Rent payment drama: Please help / advice

[Safire]

I posted about the DRAMA that unfolded over my rent payment on Oct, 2022. After they issued a 3 day Pay or Quit notice on Friday, Oct 7, claiming they had NOT received the banker's draft from Wells Fargo (that Wells Fargo claimed they had delivered by Sept 29), I ended up feeling harassed and it triggered my anxiety. So I PAID the rent online with my debit card. I received confirmation of the payment and then started to worry about them having my debit info first. Wells Fargo also issued a STOP PAYMENT ON THE CHECK. I thought that was that, and then spent the weekend worrying about them having my debit card info, although I began to calm down over the Pay or Quit Notice.

Well, come Tuesday morning, I have NEW drama. On my landlord's resident portal, it now shows that I have UNAPPLIED CREDIT of the entire rent payment. I am not sure what that means? My anxiety issues are MAJORLY triggered and I am trying hard to understand what is happening here. The debit card payment WAS authourized and went through though it shows as PENDING (which Wells Fargo says was because my payment was made on a Friday and would post today).

BUT WHAT is UNAPPLIED CREDIT? Are they not accepting my rent? Did the STOP PAYMENT not happen on time? What is going on here? Please help me understand this. I am the kind of person who pays bills as soon as I know they exist, even if I haven't been billed yet. I have longstanding anxiety issues / disorder and I am majorly overwhelmed by all this. What could this be about?

This is a CORPORATE PUBLICLY TRADED REIT landlord, not an individual. We've been here for almost 9 years and NEVER EVER BEEN LATE ON A DAMN THING, because again... my anxiety and aversion to chaos / drama / BS. We're quiet and mind our own business, do not put in too many maintenance requests, just paying tenants who don't cause drama for the LL / property manager. The only thing was they wanted us to pay electronically and we disagreed so my suspicion is they pulled this on us on purpose. But we have no choice.

And now this UNAPPLIED CREDIT just worries me. I don't get what's going on here and I cannot stop worrying here. Help!

 

[cathy63]

This is a problem with your anxiety, not your rent. Wells Fargo already gave you the answer. The transaction hasn't posted yet. There's nothing wrong on either your landlord's side or your bank's side. This is just how long it takes to document that money has moved from one place to another and get everybody's system updated. If you have meds or a therapist or some other support tool that helps with your anxiety, you might want to make use of that support system for the next couple of days.

Also, remember that a 3-day notice counts business days not calendar days. That means it's not even the beginning of a problem until Thursday (or Friday if you live in a state where Columbus Day/Indigenous People's Day was a holiday on Oct 10). You can call the landlord's office or send an email on Thursday morning if you still see "unapplied credit" in your account at that time. Contacting them before then is going to make you look like someone who causes "chaos / drama / BS", so try very hard to wait if you possibly can.

 

[Safire]

This is a problem with your anxiety, not your rent. Wells Fargo already gave you the answer. The transaction hasn't posted yet. There's nothing wrong on either your landlord's side or your bank's side. This is just how long it takes to document that money has moved from one place to another and get everybody's system updated. If you have meds or a therapist or some other support tool that helps with your anxiety, you might want to make use of that support system for the next couple of days.

Also, remember that a 3-day notice counts business days not calendar days. That means it's not even the beginning of a problem until Thursday (or Friday if you live in a state where Columbus Day/Indigenous People's Day was a holiday on Oct 10). You can call the landlord's office or send an email on Thursday morning if you still see "unapplied credit" in your account at that time. Contacting them before then is going to make you look like someone who causes "chaos / drama / BS", so try very hard to wait if you possibly can.

So what is unapplied credit? I am confused over what that means, more than whether they received payment or not because I know they did.

IF I REALLY wanted to create "chaos / drama / BS" I'd send the landlord a nasty letter over falsely telling me to ignore their "rent overdue" notice on Oct 3 as a "SERVER ERROR" and then serving a "Notice to Quit" 4 days later. It's not always the tenant's fault.

