Tenant Can't Pay Onliine, I Don't Pick Up Checks. Help!!!
Mil SanghviPro Member
Rental Property Investor · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2014 · 57 posts · 10 votesIs there a way for the tenants to pay rent at a store?
A couple of my tenants don't have computers and can't pay online. I will not go to the property and physically collect rent and really don't prefer mailed checks or money orders.
These are the ways I currently accept rent payments.
1. Government pays for military tenants
2. PayPal (friends and family so it's free)
3. Online on the website (Buildium)
I can tell them to deposit at the bank but don't want to give them the account number.
I've heard of "Pay Near Me" Tenants can make cash payments at 7 Eleven and Family Dollar. I don't have 7 Eleven in Phenix City AL or Columbus GA. Family Dollar may not accept rent payments specifically.
Are there any other options?
I am going to date myself some, but we used to have these relics called envelopes (crazy little white things)..
Google "envelope" if you are under like 25 years old. Way back in the day, we did everything this way...
How to bullet proof it for your unbanked tenants: give them SASE (this stands for self addressed stamped envelopes) for the entire tenancy. An unbanked tenant can just get a low cost money order or check and drop it in the mail. Easy.
For some reason this is the hard part I have seen in a few forums, you open the envelope (usually from a PO box ancient mail box device of some form).. take out the check and deposit it in your account (be as tech savvy or unsavvy as you like here)..
I have not lost one in a decade this way... The old late in the mail excuse is a tenant issue 99% of the time and not about the USPS.
If getting the mail is too hard, wait until you turn around a rough unit (getting rent checks is actually my highlight--easy and fun mailbox money; and I planned it out so the bank is next to the po box; even get free coffee (a dark beverage made from...nevermind..) Best of luck... and sometimes even in the high tech world, the low tech route works best for some tenants.
@K. marie P. @K. ...Damn that @!
Regarding "Be honest. Before this morning, did you know that Ohio law prohibits you from requiring electronic payments and that you must offer an additional method besides cash and electronic payment." Nope.
There are lots of us who advocate checking state laws. We ran into this on page 1 of this topic when I asked @Account Closed about some statutory comments he made. His response was that in Texas (not related to the OP, but he did qualify and say "in some places") there are statutory restrictions (per Biggs, "Texas Sec. 92.011 of the Property Code" that reflects what he posted). He is correct, it's there in Texas. There are CA statutes as well, and I see California's section 1947.3 But I can't find the Ohio reference you cite. At least I can't find anything in ORC Chapter 5321: LANDLORDS AND TENANTS
Regardless, your post (as always) has merit (and my vote). Everyone needs to know the limits in their own states. I like complete automation so like (tenant initiated) deposit cards and ACH payments.
For anyone collecting in person... I suggest you do what my company does. If a manager needs to spend company resources going to the tenant, then there is a base service call ($35 minimum) charged to the account. When I tell them that, they change their behavior.
I would like topics like this one to be steered in the direction of legality when we're talking about tenant landlord topics that are governed by code. I'll be honest and say I did not know about CA CC 1947 until I read about it this morning. Probably because many in my farms and my buyer and tenant pools are often computer illiterate. Much less so than 10 years ago to be sure. (And that's putting aside the often unbanked issue.) We've had fabulous threads on the MANY resources and services available to deal with unbanked and/or computer illiterate tenants. But this thread is focused on limiting and controlling tenant payment methods, based on landlord preference. I'm always going to be on the alert for landlord policy that isn't supported by code.
Maybe another thread could address what you've found so far. CA and TX limit or prohibit electronic payment requirements. There are probably others. And there will probably be others.
@Mil Sanghvi - I apologize if my suggestions are repeats as I admittedly didn't read all 4 pages of the thread (didn't see on page 1 at least).
I have several tenants that deposit rent at my bank. I simply tell them they can go to any XXX bank branch and deposit rent into the checking account for "my business name" ending in #### (give them last 4 digits of the account).
This might not be 100% fool proof, but it beats a PO Box or manually collecting rent. If you have tenants that are willing to defraud you if they have your account number then that might be a bigger problem :)
"I will not go to the property and physically collect rent and really don't prefer mailed checks or money orders."
If you don't make it easy for your tenants, hire a property manager. Lots and lots of people have no clue how to use a computer, go to the library, free internet, create an account, etc. I help the lady who cleans my house with her insurance, she has no clue how to even search for the insurance page, on top of that, she is really embarrassed to ask me to do that. I can't imagine her walking into the library asking for help to figure it out to pay the rent, some people have no clue, just because we know things for granted and it is easier for us, you can imagine is easy for everyone, but no.
