Tenant not paying rent

Yeah, there’s a number of things to look at, Marisa- I wish you good luck with it all

As Judi said, direct debit (where rent comes out of one’s bank account each fortnight or whatever) is a great option. I know for me, as a renter, I use this option, because I am awfully disorganised and would rather let something electronic manage it for me ) So, instead of me thinking “must pay rent, telephone bill, credit card, uni fees TODAY!” I can get the bank to take care of it for me. So, coming from your tenant’s point of view, perhaps that intervention would help him out too.

I have no idea what your tenant’s circumstances are, Marisa, but if he is a low income earner, this may be something you might look at for future tenants- as in, get a tenant with a job. I am NOT suggesting social security beneficiaries are worse with finances than a working person, because there’s no evidence to suggest such a thing. What I am saying is that $200 a week or whatever a benefit is, can get very stretched, and with rents rising all over the place, it might be hard for some people to manage such a small amount of money and be able to survive.

Re property managers… well, I would say that PM’s jobs are made easier when tenants pay their rent on time. You can get a new PM, but who says that new PM is going to be able to nag the tenant better than the old PM? To my mind, PM’s are an absolute asset. It’s hard to get blood out of a stone, and we probably all know eviction, tenancy tribunal, etc, is a nightmare. If you get a new PM, you still have the *old* tenant, with his old habits of late payment. The only thing a new PM could do would be to evict the tenant (as a show of PM strength), but your old PM could evict too- on your command, so what’s the difference? If anyone thinks a new PM can change Marisa’s tenant habits, I’d be interested to know.

Marisa, it sounds like your tenant looks after the place really well. I guess you have to weigh up- would you raher have a teant who pays on time, but the house is a huge trashbag? Or a tenant who is behind, but looks after your property? (Of course, the answer is a tenant who pays on time and looks after the place- the old tenant from heaven [hair2]

Also, do you need the rent money to cover the mortgage? I have generally made sure that I am in a situation where my wages cover my mortgages. So that, if a tenant is late with rent, it’s of no consequence to me.

I wouldn’t allow the tenant to call me if I were you. That really is the PM’s department, and I presume it’s less stress for them to receive the call, than it is for you. There is no way I want to hear bad news (“cannot pay rent on time today due to blah”) repeatedly, on my way to work. It is too stressy.

I had a late payer, and it did stress me a bit. But when it came to me selling, because the tenant was really committed to the place, and kept it immaculate, he helped me a great deal to sell my house. He was very good to all people who made inquiries and inspections, and seemed to have a sense of loyalty to me. I believe he was a big contributing factor to me getting a very good price for my place. (Who knows? Perhaps he knew he had been late with rent generally, so he wanted to help out in the way he could). Anyway, I ended up giving him a week’s free rent as a thank you gift. That was MY choice, and I am aware that my choice may generate derision from other Forum members- and I’m perfectly ok with that- deride your heads off [rambo2]

The stress from a late paying tenant sucks, Marisa. You just need to work out what te alternatives are- weigh it all up, and see what seems best.

kay henry