10 Guidelines for Landlords when Rent is not paid

We received this from our friends at MrLandlord.  Our experience is that this is tried and true advise

 

10 Guidelines for Landlords when rent is not paid

 

1. We get what we allow.

 

2. Be businesslike and professional, even with just one rental.

 

3. It has nothing to do with respect. If you're in this for respect, you're in the wrong business! Residents don't pay rent out of respect, they pay to avoid the pain of late fees or eviction.

 

4. No pain, no gain! Just like our kids, residents won't do what you want until there is some kind of pain to avoid or eliminate - not until Mom says, "No Supper until room's cleaned!" Set a deadline with a consequence.

 

5. Our judge was VERY clear and even emphatic at our landlord association meeting last month:

"Standard practice" overrides any lease clause. If there are no late fees, dropping fees, accepting late, 5 days grace, etc., then HE must allow the same in court. His example: 5 days grace by the landlord forces him to allow 5 extra free days for the evictee. (I STILL cannot understand why landlords give grace periods!)

 

6. Residents lie. And landlords tend to be gullible. We WANT to believe in people.

 

7. In the end, they didn't pay because they flat out don't have the money. You cannot get blood from a stone. No amount of letters, talk, chest puffing, threats, etc., will make a hill o' beans difference. If they can't pay, they can't and they need to go. No hatred or harsh words - just time to work something out or have the judge tell them they gotta go.

 

8. Stick with the system. Rent, late fees, eviction...Both your life and the resident's lives will have less stress. Don't re-invent the wheel for every resident excuse. We ADAPT the system to unusual situations, but the system stays in place.

 

9. Landlords play games with grace periods, unenforced late fees, let rent slide, etc. then get upset when the resident blurs the lines.

 

10. Stay in control. The landlord is in charge, not the resident

 

Bo Evans ABR,CRS,CRB,GRI

Bo Evans Realty

Prattville, AL

www.boevansrealty.com

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