 

[aja8888]

An unapplied credit usually means a payment is sitting there and not applied to the fee it covers. Wait a couple of days and let things catch up since we had a holiday weekend.

I'm not clear on what you did, but is it possible you paid twice? If so, the unapplied credit is because the rent was paid the first time you tried to pay it and this lump of funds is sitting there waiting for a new billed amount.

 

[ivinsfan]

What can we do for you here? You are obviously highly upset as evidenced by your use of caps and and your apparent feelings everyone is trying to make your life more miserable. We're all here for you yet we don't seem to be helping lower your anxiety . I'll echo the earlier poster who asked if you have someone who can help you with the anxiety so you can iron out what's going on. I say this with nothing but goodwill towards you and all of us that sometimes deal with anxiety issues. You are not alone

 

[Safire]

An unapplied credit usually means a payment is sitting there and not applied to the fee it covers. Wait a couple of days and let things catch up since we had a holiday weekend.

I'm not clear on what you did, but is it possible you paid twice? If so, the unapplied credit is because the rent was paid the first time you tried to pay it and this lump of funds is sitting there waiting for a new billed amount.

Thank you. After reading your reply and checking the online portal, you are right. it appears they did receive two payments.

The online portal shows that our a/c with the LL was credited to the amount of the entire rent on Oct 6, 2022 bringing the balance down to zero, and that a second payment for the rent amount was also processed on the 7th (this would be my debit card payment that day) giving me an UNAPPLIED CREDIT for the rent amount.

I just don't understand what is going on here. I am overwhelmed and confused. They HARASSED me on the 7th with a Pay or Quit Notice, and forced me to pay by debit card, after lying to me to ignore the Overdue notice on the 3rd as a "mass email server error".

According to Wells Fargo, the rent check HAD been delivered to them on the 29th (WF had POD) AND it had not been cleared (as of the 7th). So how could a payment have been processed on the 6th?

That check - which was a banker's draft as Wells Fargo debits my a/c first prior to mailing checks out - was further STOP PAYMENT-ed on the 7th. I was told it would be credited back to my a/c by Thursday, the 13th. And now, this?

Just to clarify, when I went online to pay by debit card, I did not see that they had already processed a payment on the 6th. It showed the rent amount as due immediately.

I am not the sharpest knife in the drawer but even I feel that something is seriously wrong here. I am just going to wait this out until this Friday. Something is seriously amiss here.

 

[aja8888]

Thank you. After reading your reply and checking the online portal, you are right. it appears they did receive two payments.

The online portal shows that our a/c with the LL was credited to the amount of the entire rent on Oct 6, 2022 bringing the balance down to zero, and that a second payment for the rent amount was also processed on the 7th (this would be my debit card payment that day) giving me an UNAPPLIED CREDIT for the rent amount.

I just don't understand what is going on here. I am overwhelmed and confused. They HARASSED me on the 7th with a Pay or Quit Notice, and forced me to pay by debit card, after lying to me to ignore the Overdue notice on the 3rd as a "mass email server error".

According to Wells Fargo, the rent check HAD been delivered to them on the 29th (WF had POD) AND it had not been cleared (as of the 7th). So how could a payment have been processed on the 6th?

That check - which was a banker's draft as Wells Fargo debits my a/c first prior to mailing checks out - was further STOP PAYMENT-ed on the 7th. I was told it would be credited back to my a/c by Thursday, the 13th. And now, this?

Just to clarify, when I went online to pay by debit card, I did not see that they had already processed a payment on the 6th. It showed the rent amount as due immediately.

I am not the sharpest knife in the drawer but even I feel that something is seriously wrong here. I am just going to wait this out until this Friday. Something is seriously amiss here.

If Wells Fargo can retrieve the cashed bank draft, then the debit card payment should cover the rent. It's possible that Wells can't retrieve the payment since its been cashed.

