. · Answer

Just for clarity. Evictions are civil court actions. They are not credit events and are not reported to credit bureaus. They only show up on the tenant's credit report if the landlord goes to small claims court and gets a judgment. Some court systems (like Colorado) do allow for judgments as part of the eviction process but you have to pursue it. The standard eviction most eviction attorneys do does not involve judgments, it's just for possession. So while @Brett B. is technically correct if the landlord does everything, don't think that just because you see a tenant's credit report you will know if they have had an eviction.

Marcia Maynard · Answer

From this point onward, hold tenants accountable for all of the terms of your rental agreement. Serve the Pay Rent or Quit now and also post a Notice to Enter to inspect the property. When a tenant is breaking one term of the rental agreement they are usually breaking more. Look for any and all lease/rental agreement violations. Also, check that they are paying their utility bills. You don't want to be stuck with a hefty utility bill that may become a lien on your property.

If they are wanting to purchase their own home, they will need to have good credit... that may be incentive enough to keep their finances in order and not rock the boat. I suspect they will pay the rent after you serve the notice. Then talk with them about your expectations...

I like to use this question.... "Rent is due on the first day of the month, every month.  What would it take for you to pay rent on time?" Then listen.  Let them know the course of action you will take... "I am prepared to proceed with legal process to remove you from the property if you pay rent late again."  "What I really need is for you to pay rent on time, take good care of the property and follow the terms of the rental agreement. Can you do this?" If the answer is yes... "Great! Then let's see how you do this month and next month. I really appreciate your turning this around!"

Ethan Giller · Answer

You should not wait to post the notice, and you should inform the tenants that you will be filing an eviction at the end of this week (i.e. 12 days after rent is late).  Posting the notice is essentially just a reminder to the tenant that they have to pay or face consequences - you don't need to wait until the end of the notice period to file an eviction, since it will take 3-4 weeks after you file before the court date anyway.  There is no reason not to post the notice now, and there is no reason to delay in filing the eviction (since the tenant ultimately pays these costs anyway).

For easy evictions in Philadelphia, and to get a second opinion on any advice you get here, try evictionsunlimited.com

Sarah Brown · Answer

I just posted a similar situation, the advice I received was basically if they are living in your home and not paying, they are stealing from you-and I totally agree.

Karen Johnson · Answer

Thank you. Perhaps that will increase their "motivation". :)

Brett B. · Answer

if you plan on doing an eviction, remind tenant that this does show up on their credit report so if they plan on renting again, or buying a house *wink, it will cause major problems for them.

Karen Johnson · Answer

Yes, in this situation she is past the grace period and not seeming that committed to making things right (regardless of added fees, which I reminded her of before she actually became delinquent). That is why I think I need to take some more decisive action.

Tenant Late on Rent - Is this the right course of action?

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