Seller asking for November rent from tenant after closing

[Noah Schulz]

Hi guys,

We are kind of a unique situation. My wife and I recently purchased a duplex (first house) and are currently house hacking and happened to have a tenant already renting. The owners of the duplex hired a property management company to manage the duplex but for their leasing agreement, they amended the leasing agreement so that the tenant would pay on the 25th, instead of the first. The sellers credited us with the security deposit and about $900 for rent (tenant pays $1200). The $900 credited to us was under the addendum under Tenant prorated rent received.  Apparently, the sellers never disclosed to us that the rent that the tenant was paying was for the previous month (back paying), instead of paying for the month ahead (forward paying). Because of this, they are requesting that the rent that is due on November 25th, should go to them directly from the tenant, so that they would get their third of rent. If we were to do this, they would net $300, and us $900 for the month since we closed on the 6th, meaning it would be an equal split. The kicker is that they never disclosed this to us previous to closing on the house, and they requested this a week later (today).  Our concern is that at the end of lease, the move out day will be the same day that rent is due, the tenant could refuse to pay that months rent and we would have to keep the security deposit. We would need something legally showing that the tenant is back paying to justify keeping the security deposit in this case. 

My question to you guys, is what would you do? Is this a moral question of doing the right thing? Should we request from the seller that the tenant is actually back paying rent show that on a legal document? 

We are for sure NOT going to have the tenant pay the previous owners directly, but instead pay us and we will make our decision from there.

Thanks!

[Ryan Konen]

You're absolutely right to keep the tenant paying you directly, as you’re now the property owner. To protect yourselves, ask the sellers for written documentation confirming that the tenant is back-paying. This can safeguard you at lease-end if the tenant refuses to pay the final month’s rent, as you’d have a legal basis to keep the security deposit. You might also consider talking to the tenant about shifting the rent due date to the first of the month to avoid future confusion and align with typical forward-paying leases. As for the sellers’ request, if you’re open to it, you could pro-rate the November rent and split it as they’re asking, but only after the tenant pays you directly. Ultimately, this isn’t just a moral question; it’s about ensuring clear, documented terms to avoid issues down the line.