In any event, I would call the accounts receivable folks and jet them know what's going on if Wells comes after the payment that was accepted and cashed. And I would let them know you have a credit pending in case Wells gets the money back.

 

[rk911]

So what is unapplied credit? I am confused over what that means, more than whether they received payment or not because I know they did....

receiving payment is one thing but being able to post that payment to the recipient's books is another. the recipient will note that he received payment but until that payment clears his bank the sender's account gets a temporary credit. this is normal. try to calm down.

 

[RobbieB]

Yes, you're confused.

The good news is you won't be evicted. Maybe you even have a month's credit.

I'm sure everything will be fine.

 

[Major Tom]

Is there someone you can talk to on the phone to receive confirmation that everything is OK? The first thing I often do when not sure about a transaction, is seek to speak with a person, either in person or on the phone. Is there a building manager you can speak with? Alternatively, if you don't like speaking on the phone, can you email someone?

And yes, +1 to what Robbie said.

 

[thefinancebuff]

And now this UNAPPLIED CREDIT just worries me. I don't get what's going on here and I cannot stop worrying here. Help!

Unapplied Credit - They received two payments, one from the check, and another from the debit card. You asked the bank to stop payment on the check but the landlord doesn't know that yet. When they find out, they will back out the check payment and possibly charge you a fee for a dishonored check. Next time don't do stop payment. Let it go through and apply the extra payment to the following month. It saves you the agony and a fee.

For the future, use auto pay via debit card on the renter's portal. You will never be late when they're responsible for pulling the rent. This type of drama isn't worth it.

 

[Irishgirlyc58]

[mention]Safire [/mention] I don’t know what area of California you live in but you might want to look up the Area on Aging for your area. Google should be able to show you which area you live in. They are numbered based on area. I think I’m in area 4.
The Area on Aging should be able to give you the resources available in your area for senior and/or landlord legal services.
If nothing else these organizations can inform you of your rights as a tenant in California.
I would be concerned about the eviction notice you received a week after you made a payment which then caused you to make an additional payment.
This is the system that they are requiring of you and they need to ensure payments are properly handled.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

I think the best thing you can do is to try to figure out how long it takes your bank to post things, since the delay between what you're seeing online and what you know is supposed to happen is what's causing a lot of your anxiety. (I know, a lot of it is due to the property management, but you're less likely to get them to cooperate and help you understand than your bank.)

And since you're in CA, with a lot of good consumer protections, I'd look into whether erroneously evicting someone is more serious there than "Oops, paperwork error, #sorrynotsorry!"

 

[dunkelblau]

For the future, use auto pay via debit card on the renter's portal. You will never be late when they're responsible for pulling the rent. This type of drama isn't worth it.

My apartment has a new corporate owner who apparently chose not to license the leasing/payment/maintenance software that the previous owner used and instead hired someone to duplicate its functionality. The old system ran smoothly but the new one has some problems, and the ACH autopay is the biggest one.

Some months the rent gets deducted correctly but our water/sewer/garbage utilities are not included. Other months it's vice versa. We have to carefully monitor these payments online because the pull date is just one or two days before a late-fee gets charged. When a piece is missing we have to dash off to the bank to get a cashier's check to give to the office. I'm not sure but I think it's safe to assume that the tenant is responsible for any screwups in the landlord's autopay system. So far we haven't seen any late pulls, so we've never had a paid-it-twice situation, but I expect this is possible so I always keep a few months rent in checking.

I know how the OP feels about this situation and I would have reacted the same way, except I wouldn't have placed a stop on either payment because hopefully at least one of the two will get through and I would expect any overage to be credited the following month. Also like the OP I avoided using ACH rent autopay for as long as I could, until we were forced into it a few years ago. FWIW I do prefer the reliable ACH autopay over paper checks, but our new swiss-cheese version would be a tossup.

