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I have only skimmed the posts, so may have missed 50% of the content here.
As we know rules are different depending on the location and level of rentals that we offer.
I have had 5 rental homes for about 25 years. I feel that they are good average single-family homes for our town. Our town is a suburb of Chicago and is slightly above average.
I am fortunate to not have non paying tenants in the last few years and also due to Covid.
What I have learned due to a shift in the last 10 years:
Tenants sign a lease and then will do whatever they want.
They do not expect to follow the rules or agreement but will use the rules against you.
They believe that since they pay rent, the landlord owes them. (Very common to get needs for issues within days of paying rent)
If a tenant is light on income, they have a choice to not pay a bill & most likely choose to not pay the landlord.
The pressure to pay you before other bills due is beneficial.
A strong lease is very important, so you can reference it to enforce the agreement.
I charge a daily late fee after only one day of late rent payment. I explain that I don't want their extra money, but do need for them to pay rent, so I can pay the mortgage and the house will be available for them to live in.
If rent is due on the 1st and not paid. I will attempt to communicate on the 2nd. If I am unable, I assume that they are dodging me. In current times, we are all reachable every day!
If they fail to communicate, I give them a 10 day notice to pay or be evicted. Sounds strict? Well as I said, if they are short on money, they can choose who they don't pay.
So how has this turned out for me? 1 out of 10 ended up in me filing an eviction. 9 out of 10, they paid me and avoided someone else.
As I said, you may have other restrictions due to your area, but hope this helps you just a little!
PM me if you want to talk.
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