Rent Payment Methods
What are the different ways tenants can pay rent?
Here are some:
-setting up a bank account and giving them the account number to deposit rent monthly.
-Setting up an ACH withdrawn system, some banks might even offer this server
- Have them mail it to you (let them know you go by the date on the stamp. so stamp has to be for the due date. Then you can have it mailed to po box or a address(your house)
- Goes right with mailing it, have them set up a bill pay service
-if you are using a online software for rentals look in it for ACH or payment systems.
**The one I am not a fan of is picking up the rent as it gets very inconvenient for you as you get more busy or homes**
When I first started out, it was rent checks to the po box. I quickly realized that I didn't have a cash option when the excuses started to roll in about not being able to mail the check on time. So I had to meet in person. That happened just once before I pushed for the tenants to use Google Wallet for the "cash" option. I stopped receiving checks and began receiving transfers. They loved it. I simply requested the rent through the Wallet app and it was sent directly to my bank account when the paid. It typically takes a day or two to show up and it's free.
My problem now is that I don't see this as a scalable solution because I have to request the rent. I want some type of recurring request to be automated so I don't have to be involved with that task. I also don't like the idea that they can just send me any amount of cash at any time. If I was ever going through an eviction process, someone could send me a $5.00 partial payment derailing the eviction. So I have recently started using Inuit Payment Network. The cost is minimal at $.50 per transaction.
@Valerie Zimmerman and @Justin B. PayNearMe allows tenants to pay rent in cash at any 7-11 or Family Dollar store. The cash is sent to your bank account and the tenant receives a paper receipt from the cashier. It's a great option to offer, and I believe Brandon Turner has mentioned it a few times on the podcast.
And Justin: PayNearMe is an automated process and you can prevent the tenant from submitting partial payments.
Does anyone know the legalities of requiring E-payment of some kind? I'd love to make checks. late or otherwise, a thing of the past. I've had good tenants who were just space cadets who were perennially late and I didn't have the heart to penalize them though I threatened. My sympathy is based on my being a space cadet who was always late when I was a renter, no matter how flush I was.
My tenant is paying me via Chase's Quickpay. It's pretty convenient. It's free but it takes a few days to clear if the fund is coming from outside of Chase. I think it's ok because it's like a check except there's no need for a deposit step. The only problem I have is it has a daily limit of $2k which is not high enough for the total rent. I get 2 payments each month because of this.
As much as I like this method, I am still open to other free options that has the same convenience with higher limit. Anyone know any?
Thank you for responding to my question and helping me in the process...@Matt Schelberg with the paynearme is there a fee involved, and how would I get started to set this up?
@Valerie Zimmerman You can find additional info at biggerpockets.com/perks. There is a link there to the service. There is no setup fee for a small landlord...they may have a premium service for larger PM companies, but I've never needed this.
The fee is $3.99 per payment (chargeable to tenant or landlord...your choice), but I think this is worth it because it saves you time with the following:
-provides tenant with receipt
-keeps a log of all rent payments you can later submit in rent court if necessary
-no time spent endorsing checks and going to the bank
It is also a convenient option for tenants whose employers pay in cash
@Johann Jells try the carrot instead of the stick. On new lease renewals offer a discount for rent electronically received by the 1st. Either have them set up Ach deposits or use intuit or another automated option. Most people switched for the discount. I did have one tenant who was always early who took a while before switching.
rentshare and cozy are great
1. Auto-Debit
2. Money Order
3. Square Cash/Venmo
4. Chase QuickPay
5. Pay NearMe
6. ACH services - *********** and a whole lot of others out there
7. Property Management - larger complexes
8. AppFolio /Buildium Rent Payments
Hope this helps!
Originally posted by @Weikang Chen:
My tenant is paying me via Chase's Quickpay. It's pretty convenient. It's free but it takes a few days to clear if the fund is coming from outside of Chase. I think it's ok because it's like a check except there's no need for a deposit step. The only problem I have is it has a daily limit of $2k which is not high enough for the total rent. I get 2 payments each month because of this.
As much as I like this method, I am still open to other free options that has the same convenience with higher limit. Anyone know any?
Hey Weikang, I just heard that Chase is not going to offer Quick Pay any more for those who do not have a chase account. I am looking for an alternative method now. Are your tenants still able to use Chase Quick Pay?
My tenant also pay me via Chase quickpay from other bank started in April this year, it still works for me
I was tried to have tenant pay me directly via ACH or bill pay, it did not work, so the rent has to be splitted as well with quick pay
I prefer direct deposit into owner's bank account.