Did you know that almost 39 million people in the United States live in apartments? If you're a landlord, you can make a good living off people staying in your apartment units. But what happens when it's time for rent collection and your tenants refuse to pay?
Can you evict tenants that don't pay? Should you wait around and see if they finally give you the money they owe? Or should you be more proactive about the situation?
Keep reading and learn more about what you can do about late payments.
Politely Remind Your Tenant About the Rent
There is a chance that your tenant forgot about the late rent. Most rent payments are due on the first of every month. If your tenant has been busy lately, they might have gotten too overwhelmed to pay the rent.
Go to the tenant and remind them to pay. Doing this is often enough to fix the problem. The most common cause of late payments is forgetfulness.
But there is a chance that your tenant remembers when the rent is due but still doesn't pay it. This could be a more serious problem. If you repeatedly remind the tenant to pay their rent but they still don't, you may have to escalate the situation.
Deliver a Pay-Or-Quit Notice
If you have a stubborn tenant who won't pay the rent, you'll have to deliver a pay-or-quit notice. This is exactly what it sounds like. If the tenant doesn't pay what they owe, they will have to "quit" their apartment.
This requires them to pack up their things and leave. This is not the same as an eviction. This is because the tenant still has a choice. The tenant can stay in their apartment once they pay the rent.
But if they still refuse to pay, they'll have no choice but to obey the pay-or-quit notice. Delivering this notice is usually enough to make even the most stubborn tenants pay up. But this is not always the case.
You may come across someone who doesn't have any money to pay, or they may refuse to. You will then have to escalate the situation again if you want to get the money you're owed.
Start the Eviction Process
It usually isn't necessary to evict a tenant unless they're being especially stubborn. The first step is serving a written eviction notice. You will then have to sue for an eviction and possibly go to court.
Once you receive a court order for the legal removal of your tenant, the tenant will soon be out of your hair. The court will then give you a judgment regarding the money you're owed.
All About Rent Collection From Stubborn Tenants
Rent collection is usually an easy process, but sometimes tenants refuse to pay. You can fix the situation by reminding them about what they owe. If that doesn't work, you may have to take more extreme measures, like eviction.
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