Dallas Rental Property Management Companies on Late Payments

Experienced professionals in Dallas residential property management companies advise landlords that they must have a system in order to correctly handle late rental payments. See some good tips below.

How to Handle Late Rental Payments

Put it all in writing. In order to enforce a system of penalties for late payments, you must clearly inform your residents about what the penalties are, by putting it in the lease they sign. First, you must determine the time that you will allow to elapse before considering a rental payment to be late. Many income property managers offer a grace period of at least a few days.

The lease should also clearly state how much, if anything, you plan to charge as a penalty for late payments. Create a penalty schedule in which you charge higher late fees for higher-priced rentals.

Paying in Part?

Another item your rental agreement should contain is whether or not you plan to allow residents to pay only a portion of their rent. This decision should be based on the cash flow your rental income property generates. If cash is perpetually tight, you may choose to allow renters to make partial rent payments, simply because that is money coming in. Even if it isn't the amount you expected, it may seem better than no payment at all.

Most experts in Dallas rental property management companies advise against allowing renters to pay less than their full rental fees, however. They suggest that it creates bad future habits and makes the next payment harder on the resident, since it will be significantly larger.