Include late fee on pay or quit notice?

[Toben B.]

Should I include late fees in a pay or quit notice?

I am posting the 5 day letter that Oklahoma requires.

Hopefully this will encourage them to pay but if not, I want them out so I can get a paying tenant in.

[Timothy W.]

Originally posted by Toben Blalock:

Should I include late fees in a pay or quit notice?

I am posting the 5 day letter that Oklahoma requires.

Hopefully this will encourage them to pay but if not, I want them out so I can get a paying tenant in.

Yes. And construct your lease to have enough teeth. In mine if a person breaks the lease they lose their security deposit, have to pay me $250 for me to file the eviction, pay all my attorney costs on top of that, pay the remainder of the lease - even if it's 6 months, are responsible for any damages I find and give me the right to use the court system to seize their property, vehicles and bank accounts to recover my costs.

If a person moves out before the end of the lease they owe me two months rent, lose their deposit and pay all my advertising costs, background checks and fees to secure a new tenant.

Then I present the option of paying their rent due plus late fees - $50 late fee, $100 late fee after day 6 plus my rent which is usually about $600.

So basically I lay it out to them that it can cost them about $5,000.00-$7,000 for option 1, about $2,000.00 for option two or option 3, they can pay me the $650-$700 they owe me and go and sin no more.

This has worked every time. You don't want to be an a-hole, but you want to make it clear in a very polite, curt and unemotional manner what an a-hole you could be if they force your hand.

Tim