Collecting rent, and evicting

[Heather Rodden]

What is the process you take if rent is not paid on time? Do you give a grace period? At what point do you serve with 5 day notice? 

[Ryan McKelvey]

Unfortunately this is part of one of the risks of having a rental property. It is unfortunate when personal things happen, but businesses is business. Are you familiar with the eviction process in your state? How long is the process? This is a situation where sometimes you have to think outside the box.

I have had situations in the past where I just offered not to proceed with an eviction if they were out by a certain date. It’s better to get possession of the unit back early than to drag out the eviction process in many cases. The longer you drag it out, the mor rent you aren’t going to see. I offer a payment plan for the outstanding balance once they have vacated, If they do not abide by the payment arrangement, they get sent to collections. Instead of going the course of a an eviction witch can be a 30 days process or longer in some cases, I was able to get the tenant out in 3-5 days voluntarily and have anew tenant in the property within a few days after. Roughly a 10 days turnaround. Saved almost $800 in potential vacancy costs and $156 in court fees, and saved the value of my time dealing with wasting half my day at the courthouse.