Tucson, AZ · Member since 2017 · 3 posts · 5 votes
Hello all from Tucson Arizona.
I am a Landlord and one of my biggest issue is finding ways to make sure my tenants pay rent on time and without fees.
As of the time of this post Zellepay through Wells Fargo is without fees (but you and I know this won't last).
My tenants who are under 30 seem to like this option very much.
Wells Fargo and many banking institutions offer Zellepay. Find more about this by going to www.zellepay.com. Check on website if yours does.
For us Landlords with a business account it is a bit complicated Wells Fargo my bank only allow Zelle transfers into personal accounts. I let you figure it out why. To get around this I opened a personal checking account and as soon as rent is paid I transfer the funds to my properties account.
Hope this is another tool in your tool belt (at least until fees start showing up).
Accountant · Saint Louis, MO · Member since 2017 · 409 posts · 362 votes
8y
Cozy.co offers rent payments online for no fees. check em out. there's a delay between rent sent and received but it's easy to use and my tenants like it.
Chicago, IL · Member since 2018 · 31 posts · 33 votes
8y
Hi Oscar, I agree. I'm a fan of using Zelle for rent payments and other P2P payments in general. The platform is associated with major U.S. banks so most tenants have access to it through their checking accts.
Accountant · Saint Louis, MO · Member since 2017 · 409 posts · 362 votes
8y
Cozy.co offers rent payments online for no fees. check em out. there's a delay between rent sent and received but it's easy to use and my tenants like it.
Real Estate Agent · Colorado Springs, CO · Member since 2017 · 224 posts · 201 votes
8y
Just a thought - my attorney and CPA both said if you form an LLC and your intent is to provide liability protection, you should not accept rent payments into a personal account. They should only go into your LLC or business account (keep everything separate). I'm neither an attorney nor CPA so simply passing along advice I've been given. I've used Venmo to collect rent when I didn't have an LLC but my new tenant likes to just go to my bank and make the deposit which is fine. I haven't checked out whether Venmo allows a payment to a business account but it might be worth looking into.
Rental Property Investor · Seattle, WA · Member since 2017 · 383 posts · 248 votes
8y
My friends and I used to call this "Chase Slow Pay" - as Chase was using Zelle first and called it "Quick Pay" - which it certainly was not. That being said, it seems they've made some strides and is improving which is great. I wish I had the kind of tenants who could pay rent "digitally" - but a fair amount of them still deposit cash in the bank...on the 5th. A girl can dream...
Coppell, TX · Member since 2015 · 485 posts · 310 votes
8y
I setup cozy, and it takes up to about 5 days to get the money. with my other property I setup Zelle into Wells Fargo and got the payment instantly. cozy wouldn't take my other tenant's bank account for some reason, they do have a nice, intuitive interface.
Ann Arbor, MI · Member since 2017 · 109 posts · 52 votes
8y
Zelle has been instant pay the couple of times I’ve used it. It was super easy and instantaneous.
Monitor your accounts though (which you should be doing anyway). Someone hacked into my friend’s account through Zelle & got 5 transactions through before she got the first email notification. The bank’s fraud dept was on top of things, but it was still a hassle.
Just a thought - my attorney and CPA both said if you form an LLC and your intent is to provide liability protection, you should not accept rent payments into a personal account. They should only go into your LLC or business account (keep everything separate). I'm neither an attorney nor CPA so simply passing along advice I've been given. I've used Venmo to collect rent when I didn't have an LLC but my new tenant likes to just go to my bank and make the deposit which is fine. I haven't checked out whether Venmo allows a payment to a business account but it might be worth looking into.
I was thinking the exact same thought as I was reading this thread. I was asking myself would I tell a client (I am a business consultant) that I thought it was "okay" to accept the rent or any kind of payment into a personal account and transfer it. I would have to say "No" and direct them to something like Cozy.
Even without an LLC business entity, I wouldn't be comfortable condoning transferring into the personal account and not a business account. It goes against basic principles.
