Tips For Property Managers on Collecting Rent
The most important task for a property management company is collecting rent. So make sure to do anything in your power to have your clients put their monthly rent as their number one financial obligation. That means when they move in, it should be understood where the rent payments are to be sent, what date the rent is due by, and that late payments will not be acceptable. To impress this on them, call them, or send a correspondence a week before the first month’s payment is due as to how much is to be paid, where to make the payment, and the last day they can make the payment without incurring a late fee.
Make rent payment as easy as possible for the tenant. Besides a mailing address, they should also have a place where they can drop of payment. Many times clients might want to pay with cash, and being that it’s a bit of a hassle to get a money order, stamp etc, they miss the payment deadline. Then, they spend the cash on something else, and to whole problem gets started. Some landlords even have websites to accept credit card payments. It could run 2.9% or so in credit card fees, but they might wind up better off because they have less tenants falling behind, and less legal fees in the case of eviction. Another overlooked simple tip. Self addressed envelopes that are already stamped. Even if you saved only one or two tenants from falling behind, it’s a worthwhile investment.
