by Glenn Dorsey 
Rent collection is one of the most important jobs for any landlord. The monthly rent that you collect for your properties could be your only income. Hence, it becomes important that your tenants pay you regularly. Unfortunately, many landlords in Gulf Breeze struggle with rent collection. Rental property management is not easy, especially if you own multiple properties. You may find it difficult to get good tenants, conduct thorough tenant screenings, and have difficulties with property maintenance. However, these issues can be avoided if the homeowner is careful, does thorough checks, and has rules in place before renting out the property. Here are some tips to avoid rent collection problems in Gulf Breeze:
Conduct Thorough Tenant Screenings
Before finalizing an agreement with a tenant, ensure you conduct thorough screenings. If you don’t do this, you run the risk of letting an unreliable tenant live in your home. An unreliable tenant will lead to rent collection and other problems. Adequate tenant screenings will eliminate any unreliable tenants from your potential tenant list. Contact a professional property management company to screen your potential tenants so that you can assess their income, job security, references, and credit rating. This will give you a complete picture of your tenant’s financial condition before signing the lease.
Set Clear Rules
As a landlord, you must set some strict rules about rent collection. If you start making exceptions or are lenient initially, the tenant can start taking advantage and create problems in the future. Some things to make clear before renting out your home are:
- The rent amount
- The payment method
- The payment due date
- A grace period, if any
- A late fee, if any
- The consequences of regular late payments
Informing your tenant about these rules beforehand can save you a lot of trouble. Knowing that there are consequences to late payments and non-payment of rent, the tenant will pay the rent on time.
Don’t Charge A Very High Rent
A wrong rent price can lead to rent collection problems in the future. Though your tenants may agree to the rent initially, if they find out that the rent you are collecting is higher than what is normally charged in the area, they may refuse to pay it or even vacate the property. Do your research or speak to professional property managers to get an idea of the rental amount for your property.
Don’t Accept Partial Payments
Many landlords agree to partial payments from tenants. You should never do this. While it is tempting to get at least some rent from your tenant, allowing such behavior will lead to rent collection problems in the future. While accepting partial rent may help you control a dire financial situation, you will also pass on the message to your tenant that the total rent amount doesn’t matter.
Create a Strong Plan for Part-Time Residents
Gulf Breeze attracts a lot of part-time residents because it is a popular tourist destination. If you lease out your property to part-time tenants during particular months in the year, you may face rent collection problems when they are away. Ensure you have a robust system in place to contact or pursue tenants when they don’t live on your property. Include strict legal consequences in your contract for these tenants to ensure they are aware of their responsibilities.
Adopt Digital Payment Systems
With technological advances today, even rent collection can be done digitally. Adopt digital rent payment systems to avoid late payments or no payments. Digital payments will help you get rent from tenants who leave without clearing their dues. Online payments will remind you and your tenants about rent dates and rent payments through notifications.
Improve Your Interactions With Your Tenant
Having a cordial relationship with your tenants can solve some of your rent collection problems. You might own several properties and may not be able to interact with all your tenants regularly. Even then, how you interact with them, whenever you do, makes a difference. Your way of speaking to your tenant can have a major impact on rent collection. Set strict rules regarding your property, but at the same time, stay friendly with your tenants. If possible, check up on them once in a while and ask if everything is OK with the property. Respond to any issues they may have instead of ignoring them.
Work With Property Managers to Collect Rent for Multiple Properties
If you own just one unit of property, you may be able to handle rent collection on your own. But if you have multiple properties, it is not practical for you to check with every tenant and collect rent. At such times, professional property management companies can help. They can handle all the rent collection, minimize any legal issues, and prevent your property from being vacant for too long.
Hire a Rental Property Management Company
A professional rental property management company will contact your tenants and get the rent on time or come up with solutions to handle difficult tenants.
Rent collection is just one aspect of property management. Besides this, there are various other things that you need to do regularly to ensure your property is well-taken care of and remains in mint condition. An experienced rental property management company like https://myhomespot.com/ can help you with rent collection and handle your property maintenance as well. We help with various aspects of your rental property like marketing your property to prospective tenants, screening your tenants, property maintenance, tenant management, and tenant eviction. Contact us if you own one or more properties in Gulf Breeze and need help managing them.
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