That being said, if it were just a stop-gap measure, and not a permanent solution, I would just have to look the other way.
Investor · Pearland, TX · Member since 2017 · 67 posts · 33 votes
8y
I am using Zelle to collect rent from two tenants and have noticed that one (Chase to Chase) is instantaneous, while the other (Wells Fargo to Chase) takes a day or two of 'processing'. Has been great so far and just hope it remains free.
Rental Property Investor · Red Bank, NJ · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
8y
I love Cozy- but I found the delay maddening immediately after accepting my first Zelle payment. Instantaneous as I was holding the keys to hand to a new tenant. I use Chase for everything and they are great and Zelle is super. All of my tenants pay early or on the 1st.
Also, just my .02 cents, if you are relying on an LLC for liability protection then you are under insured.
Apple Pay, PayPal (Friends & Family), Venmo and more have no fees as well.
I'm with you. I've been having my tenants send their rent via venmo. It's as simple and free as it gets, and quick. And being in Hawaii we don't have Wells Fargo or any other banks from the mainland, and venmo works with any bank (as far as I know).
I'll probably have find something more complex as I move into larger MF properties, but for right now venmo works great for my first few properties.
Tucson, AZ · Member since 2017 · 3 posts · 5 votes
8y
I looked into Cozy and the long wait for my money was a big turn off.
For those tenants that want to pay with cash or check I produce bank deposit slips with account and business information printed on them. I give them 12 slips per year and they take money to bank into my LLC business account.
I scanned a deposit slip into my computer and added all the information and also print big capital letters apartment number and or address. All tenants have to do is write amount. I also make sure they text me when they make deposit.
By the way. Wells Fargo stop accepting cash from individuals other than account owner so now they have to use either a cashiers check or a personal check. Bit more complicated for those that get paid under the table and or tips.
Investor · Clearwater, FL · Member since 2013 · 69 posts · 38 votes
8y
I just read that some people are using Zelle to accept business payments into a personal account and then transferring. I agree 100% about the LLC protection issues, but there's another BIG risks. I used to accept rent payment for houses held in my own name through Google Wallet, where people could more or less just "Email me" the money. It was all great until Google Wallet said I was using it for business purposes and shut down my whole Google Payments account, which meant Google Docs and Google Pay were suspended. Not even going into the hassle that caused personally, having to switch rental payment methods without notice created a real mess. Some tenants will use any excuse to not pay the rent, and it took more than one person more than a month to "figure out" the new system. If you're using Zelle to collect monthly rent, I think it's just a matter of time until they block you. If you want to continue doing it, I would suggest that you have a back-up payment method like Cozy.co already in place and make sure that the tenants know what it is and how to use it BEFORE it's necessary.
Rental Property Investor · DFW, TX · Member since 2013 · 953 posts · 910 votes
8y
Venmo also states in its terms of service you cannot use it for business purposes. I wonder if they would do the same thing as google did to @Amy Davidson
@Patrick M. I understand your point about liability policies but what happens if you personally get in a car accident and kill a high income individual like a young brain surgeon or lawyer? They could argue his earning power over the rest of his life would have been in the 10s of millions. Nobody has an umbrella that big.
Rental Property Investor · Red Bank, NJ · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
8y
@Peter M. please let me assure you it is not a difficult task for a competent lawyer to pierce the veil of an LLC. 2nd year Corporations covers it in law school.
Too many people think an LLC is some magical device to insure them against the most unlikeliest of incidents. You must be properly insured. An LLC is a good device to hide your identity behind.
Leveraging your property will protect it far more than a LLC.
(But I would also add that that is why I don’t drive carelessly and drunk and I keep my properties in excellent condition.)
Rental Property Investor · Red Bank, NJ · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
8y
@Amy Davidson why do you say it is only a matter of time until Zelle blocks you? We are opperating 100% within the terms of service and the banks are making money off of us.