General Landlording & Rental Properties
Market News & Data
General Info
Real Estate Strategies
Landlording & Rental Properties
Real Estate Professionals
Financial, Tax, & Legal
Real Estate Classifieds
Reviews & Feedback
Updated over 4 years ago, 05/01/2020
Any landlords forgiving rents during COVID?
I know that a lot of landlords are suffering right now. Much has been made of the struggles of tenants facing financial hardship and many landlords have been placed at the mercy of the now-exhausted small business relief funding or forced to renegotiate with their mortgage companies independently when rent payments have come up short. However, some landlords do own their properties outright. For those who are able, I'm wondering if anyone has decided to extend their own version of relief to tenants and forgive rents temporarily for those who are struggling. No judgement either way. Just curious. I know there are some incredibly generous people out there. Nice to hear about the good they are trying to do.
@John Teachout said:
"Another misconception is that people can't be evicted because the courts are closed. There's a partial truth to this but in most areas an eviction can be "filed", it just won't get adjudicated until courts open back up but there would still be a record of the eviction filing, even if it doesn't get followed through on."
Absolutely! This is no time to slack off on documenting and papering. Lazy landlords get hurt the most!
Man, this one got salty quick! Take this any way you want, but all of my tenants have been great, and I have gotten a lot of emails along the lines of "you work so hard and we love this space and we're paying rent even though X happened".
Despite what a lot of you might think, the art of negotiation is making the other party feel good about giving you your way. I learned that from a guy who is way better at it than you or I could ever hope to be. A lot of my competition likes to see this as a "landlord VERSUS tenant thing" and then go to court (GFL right now) to prove their point. Its a lot easier, a lot cheaper, and a lot more effective to just be good at being a landlord, and people will WANT to pay you.
Or, you can hop onto a forum and write a few lines about how tough you are and how things "should" be. And maybe that'll help. Or maybe it won't.
Bottom line - good landlords get good results. If the opposite is true, it might be time for a look in the mirror to find out who is making a dogs breakfast out of your business.
Why not just address the source of the problem?
@Isaac S. I definitely like the idea of people helping each other out, it's true. But I'm not knocking anyone for whatever decision they make for their own business. We are not better off if people lose their livelihood on the landlord side also. It's a hard time for everyone.
I really appreciate the stories from property owners like @Darwin Crawford whose tenants stretched themselves to pay as much as those from others who decided to give tenants breaks. I was just reaching for the silver linings in the midst of it, and sure enough, people had some to share.
'
@Darwin Crawford I have always said that the way to win is to make people feel VERY VERY good about giving us exactly what we want. It works! But it requires that we give something first. I see you know that too. :) It's a very particular world view, not everyone's natural gift or orientation to be sure, and that's ok. Other people are good at other things. But that makes it all the more effective for those of us who practice it. Best to you, my friend.
I have a dozen properties, I have reduced the 950.00 rent to 750.00 for my tenant that works at the Airport Mariott. She paid early. I have a contractor unable to work, ae is renovating the basement at a discount, for his rent payment till July. Looks great win-win for both of us. I have a note and the mortgage holder does not think he needs to pay the mortgage and I can not file to evict him till June 15th. My commercial promissary note allows me to call the loan and I will May 15th. Finally I have another contractor that is not paying rent, has not paid water or sewer for six months. I can not file for eviction on him either. I put a for sale sign in the front yard. Rent came the next day, I have a signed repayment plan for the water/sewer bill. I will not remove the sign till May rent is paid and we are current. Putting the home for sale was only a partial risk. If it actually sells I will use a 1031 Swap and look for Covid 19 bargains. The most ironic part of the placing the home for sale is the tenant inquired about purchasing it.
@Michelle Fenn I'm laughing to myself about the tenant who hadn't paid asking to buy the property. I have a listing where the tenant did the same thing. Was so far behind on rent but was calling me and the owner to try and see how he could buy the house before it went on the market. Smh.
@Darwin Crawford "we're paying rent even though x happened." Really?
Let me tell you from the new ground zero- "x" is happening every other minute. I don't need a tenant to tell me that they are going to pay their rent even though "x" happened. I need a tenant to tell me if they are unable to so that we can work some alternative out. You guys crack me up with your psychoanalysis of your tenants!
We are in for a world of hurt in a few months, I need today's rent because I am worried about December's. (I hope I am proven wrong! God I hope.)
@Erin Dorsey Robinson I had a client waiving rents for the month of April but most of my clients I was barely able to have them agree to waive late fees for April.
@Erin Dorsey Robinson Thank you, its been a bit of a journey, but so far, so good. Who knows what the future will hold. @Patrick M. yes, I agree with you, the line I give to every person who has ever rented from me is "I don't scare easily but I don't like surprises, so if there is a problem be upfront and we are good". It hasn't failed me yet.
And you are correct, this is going to get economically very ugly, and some people are going to take some losses. It's just part of the game. The first domino to fall will be over-leveraged AirBnb hosts, and then commercial landlords. Residential will lag some, but it's coming. And yes, mind games are part of the success formula. I spent a couple years bumping around the debt business, and there are highly predictable patterns in who people will stiff on bills, and in what order, when things go sideways. I personally would rather be the bill they want to pay first, and will use any means necessary to get there. Your mileage may vary.