Easy for all parties? the magic white envelope with a 49 stamp. My tenants are great sending me the rent check on time. Yes, it is their responsibility to make the payment, but also is part of the job as a Landlord to make it easy.
@Account Closed @Matt Motil
Solution Found
Buildium property management software has a ePay feature where
1. Tenants can pay online via EFT, auto pay or credit card
2. You can sign in as a tenant and pay online via EFT
Tenant calls around the first of the month says I just got paid and I want to pay rent.
I log in for them and pay rent using their account information**
**Tenants will sign a form authorizing manual payment through EFT
NO MORE COLLECTING RENT CHECKS, MAIL CHECKS, CASH, EXCUSES ETC!!!
Focus on building systems and processes.
If your portfolio was 10 times bigger than it is now, can you use the same system as you do now? Build your business with your future in mind.
@Account Closed@Matt Motil @Jim Biggs @Account Closed @Robert Blanchard @Dean De Pew @Account Closed @Anna Watkins @Steve Vaughan @Michael Seeker @Eric Pifer@Rick H.
Solution Found
Buildium property management software has a ePay feature where
1. Tenants can pay online via EFT, auto pay or credit card
2. You can sign in as a tenant and pay online via EFT
Tenant calls around the first of the month says I just got paid and I want to pay rent.
I log in for them and pay rent using their account information**
**Tenants will sign a form authorizing manual payment through EFT
NO MORE COLLECTING RENT CHECKS, MAIL CHECKS, CASH, EXCUSES ETC!!!
Focus on building systems and processes.
If your portfolio was 10 times bigger than it is now, can you use the same system as you do now? Build your business with your future in mind.
You seem to be building systems. I completely agree with you.
While I am getting slaughtered by a lot of people assuming I'm making hard on my tenants to pay me I will have to disagree.
My properties are two hours so I have to automate a lot of things. (Everything from advertising, showing, applications, lease signing, payments etc)
I do personally inspect the properties once every 3 months. Repairs and maintenance are done proactively for even the most minor things.
It costs me time, effort, energy, gas, and opportunity cost plus it takes my focus away from expansion and into operations of property management. If you want to make a collection run, please be my guest.
@Mil Sanghvi sounds like you're the one making an excuse. We all know there are 2 ways to pay, online or mail. You've excluded the mail (for what reason, I don't know) so if your tenant cannot pay online it seems to be your problem, not theirs.
You can easily have a PO Box and have money order or cashier's checks sent to a central location. Not everyone is tech savvy nor wants you logging in making payments on their behalf.
I've solved that problem.
I've solved that problem.s
I hope you report back and let us know how it works in practice. So, you will help create and have full access to tenant login info. But you you will be waiting for a call each month to confirm that they have funds and are ready to pay, correct? I don't see how this saves time. Or prevents excuses. Plus it requires a call from the tenant, which you may or may not receive. Just like a rent check or money order.
I have borrowers that pay me monthly. The checks come to my mailbox. I use my cellphone and my bank's app to deposit them electronically. No deposit slip, no visit to the bank. And no calls from the borrowers. I'll keep my system for now.
We do not accept rent payments by post ... we are just not interested in playing "the cheque is in the mail" game.
Instead we issue our "cash" tenants a deposit-only bank card. Though none of our tenants are more than 2-kms (1.25 miles) from a branch of our bank, in Canada, the banking system is highly integrated and they could deposit at any bank's ATM. They do not require a bank account of their own to use this method of payment. We know who has made which deposit by the card number.
The one exception is our {international} student rooming house, where the cash tenants must pay our "Den Mother" by the 1st of the month.
This makes the late payment determination quite clear - if the full rent is not in our account by the 1st of the month, it is late. If it has not been received by the 4th (2nd for repeat offenders), we levy a late payment fee. If it is still outstanding on the 7th (5th for repeat offenders) we serve a Notice to Vacate (which gives 7-days to pay or 15 to vacate (first offence) on a subsequent offence, the tenant has 7-days to pay, but must still vacate within15-days).
Like many things in this business, you need to taylor your rent collection to fit your jurisdiction (legal/regulatory requirements) and clientele.
Tenants do not need your account if they have your full name and address, they can still deposit at your bank and produce a receipt. They can in my state. I had an issue with one tenant and my bank told me she doesn't not need my acct # only my full name and address.