A.D. Cantelmo Property Management
Our Business is Property Management in Orange County California
Why the late fee is so important
I do not like imposing a late fee to my Tenants and in my first couple
of years as a Property Manager, I always waived the fee. My theory was that
people who are struggling to pay the rent should not also be burdened with
paying more money out of their pocket for a fee. I wanted to be understanding
and thought my way of managing would bring loyalty from Tenants.
I was wrong, what my leniency brought was more and more late payers,
and most of the time it is the same people over and over.
If a Tenant calls me
and lets me know that something has happened and they will be a couple of days
late, I will be understanding, or if I know when a Tenant moves in that they
get paid on the 3rd of the month then I will give them a couple of
days to pay. But the people who consistently pay their rent late with no explanation
or even prior notice must be charged a late fee with the hope that they will
get tired of paying the fee and start paying on time.
The funny thing is that I still hate charging the fee, but the people
who are late all the time, seem to pay it month after month with no problem. It
bothers me, more then it bothers them. I wish there was a way to get them to
care and pay on time, and I know that if I made arrangements with them to pay
their rent at a later date, they would still be late, but now it would be later in the month then before. For these
people, the late fee is a necessity, because they need to know that there is a
downside to paying late.
The most important thing is to be consistent and fair to all Tenants. I
give every Tenant one late payment and a warning before imposing a late fee.
And again, if they would make arrangements with me prior to the rent being due,
then I will understand and make exceptions. In my business of Property Management in Anaheim
Ca. I don’t want to be the type of Manager that waits every month with glee to
collect fees, even though I know that there are companies that make a very nice chunk of change every month in late fee's. I would much rather all Tenants pay on time, but unfortunately people
will always pay late and I just have to get used to imposing the late fee, as
much as I wish I did not have too.
A.D. Cantelmo Property Management Specializes in Property
Management in Orange County Ca.