Rental payment in cash
I have a love-hate relationship with accepting rental payments in cash.
Love:
- Cash does not bounce. It's good the day you accept it.
- Holding all that cash in your hands feels like something special. Much more so than a number on a piece of paper.
Hate:
- I do not like walking around with large sums of cash on me. I typically deal with credit cards on a day to day basis and hardly ever have cash on me.
- You cannot remote deposit cash to a bank.
Comments (7)
Cash isn't ideal, but it works!
Jennifer A., over 10 years ago
@Robert Leonard I think you got the mistaken impression that I go around to all my tenants and pick up the rent in cash every month. Most pay in money orders or personal checks every single month. This was an exception. The tenant paid $750 in cash and $100 in a money order.
Dawn Anastasi, over 10 years ago
I think it is a totally unnecessary risk to ever take cash as rent payment. Give the tenant a stack of deposit slips and directions to the bank. It doesn't have to be any more sophisticated than that. I like electronic banking too, but there's a very low tech alternative. Let them make a bank deposit. They get a deposit receipt and you never have to handle any cash. How hard is it for the word to get out that "my landlord is here every month on the first to pick up his money." Not that your tenant has any scheme to rob you, their landlord, but people talk and they can unwittingly let the word out that every month on the first that person in that same vehicle is leaving my place with $XXXX in their pocket. TOTALLY UNNECESSARY RISK!
Robert Leonard, over 10 years ago
Dawn Anastasi I agree with the cons, though my rubber band bank is still growing ;) Sometimes I wonder what the bankers think when I come in on multiple days with wads of cash lol
Alex Anderson, over 10 years ago
I don't take electronic payments currently for my rents. The tenants aren't sophisticated enough to handle them. Wow Roger, crazy story!
Dawn Anastasi, over 10 years ago
Ha, I think we all have experience with this. The most amount of cash I had to handle was as a settlement attorney. It was a Friday late afternoon settlement in Maryland (a "wet" settlement state, i.e. Money must be there at close), banks have already closed, seller already signed and buyer shows up with a giant stack of $100 bills. I think it was about $50,000. Crazy!
Roger Lin, over 10 years ago
Cash is always good but I agree. Walking around with all the cash is not ideal. If I lose it along the way somehow, can't come back and ask the tenant to pay more. Prefer they pay electronically so we spend less time on the road to pick up and deposit the checks. All of our tenants prefer paying electronically since it is easier and more convenient for them. Do you use an electronic payments? If so, what service?
Cuong Le, over 10 years ago