CT Grace Period Questions

[James P.]

Good morning everyone,

I am a new landlord and determined to be a fair but firm one. I have an tenant that is currently in the grace period as CT allows for 9 days before a late fee can be charged (5% on the 10th). The tenant talked to me verbally and mentioned he/she will have the rent by the 3rd. Previously, the rent has been paid on the 1st per the contractual lease we signed. I was a bit worried so I wanted to ask a few questions below:

• Do you accept checks dated for the 1st even though they were given to you on the 3rd? (I'm thinking this may happen)
• Would you advise I send a late rent notice if the tenant doesn't pay on the the 3rd?
• Next time, if I am not notified verbally and the rent is during the grace period, is it acceptable to send a late rent notice? How would I word this? 

I appreciate your help in advance,

James

[Filipe Pereira]

Originally posted by @James P.:

Good morning everyone,

I am a new landlord and determined to be a fair but firm one. I have an tenant that is currently in the grace period as CT allows for 9 days before a late fee can be charged (5% on the 10th). The tenant talked to me verbally and mentioned he/she will have the rent by the 3rd. Previously, the rent has been paid on the 1st per the contractual lease we signed. I was a bit worried so I wanted to ask a few questions below:

• Do you accept checks dated for the 1st even though they were given to you on the 3rd? (I'm thinking this may happen)
• Would you advise I send a late rent notice if the tenant doesn't pay on the the 3rd?
• Next time, if I am not notified verbally and the rent is during the grace period, is it acceptable to send a late rent notice? How would I word this? 

I appreciate your help in advance,

James

Hi James, 

-Yes, we accept checks "pre-dated" if you will. However, the receipt that we give out always has the day we actually received it. 

-You can issue a late rent notice after the first, but as you mentioned, it isn't technically late yet. It's only late after the grace period is over. Be careful how you explain this.

When I first purchased my 4 plex in East Hartford, I made this:

Hello XYZ Tenant, 

Your rent was due on [Insert Month] 1st. You are receiving this notification because as of XPM today, we have not received your payment for rent for the month of October. 

Your payment for rent for 1 month is ________.

Your rent must be paid in full and delivered to the address below before XPM on [Insert Day), [Insert Month] 10th:

[Your contact info]

Per your lease agreement, there will be a ________ late fee for payments made after this time. In addition, the Summary Process (Eviction) will begin on [Insert Day of Week], the 11th of [Insert Month].

As a reminder, your rent is always due in full before, or on the 1st of the month. Ensuring that your payment has been received is the best way to prevent late fees or eviction.

Thank you,

[Your Name]

Side note: Every time I think we have it bad in Connecticut, I just remind myself of Massachusetts' late payment laws!