More than 5 million Americans are behind on their rent.
Rent collection can be a major headache for American property owners. If you're finding it difficult to stay on top of rent collection for one or more investment properties, you need to reassess your methods.
You need rental income, not only to make money as a landlord but to cover numerous expenses relating to your property. In today's post, we'll give you 4 tips for streamlining your rent collection process. Keep reading and let these landlord tips help you collect rental payments more reliably.
1. Accept All Forms of Payment
If you have more than one rental property, you know how important it is to adapt to different tenants. One of the ways you can do this is to accept multiple forms of rent payment.
Younger tenants will almost always prefer to pay rent using online platforms like Zelle or PayPal. Older tenants, on the other hand, are more likely to want to pay rent with cash or post-dated cheques. By accepting all forms of payment, you're more likely to get on-time payments from all tenants.
2. Automate Rent Collection
You can automate a lot of landlord tasks to make your life easier. One of the easiest things to automate is rent collection. Doing so will automatically withdraw rent payments from your tenants, making it so that they don't have to remember to pay you and you won't need to chase anyone down for rent.
3. Use Grace Periods and Late Fees
Everyone falls on hard times that make it hard to stay on top of rent. If you've got tenants who are in a financial bind, it's in your best interest to offer a grace period at the beginning of every month. Giving tenants an extra few days to pay you provides breathing room when they need it most.
If they routinely take advantage and go beyond your grace period, you can institute late fees. In Florida, there are no rules governing late fees, so you'll have to use your discretion. Remember that late fees will only put your tenant in a more serious financial bind, but can help set a precedent for on-time payments.
4. Send Reminders
It can be helpful to issue reminders in the days leading up to rent payments. If you've got a grace period, don't hesitate to issue reminders when they're coming to an end. Doing this will ensure you've done enough to make your tenants aware of the rules around paying rent.
Hire Property Management
If you're having trouble with rent collection, these tips should help. That said, it can still be a lot of work to chase tenants down for rent and issue reminders or penalties for late rent. When you're in over your head, the solution is hiring property management.
A property manager can streamline rent collection, as well as a variety of other landlord duties. PMI MetroBay is Tampa's top property management company, offering comprehensive services that make our clients' lives easier. Contact us today to discuss your needs and how we can help.
