Of recent, it seems like a lot of interest in investing in real estate and becoming a landlord.
I can from personal experience backup arebelspy. Landlording doesn’t take anywhere near 40 hr/week. But it can have short periods of a couple of months of high stress to get a rental repaired and rented.
What are your plans when a tenant decides to stop paying rent and/or returning calls or communicating?
Call and ask why he has not paid rent. If no response within 1 or 2 days, issue a pay or quit notice. Here in CA, it’s a 3 day notice, 14 days is a long long time.
My response in writing:
- Late Rent Notice on 5th day based on my lease
Never ever put a grace period into a lease. If it’s due on the first, it’s late on the 2nd. With 14 day pay or quit, that’s plenty of grace period.
- Balance Due with intent to report delinquency to credit bureaus if not paid by end of month
I believe you can only report delinquency to the credit bureaus after you have an eviction judgment, not when they are a late pay. Don’t put in writing anything you don’t want to appear in court before an eviction judge and that you’ll have to explain. On our notices, rent and only rent balance due, is required, no late fees, no nothing, just documentable rent amounts due.
- At one month late without communication, start Eviction Notice process. I know some say this might be harsh and others say why delay so long
Waiting 1 month with a 14 day pay or quit time guarantees you’ll lose at least 2 months rent. With court delays it will probably turn into 3 – 4 months lost rent, then another month to rehab the unit. Can you seriously afford this happening twice per year? This has nothing to do with harsh, it business. Unless of course you are running a charity. If they don't pay, they are stealing from you.
Lack of communication could be caused by disconnected phone service, etc.
A disconnected phone could be caused by not paying the phone bill, indicating they have no money. Why wait. The renters know they owe the rent. No communication is a red flag, no mater what the reason.
What will you do? What have you done?
Start eviction process. You can always cancel it if they pay up the rent, late fees and legal costs.
Would you treat it differently if they paid half the rent a week late?
Check your state laws concerning partial payment during the notice period. Your acceptance may void the notice and you may have to start over. Thus your acceptance of ½ the rent on the 13th day, may require a new 14 day notice. Then in two weeks when the next month rent is due you may have to issue a new 14 day notice. If they paid ½ a week late, I’d issue a new 14 day notice and tell them to pay the other half before the notice expired, at which time I’d cancel the eviction process.