Adding late fees to existing tenants - what is legal?

[Kelsey P.]

I would love for someone to direct me to a resource (or answer my question directly here) to find out if I am within my legal parameters to add late fees if tenants do not pay rent on time. 

Quick background: My mom and I inherited several single family homes this year when my dad died quickly from brain cancer. He was a terrible landlord in terms of not having correct paperwork, procedures, etc. We have one house where the tenants act surprised when I ask them to pay rent - like wow - didn't know I needed do that this month. 

I know going forward when we place new tenants, we will have all the paperwork sorted out (I am meticulous and organized) and have them pay everything online (complete with late fees, evictions, etc.), yet I didn't know if I could legally have these inherited tenants start paying their rent online, require rent be paid on the first, and include late fees, etc. since we did not inherent them through a purchase. If my dad had a lease for them, it's just a few scribbles on a piece of paper with little to no official documentation. We had to physically go to the house several months back to get their phone numbers. 

The property is located in central Oklahoma in a super small town (about 1k). They have lived in the property for about two years. 

Thanks in advance! 
  

[Dylan B.]

@Kelsey P. It sounds like you don't have an existing lease for these new tenants?  If they have been living there for a couple years that initial "few scribbles on a piece of paper" lease is probably over and they are on a month to month tenancy with you.  By law you must follow what is on their lease whether that is a lease term or they are month to month.  If the lease states nothing about late fees then you probably wont be able to charge them late fees, it wont hold up in court. Typically the judges here in Oklahoma will go by what is on the lease. 

Now my suggestion to you is get them to sign a new lease with you, if they are on a month to month, with all the correct documentation. This will probably go one of two ways, they will either accept the new terms and you will have to "train" them towards your style of management, i.e. paying rent on time, submitting maintenance request, paying late fees if they are late, etc... The other way it will go, and in my opinion it sounds like this will be the route they go, they will not accept the way you manage because they were so used to getting away with not paying rent and I'm sure countless of other things and you will have to give them 30 days notice or start the eviction process is they wont leave.