Landlord Question and Answer Forum

I have a tenant who pays late on a regular basis and refuses to pay the late fee...the lease agreement he signed states the rent is to be paid on the 1st of each month, grace period of 3 days, if rent is not received by the 5th, a late fee will be applied. He can pay by direct deposite, transfer to account by his account or by mailing a ck... My problem is he sends it in the mail postmarked the 4th, I receive it on the 7th and then states he does not owe the late fee because it was post marked before the 5th.. I looked up the California code and it states if it is due on the 1st and the envelope is post marked by the 1 a late fee does not apply... any insight on what to do? Thank you, Katie

I really don’t see a problem here. Have you not made a payment after the due date and waited until the grace period. Most of us have done this and there is nothing wrong with doing so…….Nothing says you have to give a grace period. Simply state the rent is due on XXXX…… Your tenant is correct. The CA Code example above only addresses the due date, but did not expand when there is a grace period….. Be happy that you receive the rent as per agreement and that none (assumption) of his checks bounced. Currently, you’re taking this situation too serious <smiling> . There may be good reason as to why he mails it when he does, such as paycheck date. -----Disclaimer: Since I’ve been answering a lot of questions, I thought I would make the following statement. I’m not affiliated with EZlandlord Forms. I’m just here (not sure how long) to help those that have questions. Having 40+ yrs with Rental Property and done well, it’s my way of “Pay it Forward (check out the movie).” However, it is up to you to become familiar with Fed/State/Local and Tax Laws. I always like to know if the suggestions I offer are helpful. Feel free to comment anytime. Thanks in Advance. BTW...check out the Rental Property Organizer at Simp-List.com. Free Trial Download. A great program at a great price! Check it out.

Posted by Bob R, CA on Friday, May 17, 2013

Maybe I am taking this to serious.. :) the rent is due on the 1st, he sends a ck on the 4/5th of each month and then I get it on the 7th of each month.... Yes his rent is late each month...would you not charge him a late fee, or would you just let it go and be glade you got it and it didn't bounce? another question...the renter has been renting my condo for almost 2 years and I have never increased the rent... but over the 2 years my HOA fees and property taxes have gone up so I finally sent him a notice stating of the increase and why and that it would begin on May 1, 2013...I sent the letter to him on March 15th 2013,... when he paid the rent on the 7th of May...he sent the old amount and not the new rent amount, so I called him about the ck not being the right amount and he said he didn't agree with it and wasn't going to pay..so I asked if he was giving me a 30 day notice and he said no, he would talk it over with his wife and let me know .. I am stunned and not sure what to do... whenever I rented I had to pay my rent on time or had to pay a late fee, if my rent was increased I paid it or gave a 30 day notice.. What would you do?

Posted by KATIE J, CO on Friday, May 17, 2013

Katie..... Yes, you are taking it to serious LOL. let’s address the late rent. As mentioned earlier, if the letter is postmarked on the 5th, it’s not considered late as far as the Courts are concerned. It’s no different if the bank gives you a 15 day grace period on your mortgage. If you mail it on the 15th and got a PO receipt, the bank would have a hard time trying to collect a late payment fee……Moving on. As long as your increase was under 10% within a 12 month period, a 30 Day Notice for increasing the rent is OK. Otherwise a 60 Day Notice is required….. Now onto the rent increase. Just because he didn’t agree to the increase doesn’t mean he can simply not pay. His option was either to negotiate with you or give you a Notice that he was vacating the property. Your option is to serve him with a 3 Day Notice to Pay or Quit. If he doesn’t pay, start an eviction. Assuming he’s on a month to month, you can also serve him with a 60 Day Notice to Move (he has live there over 12 mo). No reason required. He still owes you the rent increase that you can deduct from his sec.dpst + late fee…..I would contact a law firm that serves Notices. It cost approx $100 for the 3 Day Notice service. This will show that you mean business. I would not wait or step back because of excuses. The same law firm can do the eviction and that can cost approx $1000 min. I feel it’s a lot better to have the law firm handle everything. Please keep me posted. . -----Disclaimer: Since I’ve been answering a lot of questions, I thought I would make the following statement. I’m not affiliated with EZlandlord Forms. I’m just here (not sure how long) to help those that have questions. Having 40+ yrs with Rental Property and done well, it’s my way of “Pay it Forward (check out the movie).” However, it is up to you to become familiar with Fed/State/Local and Tax Laws. I always like to know if the suggestions I offer are helpful. Feel free to comment anytime. Thanks in Advance. BTW...check out the Rental Property Organizer at Simp-List.com. Free Trial Download. A great program at a great price! Check it out.

Posted by Bob R, CA on Friday, May 17, 2013

Thank you for your time and the response!! I will send out a notice. :)

Posted by KATIE J, CO on Saturday, May 18, 2013

FYI.....If you're doing the notice yourself, keep in mind that you can not include late fees.

Posted by Bob R, CA on Saturday, May 18, 2013

Thank you.. I sent the 3 day notice but did include the late fee. Should I send another 3 day notice without the late fee and another letter with it regarding the late fee? or just wait and see what he sends me then go from there,.. I feel I probably should have sent the 3 day notice by certified registered mail...would you agree? Thank you for all your information, I appreciate your thoughts/input on such matters.... When do you know it's time to sell the property... I have had problems with the tenant and the HOA, the HOA president is a bully and controls the 7 unit property as if it was all his own... but that is a whole new can of worms..... My other 2 renters have always been awesome...this unit has always been my problem child. :) I'm a flight attendant so I'm not always there, should I have him pay the amount to a friend or my real estate agent who is also a friend to record the time frame on issues with this unit? THANK YOU :) your appreciated! Katie

Posted by KATIE J, CO on Monday, May 20, 2013

Since you sent out the Notice, you might as well just wait out the day or 2. I would have had him personally deliver the amount either by cash, money order or bank check. If you’re out of town, it’s ok to have a friend you trust collect for you and have them deposit personal check (assuming that what your friend is receiving) deposit it for you. If it bounces, you won’t know for a couple of weeks. The other option is to go to the tenant’s bank an verify funds. …… If the 3 days go by without payment, you will need to serve another Notice w/o late fee. Late fee can only be asked for in Court if tenant refuses to pay late fee. I would hire an attorney to serve Notice as mentioned above. You don’t want to make mistakes serving Notices. Every time you do, you’re back to sq. 1. ……When is it time to sell? – when you’re tired of being a landlord or it’s not beneficial…… Am I to assume that you own 3 of the 7 units? Or is it just this one complex you’re having a HOA problem. As for the tenant, you need to have a very good agreement which may minimize tenant problems. Noticed, I said “may” LOL It’s not unusual to have a string of bad tenants. The good news is that eventually they disappear and you lend up with a tenant like the other 2. Hang in there. Better days are coming and property value is in an upswing in CA. Thank you for the kind words ¿ -----Disclaimer: Since I’ve been answering a lot of questions, I thought I would make the following statement. I’m not affiliated with EZlandlord Forms. I’m just here (not sure how long) to help those that have questions. Having 40+ yrs with Rental Property and done well, it’s my way of “Pay it Forward (check out the movie).” However, it is up to you to become familiar with Fed/State/Local and Tax Laws. I always like to know if the suggestions I offer are helpful. Feel free to comment anytime. Thanks in Advance. BTW...check out the Rental Property Organizer at Simp-List.com. Free Trial Download. A great program at a great price! Check it out.

Posted by Bob R, CA on Monday, May 20, 2013