collecting late fees from tenant

[Jason Schatz]

I have been reading a lot of the good posts on here about structuring of late fees and it has been helpful.  My leases currently have rent due on the 1st with a 5 day grace period and a flat late fee of $50 after that.  My rent collection is done online and the service automatically issues the $50 late fee if rent is not paid by the 5th. 

My question is, I have a tenant who has been late twice and the late fee has been added to their account but they are only paying the monthly rent.  How do you all force the collection of your late fees?  I could reach out with a reminded that they have an un-paid late fee balance but if that is ignored what is next? 

[Nathan Gesner]

My policy:

1. The first time they are late, I will remind them of the late fee charge. If they fail to pay it, I politely remind them it is outstanding and that it is treated like any other outstanding charge. If they don't pay it, I will start eviction.

2. The second time they are late, I don't send a warning or reminder. I apply the charge. If it goes unpaid, I start the eviction process and they either pay or get booted out.

Two tips:

1. Don't accept partial payments.

2. Always apply payments to other charges before applying it to rent: unpaid utilities, late fees, service fees, etc. After applying to other outstanding charges, then you will be short on rent and can evict for non-payment of rent. It's best to spell this out in your lease.