All Forum Posts by: Arnie Guida

By the by, this is what he sent me:

"The Tennessee Landlord and Tenant laws allow me to charge up to 10% as a late fee. The law also gives tenants five days to pay, or get mailed rent post-marked. Here's how I do it (BTW all my rents come due on the 1st.):

I charge $5 daily. On the sixth a tenant who hasn't paid is five days late, not one day late as they think. On the sixth I leave late notices and they say "As of mail delivery, this date, I have not received your rent payment. Your late fee is $25, and will increase by $5 daily until rent is paid in full." With 55 units I'll have 8~10 late each month. I probably collect the equivalent of one small apartment in late fees each month. I have one tenant who pays me $60 in late fees every month, and has done so for almost a year. She pays around the 15th, but calls me every month by the 5th, apologizes, and tells me what day she can pay...and always makes that date.

The first time a tenant is late I call them. I remind them of late fees due and tell them "Now you're late and owe a late fee, just like you do if late with your credit card company. I will waive the late fee this one time IF you pay me by tomorrow." That usually works. After that I insist on late fees if they are late again."

If a daily fee is legal in WI, I'm changing my leases.

See, that's the thing, if it's legal here in Wisconsin.

I have a friend in Tennessee that charges late fees of $5 per day, instead of the typical "$25 if later than the 5th", like I use.

I like that a lot.

Is this common?

Thank you.

OK, what am I missing here?

The only thing I can figure out here is if you're collecting in person in a multi in da hood and you don't want to get bumped on the head while having several rents in your pocket.

That's gotta be it, right?

Most of my tenants pay in cash.

So?!

That has nothing to do with it!

Ryan is 200% right.

See, this a key to me. The handyman I have now is great, takes pride in his work, gets it done in a timely manner, cleans up when done...etc...

I don't tell people for fear of being called stupid, but I sometimes include an extra $20 bill, make sure I compliment the work, look him in the eye and shake his hand...make him feel good about himself. I think that goes a long way towards having him WANT to work for me, to put me ahead of other work, knowing he gets paid promptly and that I appreciate his work.

@Kelly G., thanks for the pm referral, looks like I'm going to need one.

@Dawn A., Yes, if you could send a few referrals through pm, I'd appreciate it.

Arnie

Let's leave out the fact that the owner is a 92 yr old widow on fixed income, that this is her only building and it represents more than half of her income...

I would have to investigate, but I've gotta believe this service is legal and code. Every year a (different) City Inspector walks through the building, and if the service wasn't legal surely this would have been brought to our attention by now.

The building was built in 1960, my Parents bought it in '66. It is next to a popular Catholic Church, and there are about 6 4plexes's on the block, with an equal number on the other side of the street. The area is surrounded by owner occupied single families. It sure looks like all of the 4plexes were built at the same time, they all look alike. It would not surprise me to find that many/most still have 60 amp/fuse service.

Now how would you approach a 92 yr old widow in declining health that she needs to spend 5k to replace something that isn't broken? Microwaves and window air conditioners have been around quite a while, and I truthfully can't remember the last time I've had to replace a blown fuse, in any season.

I appreciate some people's need to jump on the soapbox, pound their chest and say what they would do, and what others should do, but to me, it's idealism vs. realism. I doubt anyone here would badger their elderly Parent to spend 5k just because they have to move some fuses around once and a while.

I don't agree that was his sole point.

While I say "our" 4 family, I am not the owner, I run for the owner. "Our" is more convenient.

5 of them, the public circuit too.