21 Nov Avoid Rent Collection Headaches
We recently read an article about a troubled landlord who was seeking some assistance with a tenant issue. The landlord shared how his tenant had been late paying her rent and blamed the postal service, even though he provided a three-day grace period for rent payments.
After letting the tenant know late payments were not acceptable, she began hand delivering them to his home. The landlord didn’t mind this so much, except the tenant began causing a stir by fussing to his neighbors about what a horrible landlord he was to require her to hand deliver the rent.
Obviously, one would hope that disgruntled tenant issues never come up in the first place, but because humans will be humans, these issues do sometimes arise. Often, the landlord is at fault indirectly because he or she didn’t set up appropriate boundaries and expectations from the start.
While landlords cannot control tenant behaviors, they can make very clear to the tenants what is expected from them. Part of this comes with choosing the right tenants, which we blogged about in a previous post. Tenants must be screened and vetted before they are given the go-ahead to rent.
Another reason the landlord from the scenario was having issues is that he was not operating his property like a business. Without a true business background or frame of mind, property ownership can fall into a strange hybrid of possible business venture and side-job/hobby. This tells the tenants that landlords aren’t really serious about managing the property and can cause them to try and take advantage of landlord naivete and leniency.
All parties should feel respected and like their voices are being heard, as to avoid potential mishaps such as the one described above.
Here at Metro Property Services, we are a professional property management company with the qualifications needed to manage properties in the most business-like of fashions. And what’s more, unlike others who might be spread thin trying to wear many hats, professional property management is our ONLY business. Our clients can depend on us to handle all aspects of property management, and this includes collecting rent in a way that best meets their needs while remaining respectful to tenants.
If you are experiencing headaches with rent collection, that come with trying to manage your properties alone, we can help! Please give us a call at (310) 220-4495 or visit our website to learn more about Metro Property Services!