Inheriting a Tenant with NO Security Deposit!

[Matt Liu]

What do you do if you inherit a month-to-month tenant with no security deposit? She has been there for three years and is never late on payments so I prefer not to give her notice.
I was thinking I would offer her a year lease (with a deposit of course) at slightly less rent to ease her pain/fear of committing.

[Harry M.]

A good tenant that's really dug in for the long haul is worth their weight in gold. If she's been there for 3 years already and not damaged the place, there's no reason to believe she would in the future, especially if you build a good relationship. To me, the value of having a long term tenant far outweighs the little bit of protection you get from the deposit at the risk of upsetting the apple cart. I would NEVER do this for a new tenant, but this is different.