Tenants not paying rent

[Joseph Puthusseril]

Hi I own a multi unit.one of the tenants did not paid the rent for this month.he said he want to break the lease and leave.so he won’t pay the rent and he doesn’t know when he will leave!!

[Nathan Gesner]

Two options I would consider:

1. Tell the tenant to get out within 5 days and you'll forgive any debt. This gives him the ability to leave without owing more and knowing he won't have an eviction or judgment on his record.

2. Start the eviction process immediately. This will often scare tenants into paying or vacating quickly.

In both cases you can minimize your losses by applying the deposit. Clean the unit and get it rented quickly.

In the future, institute a policy for dealing with late rent and stick to it! My policy is to have all rent received by the first. I'm required to give a 3-day grace period so I charge the late fee on the 5th. If they don't pay everything in full by the 9th, I file a 3-day Notice on the 10th.

I just had three tenants that failed to pay this month. They all called and said they would pay on the 7th, the 10th, or even the 14th. I reminded them of my policy and then stuck to it. They were all charged a late fee on the 5th that I will not waive. The last two tenants had not paid by the 9th so I filed a 3-day on the 10th and charged them that fee. I'm glad they communicated with me but I'm not going to extend my deadline just because they keep me updated. Policy is policy. They know what the policy is and they know I will enforce it. This makes everyone's life easier.