Tenant Misses the 1st Again for Rent

[Alecia Loveless]

I have a great tenant in a great building. She was an inherited tenant that I took over 3 months ago. She is a Gen Z’er who has a professional job working in a hospital and is very nice, professional, and keeps her apartment meticulously clean and well maintained.

When I sent out my introductory letter and questionnaire she indicated she preferred electronic payment so I set up what she requested. The first month she paid the 1st of the month. Last month she didn’t pay the 1st so I sent her a reminder email on the 2nd and she responded right away that it had slipped her mind and in 15 minutes the electronic payment was in my account.

It is now an hour and a half from the 3rd and no payment. I’d prefer to simply send a friendly email reminder and avoid late fees and hard feelings. I think she could be a good multi year tenant and if this is my biggest problem with her would you recommend me simply sending a brief reminder tomorrow? I’m still a small enough landlord that this isn’t a problem.

Thanks!

[Nathan Gesner]

When you're a day late on your car payment, mortgage, or insurance, do you think the companies are wringing their hands and calling you to see what's going on? 

Act like a business.

My policy is that rent is due on the 1st. If payment is not received by 11:59PM on the 4th, a late fee is charged. If the entire amount owed (including late fee) is not paid by the 10th, then I serve them a 3-day Pay or Quit on the 11th. If they don't pay in full by the time that expires, I file for eviction with the court.

Do you know how many times I talk to the tenant during that process? None! I told them the rules when they moved in and they have a copy of the lease agreement in case they forget. Your constant reminders are more likely to make her want to stop communicating with you. She's an adult and can figure out how to set a reminder on her smart phone or set up auto-pay with her bank.

Think about how a utility, credit card company, insurance company, mortgage lender, cell phone provider, and any other professional company deals with this and then mimic them.