My tenants owe us a few months' rent and can't make the payment.

[Ally Gao]

Good morning everyone! 

I have a unit which is rented to a family for years. There had been times that they had hard time to make the payment on time, but they always paid eventually. However, for the last couple years, their financial situation seemed got worse. They really struggle to pay the rent almost every month. Since they are nice people, we chose to trust them and give them time to come up the payments. But it's been for too long and it seems impossible for them to turn the situation around. I told them that their contract will be ending at the end of this month. But they still owe us $4000. I am not even sure if they can afford to find another place to move to. I am thinking about taking the legal actions. Could anyone please advise how I should start the eviction and collection process? 

Thank you so much in advance!

Ally

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Ally Gao:

This is a common mistake. You wanted to treat them kindly, thinking they would return the favor. The unfortunate truth is that most of these situations result in some major losses. And when you look back, you'll realize that you lost even more because of low rents, the amount of time and effort you spent dealing with them, and they are likely to leave you with more expenses once they finally get out.

Save yourself the heartache. Rent to tenants at - or very close to - market rates. Hold them accountable for rent every time. If they get behind, get rid of them. If they pay late, but always pay the late fees, they are usually OK to hold onto until their lease expires, then get rid of them.

Your life will be better if you run like a business instead of a charity.