What happens when tenants don't pay the rent? While some renters will forget a payment due date on occasion, other residents simply refuse to pay the rent on time (or at all). However, losing a monthly rental payment can be the start of many financial problems for property owners. So what can investors do when renters don't pay? Avoid mistakes and try these tips from the best property management Seattle, Washington offers!
Missing Payments = Lost Income
When a tenant skips a rental payment, a property owner doesn't have the cash flow to cover monthly expenses. However, if one month turns into two months (or more), property owners quickly lose too much income to keep up with operating costs and often dig into cash reserves.
To recover past due rent, property owners also spend valuable time and resources sending reminders and finding ways to cover expenses without critical cash flow. Sometimes trying to collect past-due rent can even turn into nasty confrontations with tenants who refuse to pay. In addition, adding late fees to a growing past-due amount often frustrates tenants even more and creates a more significant amount for a renter to repay to get caught up.
When this happens with one tenant, it's a frustrating and costly experience. However, if you own multiple rental properties, losing monthly rental payments from multiple tenants quickly adds up to an overwhelming financial loss.
What Can Rental Property Owners Do to Collect Past-Due Rent?
After a rent due date comes and goes with no rental payment, a property owner should consult the lease agreement. This document should outline:
- When rent is due (and when it's considered late)
- What happens when rent is past due
- The amount of late fees and when they're applied to the past-due amount
- How you'll reach out to tenants with reminders and instructions about paying late rent
- When you'll deliver a Notice to Vacate for rent nonpayment
In many cases, with a professional and timely reminder that a payment is late and late fees will be assessed soon, most renters quickly pay their past-due rent. Unfortunately, however, that's not always the case.
What happens when you've made every effort to collect late rent, but nothing encourages your tenant to get caught up? Every day that a renter doesn't pay their late rent and applied fees is another day that a real estate investor loses money.
You Don't Have To Collect the Rent
Rent collection should be a routine part of managing rental properties. It's essential for success as an investor! However, when it doesn't go according to plan, what if you could simply let someone else collect it for you?
Property owners don't have to collect the rent. Even though monthly rent collection is critical to maintaining cash flow and returns, you don't have to collect it!
When tenants don't pay the rent, investors can bring in professionals to handle the situation with tenants. Professional property management services typically include on-time rent collection. They also track down late payments and work with tenants who never seem to pay rent on time.
However, many property management companies require property owners to hire them for more services than simply collecting rent. When a property owner really needs help getting rental payments in on time—but doesn't need (or want) help with any other aspects of rental management—they're forced into an all-or-nothing situation if they want help with past-due rent.
You Only Want Help With Rent Collection
Rather than suffer through income loss and frustration with a tenant that never pays the rent, you have another option for help! Property owners don't have to choose a Seattle property management company that only offers packaged services that include management solutions they don't need or want. When weighing the question of "how much do property managers charge" vs. the budget you have to hire rent collection help, the answer doesn't have to be choosing no help at all.
Choosing only the property management services you need can be a reality! RentWatch offers specific services to help owners in the best ways to meet their needs and budgets. Managing rental properties well requires time and experience, but property owners don't have to rely on professional property managers for every task if they only truly need help in a few areas.
When dealing with stubborn tenants that won't pay rent becomes a headache and financial problem that you no longer want to deal with, choose a property manager that can take on these tenants and your rent collection process without requiring a long-term contract or package of services that exceeds your budget or needs.
RentWatch Can Collect the Rent!
Saving money becomes critical when rental payments are delayed. There's no need to spend money on services you don't need to get help collecting rent from troublesome tenants. RentWatch knows that landlords often need help with only a few tasks. If you're ready for a property management solution that delivers the specific services and property management fees you need to optimize your budget, reach out to talk with us soon!
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