what to do if your tennants pay rent late often time?

Question

Hi,

I'm a newbie as a landlord. One of my tennants are always late on rent for like a day or two. What can I do about this other than charging late fee? Is there any landlord network that I can report the tennnat so that other landlord won't end up with them? or is there any credit agency that I can report to so they credit score would reflect the late payments?

Thanks a bunch!

Aly W. · Answer

Since you're a new landlord, you may come to find that a tenant paying one or two days late is one of the least aggravating things they can do!

Scott Hubbard · Answer

1. Read your lease as this should address what happens when rents are late.  If you do not have any verbiage that addresses late fees, then you may be able to give notice to the tenant that your amending the terms of the lease.  Again their should be verbiage about changing terms on the lease.  Again, if you have no verbiage which allows you to change the terms on the lease, then you have an weak lease agreement which you should find another example preferably from an attorney.

2.  If they are always late a day or two, then chances are your lease allows it.  If this is the case, then it is your fault not theirs.

Your only recourse is when the tenants need your reference for another property.  If they skip or break the lease which results in damages, you can file a claim in court and the resulting outcome could result in a judgment against them.  This then could be reported to their credit bureau.  Aside from that, you will not want to get involved in any kind of negative reporting as it could end up hurting you instead.  Sometimes it is best to move on.

In my opinion, being late a couple of days is not enough to warrant any actions against them.  If their lateness persists or even gets worse, then you may want to seek counsel for your options.

Thanks a bunch!

Margo Richardson · Answer

Hello Newbie!
If in this market your tenants are only late by a day or two, I think your in good shape.  After they go to 5 days I would probably charge a late fee as allowed by law in your state. Great job!

Vicky Yu · Answer

Thanks everyone for your feedback! My lease says rent due on the 1st with grace period of 4 days so to avoid penalty the tennants are supposed to pay by the 5th. One of my tennants lost his job and i dropped the rent for them, then after that they are just always late by a day or two after the 5th. I was kind of sick of it. So I guess the only way to give them warning is initiate the eviction process. Can anyone briefly describe the process of eviction? Thanks a bunch!

Chris Clothier · Answer

Vicky -

I would say it depends on if they are communicating with you or not and if they are being respectful, but are having difficulty always playing catch up.  For chronic lates that are good tenants, but having difficulty, we still take them to court and get an eviction notice that is valid for 10 years.  It enables us to work with them and then evict at any point if they are late and stop communicating and working with us.  That eviction can take place at any point once we have the court order.

J Day · Answer

Interesting story. Had a renter bounce a check to me today. Said he sent it, never showed. Went and got a new check it bounced. Called tenant he said the first check got cashed by someone. It wasn't me and I want my money. He is giving it to me tomorrow along with bounced check fee. If he can prove his story with bank docs and police report I won't charge him the late fee. Should be interesting because I gave him a number of times to admit he was lying. He says he is not. If he gets a police report and copy of cleared check I guess I will believe him. But to cash a check in my name you would need I'd and that stuff is easily traceable. I don't think he thought his lie through.

Aly W. · Answer

I used to have my tenants make a direct deposit to my business account at my bank. Now most of them use www.erentpayment.com, much easier for me to track although it takes about 3 days before the money is transferred to my account. But I don't want to get off topic ;)

Joel Owens · Answer

After doing this awhile your expectations will adjust. Do you allow them to write a check or pay cash or cashiers check?I make them pay cash or cashiers check so I don't worry about a bounced check or a long time to clear my account. To me when you actually can monetize the money into useable cash is key.

Brad P. · Answer

If they are really late (some state, like mine, require a grace period), as others have said, your lease should cover it.  And if they are always a day or two late but you always get your money...personally, I wouldn't be upset.  You get a few more bucks in your pocket while still getting your rent payment.  If you are really worried about it, you can start the eviction process by posting a Notice to Quit on the door (3-day notice).  Maybe then they will get the point that late rent is not acceptable.

Aly W. · Answer

What does your lease say about the late fees? When is the rent considered late? My lease states the rent is due on the 1st, and late fees apply after the 3rd. So technically they have until the 3rd. One tenant is always at least 4 days late but has no issue paying the late fees. I'm happy to accept the extra money and she's a good tenant so I leave it at that.

The other one was late for several months and refused to pay the late fees. I initiated an eviction, which will be on her credit report, and now she pays on the 1st. If your tenant is only 1 or 2 days late, but pays in full, I would be happy with that.

what to do if your tennants pay rent late often time?

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