Landlord Newsletter - Account Status: Past Due Charges

Dear Fellow Landlord,

How you ask for late rent from your tenant is a key factor in enforcing your agreement with people who may remain as your tenants. That is why I have a number of lease enforcement and collection forms for different situations and approaches.
I hope you won't need the free form below, but I still hope you enjoy the newsletter!

In this newsletter:

• Free Account Status Notification Form
  
• Landlord Tip: Tenant Screening can be easy
• Ask the Attorney, Real Estate Attorney, John Reno
  
• Success Quotes
  

Please e-mail us if you have any questions or would like to add or share any material / information. Have a great month!
John Nuzzolese
John@theLPA.com

The Account Status Notification helps keep your collection efforts organized while you try to bring your struggling tenant accounts back in good standing.

We should never let a tenant get behind in the rent or other charges, right? We are professional landlords and we know better than to let this happen, right? Why then does it still happen anyway?

Using the LPA Urgent Late Notice as a model, I was able to tailor this form to suit my purposes to achieve the results I wanted.

The Account Status Notification easily updates the tenant of their account status, reminds them of any past due balances such as unpaid late fees, attorney fees, etc. and alerts them if legal action is pending.

The form helps to avoid misunderstandings with tenants about what is owed and when it is due.

FREE DOWNLOAD Account Status Notification Account Status Notification - Completed Sample

Landlord Tip:

For many beginning landlords, there is a bit of confusion about how to go about screening applicants for rental property. There is further confusion about how and when to obtain a credit report on the prospect. First, I'd like to explain that you need to pre-screen the tenant manually before spending time and money on a prospect. To do this properly, you will need a good rental application. Next, you will need a reliable credit report provider. Below I've listed links that will take you through the screening process and provide you with the tools you need to do a professional job.

1. How to Screen & Qualify Tenants in 5 Easy Steps
2. The LPA Rental Application
3. The Credit Bureaus of The Landlord Protection Agency

Real Estate Attorney John Reno, an expert in landlord tenant legal matters, has specialized in landlord tenant law for many years. Mr. Reno answers questions asked by LPA members to help solve all kinds of landlord tenant problems.

Dear Mr. Reno:
I have a tenant who is consistently late with her portion of the rent. We have been to court for an eviction several times and DSS has paid her portion, thereby "stopping" our eviction. This last time Legal Aid advised us the tenant paid them the rent to give to us, brought us a check which we refused. We do not want her as a tenant anymore (drug activity, loud, consistent late payment so that we have to go to court, damages) can we return or refuse the $ and continue the eviction (it was not paid within the 3 days) so we served a Notice of Petition and Petition- court was postponed by the judge to review when or if payment needs to be accepted once a proceeding was started. Please help.
Donna, Geneva, NY

A: Your problem is you're in a Non-payment proceeding. You can't throw the check in their face and then evict them for non-payment. You can start a different proceeding to evict for bad conduct, but that requires a 30 day notice to vacate AFTER the lease is up. But if they make payment IN FULL, your non-payment eviction is toast.

If you have a landlord tenant problem you'd like to ask a question about, please feel free to e-mail me your question.
Submit a landlord / tenant question for Mr. Reno
Please try to keep your questions as short and to the point as possible.

"Your life~the way it looks today is a result of your choices...What will you choose today for your tomorrows?" - Robert G. Allen

"I have witnessed the softening of the hardest of hearts by a simple smile." - Goldie Hawn

"Never let the fear of striking out get in your way." - George Herman "Babe" Ruth

"The best antidote to fear is knowledge. Turn fear into opportunity through knowledge." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

"How much did your last tenant problem cost you? I expect your LPA membership to help you eliminate many many tenant problems!" - John Nuzzolese

If you haven't already, please take the opportunity to sign up for The LPA's Quick Check Credit Reports! Quick Check is a simple, fast way to access online credit reports while saving you money!

How to Check your LPA Membership Expiration Date:

1. Be logged in with your LPA username & password
   
2. On the "Main Menu" (top right), click on "Your Orders" (right below your name)
   
3. The beginning date of your membership will be listed to the left of your membership order # in this format: YYYYMMDD
   

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