 

[Aerides]

What I would do is call the rent portal customer service place:

"Hi, I have an "unapplied credit" on my account. What is that, is my account now showing paid?"

And then see what they say.

Have a couple of back up questions ready:

(if they say they got both):
Ah, yeah, I paid by check, you said you didn't get it, so I paid with debit/ACH - are both showing now? I see...what happens next?

(if they say it's just the typical delay in payment processing:
Got it, will check again end of week.

And then...
So my account is in good standing?

and then takes notes on any answers. I also find any time I'm going to be stressed on a call it helps me to talk into a mirror. By seeing my face I can keep my expressions measured, which in turn helps my voice and tone do the same.

- and as others have said, stop payments are a waste of time and almost always cause more trouble than they are worth. You paid for the service with WF. You will almost certainly get hit with a return payment and a fee on your rental account, despite this being now a 2nd payment.

 

[pacergal]

Unapplied Credit - They received two payments, one from the check, and another from the debit card. You asked the bank to stop payment on the check but the landlord doesn't know that yet. When they find out, they will back out the check payment and possibly charge you a fee for a dishonored check. Next time don't do stop payment. Let it go through and apply the extra payment to the following month. It saves you the agony and a fee.

For the future, use auto pay via debit card on the renter's portal. You will never be late when they're responsible for pulling the rent. This type of drama isn't worth it.

+
I have never had a problem with ACH debits from our checking acct, no inappropriate or unauthorized pulls. We helped our son for a few months during covid, paying his rent via ACH, no problems starting or stopping, and it was a major Rental Corporation.
OP--I am sorry you are feeling such anxiety over this. Changes can be difficult, and they have changed the way you pay rent. Perhaps, as others have stated, you may find help for this anxiety to assist you, especially if you find anxiety affecting other parts of your life.
Best Wishes to you.

 

[Safire]

Hi Everyone,

I want to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart. I absolutely was stressed and anxious because this had never happened to us before and we've been paying for housing since first leaving home as young students back in the mid-1990s.

The Update: Things are strange but maybe because I don't know how the accounting works?

First is that the account online is STILL showing as "UNAPPLIED CREDIT" of a negative amount for the full amount of the rent, altough the debit payment has moved from Pending to Authorized.

The payment of the 6th has now dropped off the rental portal.

Wells Fargo refunded the rent money because - per them - the stop payment did go through.

If all of this is accurate, then shouldn't I have an a/c balance of $0, rather than a negative credit of -rent amount? Am I missing anything here?

Just to save myself further distress (because I am obviously not set up to handle this stress), I set up a Checking a/c with SoFi as my new rental payment method for them to take rent from, after canceling recurring payments from Wells Fargo. Since I'm new to SoFi, I kept my Wells Fargo debit card still active as a "Payment Method" on the rental portal and didn't close it with Wells Fargo just in case Mr. Murphy decides to strike again and something goes wrong with SoFi.

Thanks again for your clarifications & feedback. I am truly glad I am able to ask for help and advice here.

 

[frances]

You might also, just for peace of mind, ask your LL/property manager if they have recently gone though a computer upgrade for their billing/rent payments system. If so that may be the true root cause of the issues and your concerns. If they've done a recent major upgrade to their systems it might not have gone as planned....

 

[SonofCohoes]

If it’s an option I’d pay with a credit card if you’re nervous about them having debit card info.

 

[MarieIG]

Hope everything is properly credited now in Safire's rental portal.

 

[Out of Steam]

My brother and I have both run into issues with bill payment in the past couple of months. His involved a company changing the receiving address and payment arrangements for a credit card bill without him getting proper notice. This resulted in a hit to his credit rating for a 60 day late payment.

The issue at our house was the electric company changing our bill mailing address to our daughter's apartment in another state! She had lived with us at our address, but moved away over a year earlier. Unfortunately, she didn't recognize the name of our electric utility and tossed the first bill without opening.