Tough situation of veteran tenant being late on rent

[Robin Evans]

Dear BP freinds we are now facing a tough situation of collecting rent. One tenant has been paying rent via auto pay on a platform we have agreed on. Somehow this month's rent first got deposited into our account and three days later it got pulled out. I informed the tenant and he explained that when bank returned the money, his other auto pays drained his account so he doesn't have money to pay rent. He doesn't have a stable job because he is a veteran and his disability makes him harder to maintain jobs. His wife takes care of two children at home with another one coming on the way. They are having a hard time financially now. He has a claim with VA to increase his disability pays and it takes a couple more weeks before he can receive the increase (quote). By then he should be able to pay this month and next month's rent plus late fees. Meanwhile he is also applying for a program that can help veterans with rent and also in the process of starting college that once started, VA will also give housing allowance. He has been renting from us for about 9 months and has been a good tenant. Last time he changed jobs and couldn't make timely rent, he notified us in advance and was willing to pay late fee plus rent.

This is a duplex and the other side's rent can pay the mortgage in full. We are paying a fixed utility expense of $ 284 every month. Other than that, the property is quite new needing low maintenance. We have a bit  reserve in the account to help pay the utilities. We are one-year old landlord and this is the first time facing the tough situation, especially with veterans. Evicting is absolutely our last resort.
Do you guys have any similar experiences? What are some better ways to deal  with the situation other than evicting? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

[Richard F.]

Aloha,

You state that you have been a landlord for a year, and tenant has been with you 9 months, which implies that you selected the tenant. You need to decide if you are running a charity or a business. If you go with business, you need to make significant improvements to your tenant selection process. You must keep Fair Housing in mind, if you make exceptions for this tenant, you will need to make the same exceptions for ALL tenants. Do you really want all of that drama?