Complete List of Tenant Fees
I'm trying to round up all the different types of fees a landlord could charge their residents. This isn't my favorite income idea but there is no doubt collecting fees is a way to prevent more costly mistakes. What's missing in my list?
- Bounced/Retuned check
- Parking – and auctioning off preferred stalls
- Parking violation
- Pet Fees and Pet Application Fee in lieu of deposit
- Failure to clean pet waste
- Tenant application fee
- Late payments
- Check cashing
- Credit card processing
- Tampering with smoke-CO2 detector
- Non-compliance after an initial written notice
- Smoking in restricted area
Most Popular Reply
Hi Al,
Just remember, threatening all kinds of fees is also a way to have a unit sit vacant for a long time. I would also be sure to check the laws in your jurisdiction regarding some of your fees. I'm not sure how you can enforce a fee for "failure to clean pet waste" unless you have proof it was their pet. Also check cashing and credit card processing fees can get tricky since you're not a financial institution. If you're going to threaten all of these fees I would be sure to get a real estate/landlord attorney in your area to look over your voluminous contract before having a tenant sign it.
My suggestion would be to do a more thorough screening of tenants rather than threatening them with all kinds of financial penalties.
Cheers!
Eric