Recent news has shown that almost 20% of people renting in America are behind on their payments. This can be a burden on any landlord as they try to run a successful property management business. As such, do you know how to improve rent collection where it might be necessary?
Below we lay out some steps you can take to ensure that people pay you on time, with as little hassle as possible. By the end, you should understand what you need to do to give yourself more financial security through rent payments. Don't worry about your renters falling behind ever again.
Have a Rent Collection Policy
Before you even worry about the first set of rent payments, you should talk to your tenant. At the end of this discussion, you and your tenant should already understand what your rent collection policy is. You should also lay this out in black and white in your lease.
Your policy should include all the following information:
- The due date of payments
- How long the grace period is on payments
- What payment methods do you accept
- What happens if partial payments are made
- The consequences of late payment
You should ensure that this section is iron-clad. These are areas that protect you should a tenant try to take advantage of your kindness. When trying to take action against an unpaying tenant, you should be able to follow the procedure here to the letter to resolve the situation.
Be Flexible With Payment Methods
When a tenant is attempting to pay rent, they may have any number of reasons to use any number of payment methods. Try to meet them where they start and try to accept as many of them as possible.
You might have legal or social reasons to not use some methods, such as payment in cash or similar. Instead, try to make use of modern methods of payment, such as electronic banking apps or popular fund transfer apps. This will give your tenants enough options that the payment method should never enter the conversation as a possible concern.
Agree on Late Rent Policies
When first discussing rental with a potential tenant, you should aim to be as transparent as possible. If you are ever in a position where you want to collect rent, they should know what your next step will always be.
This means that if they are likely to have late rent or missing rent, they can talk to you ahead of time. They will be less afraid of talking to you if they understand that they have agreed to the policies themselves.
Need Help With Rent Collection?
Now you understand what you are doing when trying to engage with rent collection. So, you can move forward and put together a better contract for future tenants. If you are still unsure, though, our people are ready to talk to offer you advice that you can use moving forward.
Our specialists are ready on the phone, so call up now and get up to speed on the latest rental tips.
